NASHVILLE, Tennessee – Spruce Street Baptist Church, “the Mother Church of African American churches,” will honor powerful women during a day of faith and fellowship during Worship Service on Sunday, March 23, 2025, at 11 a.m. The service is open to the public and will feature stirring music and an inspiring message by, Dr. Crystal A. deGregory, associate professor of history and the founding director of the Mary McLeod Bethune Institute for the Study of Women and Girls at Bethune-Cookman University in Daytona Beach, Florida. This year’s theme is “GPS: Guiding Principles for Spirituality.” (Romans 12:3, 9-13)
“We are looking forward to a dynamic service as we celebrate the women in our ministry,” said Ramona Pulce, 2025 Women’s Day Chair. “Women’s Day at Spruce Street has always been a day filled with spiritual nourishment and will once again provide an opportunity for Christian women to come together, learn from one another and be uplifted.”
“Women have always played a vital role in the church as well as in the community,” said Dorothy Starnes, 2025 Women’s Day Co-Chair. “We invite everyone to join Spruce Street as we recognize those contributions during Women’s Month.”
The guest speaker has unique ties to Spruce Street Baptist Church as a former beloved member. deGregory is a historian and storyteller whose research interests include Black higher education and college student activism. Known for her collaborative advocacy and entrepreneurial leadership, she is also the founder and director of two digital storytelling projects – HBCUstory and Dorian and Beyond, a digital storytelling project of Hurricane Dorian in The Bahamas.
A gifted orator and sought-after commentator, deGregory offers a wide range of expertise on multiple topics including race, women and girls, history, culture, education, and Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). A proud native of The Bahamas and a Phi Beta Kappa alumna of the historic Fisk University, she also earned a Master of Education from Tennessee State University, and Master of Arts and Doctor of Philosophy degrees in History from Vanderbilt University.
About Spruce Street Baptist Church
Spruce Street Baptist Church, known as the “Mother Church” of African American churches in Nashville, originally began as the First Colored Baptist Church in 1841 when the congregation at First Baptist Church at 7th and Broad permitted its Negro members to hold a separate meeting under the superintendence of a Standing Committee on Negro Problems. Formally this congregation would remain a mission of the white church until the end of the War Between the States. In September 1865, the First Baptist Church of Nashville agreed to the ecclesiastical separation rendered necessary by the war. By 1873, the members of the First Colored Baptist Church had grown to approximately 3,000 members. The church was incorporated as Spruce Street Baptist Church in 1895 and has been served by some of the greatest preachers, theologians, scholars, orators, financiers and has developed laymen and laywomen who have held outstanding positions throughout America. Throughout the years, Spruce Street Baptist Church has been highly involved in the community establishing outreach efforts that include the Spruce Street Community Development Corporation, a non-profit established in 2000 that addresses the social, educational, and economic needs of families through summer and after-school academic and youth enrichment programs, and family development services. Additionally, the church established Spruce Street Golden Manor, a residential facility for low-income seniors; and the Spruce Street House of Hope, which provides independent living for people with physical disabilities. Visit www.sprucestreetbaptist.org.
