Pastoral Team
Senior Pastor - Rev. Dr. Whitfield D. Blenman
Rev. Dr. Whitfield D. Blenman has been serving as the Senior Pastor of the Solid Rock Church of God in Kissimmee, Florida since May 1998.
Under his leadership, the congregation has grown from an average attendance of 30 to more than 350.
Before moving to Florida, he served as Assistant Pastor of the Brownsville Church of God in Brooklyn, New York and the First Church of God in Far Rockaway, Queens, New York under his mentor Dr. Arthur W. Davenport. Pastor Blenman has served the church at large in many capacities. These include, but are not limited to: President of the Christian Bible Institute 1984-1994; Dean of the Southern California School of Ministry, New York Campus 1994-1997 and Secretary of the Eastern New York Ministerial Assembly and Credentials Committee Member from 1991-1997.
Pastor Blenman is a graduate of Warner Pacific College in Portland, Oregon. In 1996 he was awarded an honorary doctorate degree from the Southern California School of Ministry in recognition of his outstanding leadership in the Church of God in New York City and beyond. In October 2002, he was awarded The Caribbean and Floridian Association Community Service Award for outstanding and dedicated service to the community.
Pastor Blenman and our first lady Jo-Ann Blenman are the parents of two children, Jerè and Jonathan, who are both serving in ministry at Solid Rock. They have a son-in-law Jonathan, who they affectionately call ‘SIL’, who also serves alongside them in ministry. They are also the proud grandparents of one granddaughter, Janaè.
Youth Minister - Pastor Mark Nelson
Mark Nelson of Queens, NY was educated in the Long Island School System. He holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Sociology from Virginia State University and a Masters in Criminal Justice from John Jay College in New York City. He has 17 years of experience combined working with the Police Athletic League, Boys and Girls Clubs and in the Juvenile Detention sector.
Mark has dedicated his life to helping youth at risk as demonstrated in various positions that he has held. Mark worked for Rockaway Development & Revitalization Corporation in Far Rockaway, NY where he was a Youth Counseling Coordinator. There he placed youth between the ages of 14-24 and adults in various jobs and conducted counseling sessions and career readiness workshops in local schools, the community and offices of the Rockaway Development Center.
Mark later worked for the New York City Dept. of Probation for 5 years as a Resource Specialist. There he established and maintained an ongoing liaison of networking and advocacy with public and private provider agencies providing services in such areas as mental health, alcohol and substance abuse, domestic violence, sex offenders, vocational training, job development and job placement.
Mark also maintained on-site consultation and problem resolution with Intense Supervision Professionals and Management staff regarding the adequacy and availability of need based services with particular emphasis on the referral process.
He became a Probation Officer where he provided enhanced supervision services including frequent office interviews, home visits and collateral contacts. He participated in a wide range of group counseling activities including weekly cognitive skills training, life strategies and groups. He also participated in a wide range of cultural/recreational activities.
Mark also served as Youth Director for his local church in Far Rockaway, NY. While in this position he led a very successful group called Teens Living for Christ. In 1997 Mark relocated to Atlanta, GA where he worked for the Marietta Youth Detention Services for 4 ½ years. Mark decided to take a different approach to serving youth. He wanted to go back to being involved with youth on the preventive end instead of in the area detention.
He began working at Seeds of Faith Christian Academy as the Program Director of their After school Program and Summer Camp. He was there for five years when God called him to the Florida to serve as the Youth Pastor at Solid Rock Church of God in Kissimmee, FL. Mark now resides in Florida with his wife, Rachel, and their two sons Mark II and Mitchell.
Mark gives oversight to the IMPACT YOUTH MINISTRIES at Solid Rock Church of God. The goal of the ministry is to impact the lives of the children and youth in the community by teaching them about Jesus Christ and being a living witness before them. He will guide the ministry with God’s wisdom in offering mentorship, tutoring, computer classes and recreational activities to name a few. Currently IMPACT YOUTH MINISTRIES meets every Saturday from 2:00 pm to 7:00 pm.
