About Us

Over the years, Pleasant Grove Baptist Church has been a continuously moving Christian lifeline for its people. Being inspired by the Divine Province of God, the church was founded in August 1907, by Sister Addie E. Thomas, who had received early training in Christian principles at Mount Hope Baptist Church. Her strong faith encouraged the aid of others including Daniel Thomas, Luther Hemsley, Rev. Dickson and Rev. R.B. Ward who often preached services held at Sister Thomas' home. Eventually, services were so well attended that Sister Thomas' home could no longer serve as a meeting place and she convinced Mr. Thomas Simmons to donate the land needed to erect a church. Early parishioners like to tell how the church was named. It seems that Rev. Ward asked Sister Thomas what name she planned, and she answered, "Greater Grove." The Reverend shook his head, smiling, "You are always smiling so pleasantly", he told her, why not call it "Pleasant Grove"? The land in the grove was filled with trees and stumps, but these were small obstacles. Each day, Sister Thomas would go down to the grove with her family to dig up trees and burn bushes. Sister Thomas had many fond memories of Mr. Charlie Simpson, who stopped every evening on his way home from work to help. In two weeks, a quarter of an acre of land had been cleared and the stump holes filled. Sister Thomas bought lumber, built a platform for the preacher and made 25 long benches to seat the congregation. Then she placed three chairs from her house on the platform, brought out the family bible, and put bushes over the pulpit for shade. This provided a larger area to worship and praise His Holy Name. But, the struggle went on, and with God's blessing and under the leadership of Rev. R.B. Ward, a building for Pleasant Grove be-came a reality in July of 1910.

REVEREND WILLIAM A. COATES

On July 13, 2019, with an anointing on his life, Reverend Coates became the 9th Pastor of the 112-year-old Pleasant Grove Missionary Baptist Church located in Marbury, Maryland. 

Pastor Coates, a son of Pleasant Grove and great-grandson of its founder Addie E. Thomas, preached his initial sermon on October 5, 2013. On April 13, 2018, Reverend Coates was set apart publicly and ordained to the work of the Gospel Ministry under the direction of Pastor Emeritus Carl V. Messiah and Reverend Arthur J. Patterson.

Prior to becoming Pastor, Reverend Coates served the church in many capacities: Assistant Superintendent of Sunday Schools, facilitator of the Thursday Night Prayer Line, Spiritual Advisor to the Youth Department and Young Soldiers for Christ, Adult and Teen Sunday School Teacher, Vice President of the Pleasant Grove Black History Auxiliary, and founder and manager of the gospel group “Deacon and the Boyz”. Pastor Coates is a father figure to many children in the church and the community and has been a teen mentor for numerous years. 

A veteran of the United States Marine Corps, Pastor Coates received a Bachelor of Science Degree in African American History/Education from Bowie State University in Bowie, Maryland and is currently pursuing a Master of Divinity with a concentration in Pastoral Leadership at Andersonville Theological Seminary located in Camilla, Georgia. 

Pastor Coates wholeheartedly believes in the power of prayer. One of his favorite passages of Scripture is 2 Chronicles 7:14 “If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.”

 
A native of Prince Georges County, Maryland, Pastor Coates, the youngest of three children born to Russell and Annette Coates. Pastor Coates resides in Rison, Maryland with his wife, First Lady Jamel Coates. They have five adult sons Joshua, Jahrod, Jairus, Dylon, Dvante and ten grandchildren.