Rev. Dr. William Eugene Crowder, Jr. serves as Regional Minister and President of the future Living Waters Region of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). A lifelong leader in the church, he brings deep pastoral experience, a commitment to justice, and a passion for community transformation to his role. His ministry is shaped by a conviction that the church is called to be both spiritually grounded and actively engaged in the life of the world.

Dr. Crowder has served congregations in a variety of pastoral and leadership roles and is widely respected for his ability to build partnerships, strengthen congregations, and lead with vision and integrity. He most recently served as Senior Pastor of Historic Park Manor Christian Church in Chicago, where his leadership has helped advance significant community development initiatives, including affordable senior housing and violence-prevention efforts in partnership with civic and faith leaders.

He is deeply engaged in the wider life of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), serving as President of the National Convocation Board of Trustees and previously as Chair of the Committee on Ministry for the Illinois, Wisconsin, and Michigan region. His leadership reflects a commitment to faithful governance, public witness, and collaborative ministry across the church.

Dr. Crowder holds a Master of Divinity from United Theological Seminary and a Doctor of Ministry from Memphis Theological Seminary. Dr. Crowder is married to the former Dr. Stephanie Buckhanon, who currently serves as Full Professor of New Testament at Chicago Theological Seminary. The Crowders are the very proud parents of two sons, William Rowland Jackson Crowder, a graduate student at the Meadows School of the Arts at Southern Methodist University, and the late Sollomon Rowland Buckhanon.

Alvin O’Neal Jackson, born in Laurel, Mississippi and raised in Indianola, Mississippi, attended Chapman College in Orange, California and graduated with honors from Butler University in Indianapolis, Indiana with a bachelor’s degree in Sociology.

He received his Master of Divinity (M.Div.) degree, also with honors, from Duke University, School of Divinity, Durham, North Carolina. In 1991 he completed the coursework and was awarded the Doctor of Ministry (D.Min.) degree from the United Theological Seminary in Dayton, Ohio.

Dr. Jackson has also received honorary degrees from Rhodes College, Memphis, Tennessee; Lynchburg College, Lynchburg, Virginia; Bethany College, Bethany, West Virginia; Jarvis Christian College, Hawkins, Texas; and the Southern California School of Religion, Los Angeles, California.

He has served as Pastor of Loudon Avenue Christian Church, Roanoke, Va., and Associate Pastor of Second Christian Church, Indianapolis, Indiana. For almost 20 years, Dr. Jackson was Senior Pastor of Mississippi Boulevard Christian Church of Memphis, a congregation that experienced phenomenal growth under his leadership. The church had a participating membership of 350 when he arrived and grew to over 8,000 participating members, making it, at the time, the largest and fastest growing Disciples congregation in the United States and Canada.

Dr. Jackson served as Senior Pastor of National City Christian Church and President of the National City Christian Church Foundation in Washington, DC, from April 1998 to November 2004. Under his leadership, the traditionally white congregation became increasingly diverse in membership, staff, and styles of worship. From 2001–2003, Dr. Jackson served as Moderator of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ).

In September 2006 he became Senior Pastor of Park Avenue Christian Church of New York City. In September 2016, he retired from active pastoral ministry and relocated to Jacksonville, Florida, where he is President of the JAX Initiative, LLC, serving as Coach/Mentor for Pastors and Churches across the country and Advisor/Strategist for Bishop William J. Barber, II of the Poor People’s Campaign: A National Call for Moral Revival. He also serves as National Faith Convener for the Mass Poor People’s and Low-Wage Workers’ Assembly and Moral March on Washington and to the Polls.

Dr. Jackson is married to the former Tina Brown of Roanoke, Virginia, and they have one son, Cullen O’Neal Jackson of Memphis.