Hopkinsville man named associate pastor at historic Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta

A Hopkinsville man has been named associate pastor at the historic Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta, where civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. preached.

The Rev. Donavan Pinner, who recently earned his Master of Divinity from Princeton Theological Seminary, will serve as associate pastor of children and youth at Ebenezer. Pinner studied philosophy and religion at Morehouse College in Atlanta before enrolling in the seminary.

Pinner served as associate minister at Virginia Street Baptist Church from 2013 to 2022. After graduating from Morehouse College, he served as a special education teacher for one year in Christian County Public Schools.

Ebenezer Baptist Church was founded in 1886. The Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. became co-pastor of Ebenezer with his father in 1960. He remained a member of the church until his assassination on April 4, 1968, in Memphis. King’s funeral was held at Ebenezer.

The Rev. Dr. Raphael G. Warnock, a U.S. senator who became Ebenezer’s senior pastor in 2005, announced Pinner’s selection to serve at the Atlanta church in June. He shared with the church a short video of Pinner in Hopkinsville.

The church now has 6,000 members, according to its website.

Hoptown Chronicle is an independent, nonprofit news outlet dedicated to providing accurate, fact-based information to people who care about Hopkinsville, Kentucky. We believe public service journalism serves the social, cultural and economic well-being of the community by fostering knowledge, connection and meaning.