Associate Minister -- Elder Elton P. Noel
Elder Elton P. Noel, Sr. is a native of the islands of Trinidad and Tobago. At a young age his family relocated to Brooklyn, New York. He surrendered his life to Christ at the age of 19 and has served the Lord in various areas of ministry. In 1989 He relocated his family to Kissimmee, Florida where they currently reside. Elder Noel is a teaching Elder and an Associate Minister at Solid Rock Church of God. He currently gives oversight to the new members’ classes and serves on the Pastoral staff.
Elder Noel is a current student at Warner University, Lake Wales, Florida where he is pursuing an Associate in Science degree in Biblical Studies and also a Bachelor of Science degree in Transformational Church Ministry. A devoted husband and father, Elder Noel has been married to his beautiful wife Gwendolyn for 27 years and they have three children, Elton Jr., Tiffany and David and three beautiful grandsons Jayden, Izaiah and Elijah.
Elder Noel desire is to preach the Word of God with fire and passion transforming lives for the Kingdom of God. His favorite scripture and one he truly lives by comes from Romans 8:28 “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.
Associate Minister -- Rev. Dr. Eloise Morgan
Reverend Dr. Eloise R. Morgan a native of Chicago Illinois relocated to Kissimmee, Florida in November 2007 and became a member of Solid Rock Church of God where she serves as an Associate Minister. A licensed Clinical Professional Counselor, she serves as the church’s pastoral care counselor and one of the teachers of the New Membership Class. Dr. Morgan received an honorary Doctor of Divinity degree in May 2005 conferred by Southern California School of Ministry. She holds a Masters of Arts degree from Governors State University, a Bachelor of Science degree from the College of St Frances, and is a registered Nurse graduate from Grady Memorial Hospital. Dr. Morgan’s extensive travel within the U.S.A. and abroad complements her credentials and experience.
Dr. Morgan was ordained as a minister in the state of Illinois in 1995. She served alongside her husband, the late Dr. Marcus H. Morgan as First Lady of Emerald Avenue Church of God, Chicago IL, until his retirement in October 1995. In her capacity as First Lady, she was instrumental in establishing several support groups - an alcohol and drug rehabilitation group and a grief recovery group among others. Upon the passing of her husband, she served in the capacity of Co-Pastor of the Hazel Crest Community Church of God. Concurrently, she assisted with the Evangelism Program. She then served as the interim pastor after the resignation of the senior pastor. Dr. Morgan continued in this position at Hazel Crest Community Church until the installation of their new senior pastor. She continued her service as associate pastor until retirement in October 2007.
The title of Co-Pastor Emeritus was bestowed upon her at her retirement.
Dr. Morgan’s service to the body of believers stretched beyond the local fellowship. She was actively involved in several committees within the Church of God - Anderson, Indiana. She presided as Chairperson of the National Intercultural Relations Committee; The National Women’s Group and the Illinois State Ministers of the Church of God as mentor to those aspiring to become ordained ministers. She also led conferences that focused on intercultural relations, racial issues, self-esteem, and marriage and family.
Dr. Morgan is the widow of the late Dr. Marcus H Morgan and the mother of three biological children. Her daughter Sandy Hines resides with her here in Kissimmee, Fl and is a member of Solid Rock Church. Her eldest son Rudolph Goode resides in Chicago and her youngest son - Pastor Kevin Goode resides in Akron Ohio. She has ten stepchildren who all reside in Chicago except for one who resides in Virginia.
Dr. Morgan continues to practice in Florida as a Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor specializing in marriage and family therapy, pre-marital counseling, adult / individual, adolescent / child psychotherapy, and grief counseling.
Dr. Morgan’s sincere desire is to serve the body of believers and the community where needed. Her deepest passion is to win souls to Jesus Christ, and to teach, train, and encourage them to be obedient to the teachings of Christ, thereby bringing glory to God.
