SPEECH OF
HON. CORRINE BROWN
OF FLORIDA
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 9, 2011
HON. CORRINE BROWN
OF FLORIDA
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 9, 2011
- Mr. Speaker, on behalf of the constituents of the Third Congressional District of Florida, I rise to recognize and wish a Happy Birthday to Bishop James E. McKnight, a man of God and leader to the community of Gainesville, FL.
- Bishop James E. McKnight was born March 14, 1930, and is a life-long resident of Gainesville, Florida. He has been married to Jessie M. McKnight over 56 years with three sons and one daughter.
- As a man for whom education was key, Bishop McKnight graduated from Lincoln High School in Gainesville, Florida and attended Florida A & M University in Tallahassee, Florida. Bishop McKnight was not only a religious and community leader but also a patriot, he joined the U.S. Army and received special training in the Intelligence Division while serving in the Korean War from 1951-1953. Bishop McKnight has been a pastor in the Church of God by Faith for 53 years. He is presiding pastor of Gainesville Church of God by Faith in Gainesville, Florida, where he and his wife have served as leaders for over 50 years.
- Under his leadership at Gainesville Church of God by Faith, a new building was built in 1973, and renovated and expanded in 1990. Bishop McKnight is very involved in the community and has served as a Board Member of the Eastside Clinic and development projects and the Black on Black Crime Task Force for many years. He was instrumental in offering their place of worship as a shelter to the residents of the former Kennedy Homes Apartment Building, who were displaced by fire in 2003. He received an award as a distinguished leader in the Gainesville Community in March of 2007. Bishop McKnight is highly respected and well known as a "Praying Man" in the Gainesville community and surrounding areas, and the National Church of God by Faith.