SDA School Chaplain Appointed to Lead Her First Church District
On Dominica, the East Caribbean Conference emphatically endorsed the Seventh-day Adventist Church’s position on female leadership in pastoral ministry, by installing Ellery Howe as pastor of the South Eastern Church District Seventh-day Adventist (SDA) Church district on January 27, 2024.
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Pastoral support for Pastor Ellery Howe shone brightly during the installation service. Several pastors serving the island of Dominica were present. The lineup from left to right features Pastor Lester Joseph, dedicated leader of the city district; Mrs. Priscilla Prevost, Health Director at ECC; the honored Pastor Ellery Howe; Pastor Ernest Pendenque; Pastor Maurice Morancie, Ministerial Secretary at ECC; and the esteemed Pastor Albert Matthew. Image by ECC Media.
On Dominica, the East Caribbean Conference emphatically endorsed the Seventh-day Adventist Church’s position on female leadership in pastoral ministry, by installing Ellery Howe as pastor of the South Eastern Church District Seventh-day Adventist (SDA) Church district on January 27, 2024. Previously, Pastor Howe served the Arthur Waldron SDA Academy with distinction – for five years. From this chaplaincy ministry to a wide cross-section of the community, she emerged to achieve the milestone of first female SDA pastor to lead a church district in Dominica, since Adventism reached its shores in 1901.
The president of the East Caribbean Conference (ECC), Pastor Anthony Hall, addressed the district’s constituency and disclosed, “The Executive Committee of the East Caribbean Conference voted to employ her as the first female pastor on the island of Dominica. She is already a ministerial worker serving as a chaplain at our school and when the vacancy arose, she was the most qualified person available. Her service as a chaplain allowed her to provide pastoral care for students, parents, and staff members. She visited the homes of the school community and baptized a number of students, over the years. She is the third female pastor to be employed by the ECC.”
As he welcomed Pastor Howe to the three-church district, Pastor Hall said, "Ellery Howe is certified, qualified, competent, and capable. I, therefore, have no trouble recommending her to you as the first ever female pastor on the island of Dominica. Southeastern district, I present to you, your new pastor – Pastor Ellery Howe. This is an important day, a historic day.” He thanked Pastor Howe for her loyalty, dedication, and committed service, and expressed assurance that her contribution to ministry would continue to be extraordinary.
"Mrs. Priscilla Prevost, Health Director of the East Caribbean Conference, stands alongside Pastor Anthony Hall, President of the East Caribbean Conference, as they warmly welcome Pastor Ellery Howe to her new pastoral assignment. Image by ECC Media.
Pastor Howe thanked the ECC for her sacred appointment and their confidence in her leadership. Her message of exhortation urged all members to be active participants in the mission, while awaiting the coming of Jesus. She emphasized that whatever God has for you may be delayed but it cannot be denied, which was evident in the life of David and described in 1 Samuel.
Pastor Ellery Howe acknowledged her parents, Claribel Serrant and Truman Howe, her birth in Mahaut, and her call to ministry. She celebrated the contributions of Priscilla Prevost, Francess Riviere, Hana Theodore (Teacher Ruth) and Clare Henry, who help her to have an unshakable faith in God. “Clare FedEx my application to the University of the Southern Caribbean and gave me courage to move by faith,” she stated. “I could not be here today without their contributions.”
She has always been passionate about serving God and as a young Catholic, she was hand-picked to serve as a nun. However, by the age of twenty, she had accepted the Adventist message and dedicated her life wholeheartedly to God. Beyond being hand-picked by people, she felt that God selected her and gave her the desire to become a minister of the gospel. Ellery Howe was reluctant to answer God’s call and admitted, “There was a reluctance because of the atmosphere and theological position of our denomination. The call was a crossroad for me. Was I going to trust the reality of what I saw or was I going to trust the call that I felt on my life?”
Pastor Ellery Howe addressed the Boetica Seventh-day Adventist (SDA) Church district for the first time as their pastor on January 27, 2024. Standing at the pulpit with a sense of purpose and dedication. Image by ECC Media
Upon deciding to follow the call, she embarked on a spiritual and educational journey. “It was the most powerful experience because I saw the hand of God. When God revealed to me that this is what he wanted me to do, I knew that I would need to be academically prepared,” Ellery Howe stated. In 2006, her tenure at the University of the Southern Caribbean, in Trinidad, began. She was driven by her motto “faith only”, and depended on God for provision as she lacked resources to pursue her degree. In 2011 Ellery Howe graduated from Andrews University, in Michigan (USA), and received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Theology, with an Emphasis in Pastoral Ministry.
Pastor Howe’s faith was tested by a debilitating illness at a pivotal point in her professional pursuit. She trusted God who led her into service at the Arthur Waldron SDA Academy, as chaplain, from January 2019 to 2024. Pastor Howe is convinced that God’s promise carried her through, and added, “When we walk in faith and see obstacles in the natural, we have to look to heaven. My testimony is one that points to heaven. My courage comes from my faith in who God is and I wouldn’t change this journey. It was never about me. It was what God wanted to do through me. All of this was for his glory.”
Mrs. Carlotta Challenger, Principal Arthur Waldron SDA Academy was present to witness the installation service at the Boetica Seventh-day Adventist. Image by ECC Media
Sister Carlotta Challenger, Principal of Arthur Waldron SDA Academy, and Dr. Daphney Magloire, Education Director of the Caribbean Union Conference, were present to witness the momentous progress of their colleague. They joined the pastors and elders to welcome Pastor Howe.
The ECC leadership announced that Pastor Albert Matthew will serve as the chaplain of the school while he continues as the associate pastor in the northern district of Dominica, along with Pastor Colin Bacchus. Pastor Hall noted that the conference had already employed a female pastor in Barbados and the reality of the first female pastor for a district in Dominica had now come to fruition. His hope has been to include all in ministry, as God can use anyone, and not to marginalize the giftedness of women. His hope, as president of the ECC, is aligned with the position of the Inter-American Division of the General Conference, as reported during a meeting of the General Conference Theology of Ordination Study Committee (TOSC), held in January 2014. The IAD is the parent organization of the Caribbean Union Conference which oversees the East Caribbean Conference, and both support the IAD’s consensus.