- Constant Spring Road Church of God dedicated its first building in July 1956
- The congregation began with members who transferred from the Highholborn Street Church of God
- It has set up a basic school, a computer training centre and a food pantry
- A neighbouring congregation, Grace Missionary Church, also turns 70 this year
The Constant Spring Road Church of God is marking 70 years of ministry from its home at 93B Constant Spring Road in Kingston, the Gleaner reported on August 5, 2026. The congregation, part of the Church of God in Jamaica, began with a small group of members who transferred from the Highholborn Street Church of God, and its original building was dedicated in July 1956 under its first pastor, American missionary Rev Edgar Williams.
Since 1958 the church has been led by Jamaican pastors, including Rev Cleve Grant, Rev Winston George Lewis and Rev Joseph Gordon. It is now headed by Rev Darren McKoy.
Over the years the church has reached well beyond Sunday worship. It set up a basic school, runs Sunday school and youth ministries, and created a community food pantry for families in need. It also opened a computer training centre and provided online learning facilities for students during the COVID-19 pandemic.
A 70th anniversary service was set for Sunday, August 9, at 9 a.m. at the church, with guest speakers Rev Courtney Gordon, executive chairman of the Church of God in Jamaica, and Rev Mark Dawes, pastor of the neighbouring Grace Missionary Church, which is also celebrating 70 years. Church leaders invited former attendees and the wider community to join them.
The story is a good example of how a church site can serve its community for decades. A congregation rooted at one address on one of Kingston’s main roads has built a basic school, a food pantry and a computer training centre around its worship, adapting as the neighbourhood’s needs changed. Two neighbouring congregations reaching 70 in the same year shows how long church land along the corridor has stayed in religious use. For urban congregations, the lesson is that a well-located site is most valuable when it is used all week, not just on Sundays.
