Rev. Allen Paul Weaver Jr., prominent New Rochelle pastor, dies at 75

Mike Randall, Times Herald-Record
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NEW ROCHELLE − Rev. Allen Paul Weaver Jr., the longtime senior pastor of Bethesda Baptist Church in New Rochelle and a nationally known church leader, has died at 75.

Weaver, who had been scheduled to retire at the end of the year, died June 19 due to complications from major surgery.

He led Bethesda Baptist, one of New Rochelle's oldest churches, for 43 years. For the last eight years, Weaver worked with his son, Rev. Allen Paul Weaver III, who is currently the co-pastor of the church.

The Rev. Allen Paul Weaver Jr. at a 2008 celebration of the dedication of the Dr. C.M. Long Sr. Family Life Center at Bethesda Baptist Church in New Rochelle.
The Rev. Allen Paul Weaver Jr. at a 2008 celebration of the dedication of the Dr. C.M. Long Sr. Family Life Center at Bethesda Baptist Church in New Rochelle.

Weaver had been very active in New Rochelle civic affairs. He was a past president of the New Rochelle chapter of the NAACP and the Ministerial Alliance of New Rochelle, and a past board member of the Inter-Religious Coalition of New Rochelle.

He also was a past member of the board of directors of the New Rochelle YMCA and the City of New Rochelle Commission on Charter Revision.

While at Bethesda, Weaver mentored many male and female ministers who went on to become pastors of their own churches or lead their own ministries.

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Weaver loved to teach and often lectured nationally and abroad. He served as an instructor at the New York Theological Seminary in New York City and the Alliance Theological Seminary in Nyack.

The Rev. Allen Paul Weaver Jr. and his wife Nettie Weaver enter a 2005 celebration of his 25th anniversary as pastor of Bethesda Baptist Church in New Rochelle.
The Rev. Allen Paul Weaver Jr. and his wife Nettie Weaver enter a 2005 celebration of his 25th anniversary as pastor of Bethesda Baptist Church in New Rochelle.

He was affiliated with the American Baptist Churches USA and the National Baptist Convention USA. He was dean of the United Missionary Baptist Association and a past president of the Baptist Ministers Conference of Greater New York and Vicinity.

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Weaver's funeral was held June 29 at Bethesda Baptist Church.

Mike Randall covers breaking news for the Times Herald-Record, Poughkeepsie Journal and The Journal News/lohud. Reach him at mrandall@th-record.com or on Twitter @mikerandall845.

This article originally appeared on Times Herald-Record: Prominent New Rochelle pastor Allen Paul Weaver dies at 75