Pastor
Brief info
Dr. Atu White serves as Pastor of the Mt. Zion Baptist Church in Springfield, MA. Under his leadership and the prayerful support and labor of the congregation, God has faithfully added over 600 souls to this ministry. Mt. Zion is committed to being a place of healing, help, and hope.
To further serve and invest in the greater Springfield community, Pastor White recently led Mt. Zion in acquiring The Historic Dunbar Community Center. To enhance the property, the Church renovated the building’s old gymnasium to serve as a multi-use performing arts theatre. Pastor White is excited to lead the efforts of another generation being developed, trained and inspired through the Arts, Wellness, and Education that The Dunbar Center provides.
Pastor White believes in building strong partnerships to shape, transform, and impact the community. Through past and current partnerships with such organizations as the YMCA of Greater Springfield, the YWCA of Western Massachusetts, The Center After School Program, Legacy Dance Studio and Johnson’s Red Dragons Martial Arts, The Dunbar provides licensed before & after school programming for over 120 students, sports and athletic programs for 600 youth and 220 adults, and dance instruction and martial arts training for almost 100 kids in the community. In addition, The Dunbar Center recently began a partnership with the Urban League of Springfield and the Food Bank of Western Massachusetts to provide free groceries, with an emphasis on fresh fruits and vegetables, to 350 households on a monthly basis.
Dr. Atu White is an honors graduate of Morris College in Sumter, South Carolina with a BA in Pastoral Ministry. He furthered his studies at Howard University in Washington, D.C., earning a Master of Divinity degree, and he earned his Doctor of Ministry degree from Andover Newton Seminary at Yale Divinity in New Haven, CT. Dr. White is a member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Incorporated, serves as the First Vice President of the United Baptist Convention of Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and New Hampshire, and serves as Chairman for the Board of Trustees of SABIS International Charter School in Springfield, MA.
Dr. Atu White sincerely believes in the words of Apostle Paul “therefore, since we have this ministry, as we have received mercy, we do not lose heart.”