Plaques emblazoned “Man of the Year” among other accolades cover the walls of the office, and photographs of his family sit on his desk. Besides the faint noise of a fan in the distance and the occasional ringing of a telephone, the office seems calm and peaceful. His royal purple suit with gold accents clashed with the calm atmosphere of the room. His vibrant attire and the awards adorning the walls only scratch the surface of this man, best known as Reverend Keith Elijah Thompson.

Reverend Thompson is currently the presiding pastor of Bronx Miracle Gospel Tabernacle Word of Faith Ministries in the Allerton-Pelham gardens community. This September was a milestone for Pastor Thompson, marking 32 years of service in the neighborhood.

A native from the island of Jamaica,  Reverend Thompson made his way to The United States in the late 1960’s. The Reverend was not always sure if being a pastor was his calling. “I tried running away from it,” he said. His initial hope was to become a tailor and designer in America after graduating from a design school in Brooklyn in the 1970’s. In addition to wanting to be a tailor, Pastor Thompson said he also aspired to open a grocery store, “The spirit of entrepreneurship was always in me,” said the Reverend.

Upon moving to the neighborhood 32 years ago,  Pastor Thompson  noticed that there was a scarcity of churches in the area. Within any community he felt it was necessary to have a church as the foundation. “The church serves the community in various areas. In weddings, funerals or just for individuals seeking counsel. My heart is to serve the people of the community.” His hopes were to begin with his church and immediate community and then spread his vision across the Bronx.

He began seeking out like-minded individuals in the community, business men/women that were looking to make a positive change in the area. He proceeded to show love and extend himself the best way he could throughout the neighborhood. His work was effective within the community leading him to become the Vice President of the Burke Avenue Merchant Association. This led to his later involvement with the Clergy Coalition of The 47th police precinct. Reverend Thompson worked his way up through the ranks as a clergy member “ when the 47th precinct was established, I joined in as just a member, then I became assistant treasurer, then the treasurer, and then one of the vice presidents.” He has served about 12 years in the organization and is still apart of the clergy coalition, serving as a liaison for community affairs.

With 12 years of service to the clergy coalition under his belt, Reverend Thompson decided to further extend himself out to the community. Pastor Thompson opened a resource center right next door to his church. “If you desire to serve your community,  education is one of the most essential things to achieve your goals and be successful.” The resource center provides classes for individuals preparing to take their G.E.D. (general equivalency diploma) free of charge. The resource center became his opportunity to spread his vision past his own neighborhood, “I am now able to not only serve my community but people from all over seeking to better themselves.” He wanted to extend the services of the resource center; however funding was limited. The Reverend said, “Even thou the heart is willing, sometimes the flesh is not so strong.” Few individuals have tried to reach out, but overall the funding to keep the resource center up and running was lacking. “When you have the bills rolling in and teachers to pay, it becomes hard without the support and I was doing this for many years without any income from it.” The center now provides job training and job placement programs, however, the G.E.D. classes are now administered by someone else.

The Reverend’s work with youth and education does not stop there. He is the dean of El Shaddai Preschool and has been since its opening in 2001. To Pastor Thompson, the youth is the start and end of it all. If you can start children on the right path, you give them a chance to become better adults that will later serve their community. Pastor Thompson said, “ The reverence of God has been removed from the public schools. The youth today are growing up without any reverence for humanity or God, and it becomes a danger zone.” A father of four, Pastor Thompson believes these core values should not be kept from the youth, “It’s the same respect they have for God, that they will have for their teachers, parents and fellow man.”

One of his last entrepreneurial ventures was the renting out of an apartment building in the neighborhood. His hopes were to provide housing for people at a reasonable cost. However, many people took his title as a Reverend and his giving heart for granted and began defaulting on their rent. He said, “It is not easy dealing with people when they don’t pay their rent; it’s hard for you to survive. As a pastor they know my merciful nature and will live in the apartment and not pay any rent.” Even with the discussion of tenants taking advantage of his good will Pastor Thompson still manages a bright smile.

Overall, Reverend Thompson has seen the neighborhood change. He’s seen people come and go, businesses open and close, but yet his church remains at 821 Burke Avenue. When asked what would be his next venture he said, “The lord is the true visionary.  My hope is to get a bigger church for the lord, and to continue to spread my message of love.” His daughter, Sharice Thompson, summed it up, “No matter what my dad does, or what ever you may ask him, he will bring it back to God, that is the foundation for all of his beliefs.”

Pastor Thompson has left a great mark on this community, and his work is not yet finished. “He is unique and he knows who is. He is not intimidated by rank or authority– respecting their positions, but still he knows who he is, and that’s a powerful thing,” said Jeanette Brown, secretary of the church.

Pastor Thompson is a man of many faces, a husband, father, entrepreneur, and a community activist. If you see him out and about, you may hear people address him as Rabbi, Chief Apostle, Reverend, and even Mr. Burke Avenue, but to the countless people he has helped, he is just Pastor Thompson.

Podcast: Reverend Thompson discusses future goals and Jeanette Brown commends his style.