Rev. Edler G. Hawkins

In May 1964, Rev. Edler Garnet Hawkins was elected as the first African American moderator of the United Presbyterian Church.

Born in 1908 in New York City, Dr. Hawkins received his Bachelor of Divinity Degree from Union Theological Seminary in 1938.

Dr. Hawkins built his ministry at St. Augustine Presbyterian Church in New York City's South Bronx from nine African American members to an integrated, multilingual congregation of more than 1,000 parishioners.

Edler Hawkins' final service from 1971 until his death in 1977 was a senior faculty member and professor of Practical Theology and African American Studies at Princeton Theological Seminary.

To those who knew him, Dr. Hawkins was an extraordinary man who loved all forms of the arts. He used his enormous talents and energy to help African American young people reach their full potential. Many of the young men and women whom he mentored over 50 years ago are active donors today to the Foundation established in his memory.

How We Began...

In 1978, several adults (some pictured at right with Rev. Hawkins) whom Rev. Hawkins mentored as young adults in the 1940s and 1950s gathered in New York City to establish a foundation to honor the legacy of their friend and counselor.

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