18 Oct On This Day in UB History: October 18 (Fleming Memorial Church)

Dr. George Fleming was the Mission director when Jamaica Conference was founded in 1944. In 1947, the work expanded beyond Kingston to the city of Mandeville, 60 miles away. In 1951, a new church was dedicated outside of Mandeville in the ara known as Battersea. It was christened Fleming Memorial Church.

The church was torn down in 1979 to make room for a new road, but the government promised to build a new church–and they did. The new Fleming Memorial Church was dedicated on October 18, 1981, by Jerry Datema during his first visit to the island as bishop.

Datema wrote, “When I returned and told Fleming how beautiful it was, I knew he wouldn’t be content until he had seen his beloved church.”

In 1982, Dr. Fleming made a three-week trip to Jamaica, during which he visited a dozen churches, including the church named in his honor. Though 93 years old, he was in good health and preached 13 times.

Dr. Fleming passed away a year later. We’ll talk about his life in ten days.