Type=image;ImageID=2191;ImageClass=left;ImageTitle=In recognition of The Rev Dr Oliver A Lyseight;TitleClass=strong;
The Reverend Dr Oliver A Lyseight, who came joint second in a 2004 survey to find the 100 Great Black Britons, was recognised by the Wolverhampton Civic and Historical Society for his service to the New Testament Church of God and the wider community, both locally and nationally.
The Rev Dr Lyseight, who died in 2006, was a founding member and first leader of the church and becomes the first person from the BME community to receive a blue plaque in Wolverhampton.
The plaque was unveiled at a ceremony at the Wednesfield Road, Heath Town, church on Friday evening (20 September, 2013), attended by the Jamaican High Commissioner Aloun Ndombet-Assamba and the chairman of Wolverhampton Civic and Historical Society Suhail Rana as well as MPs Emma Reynolds and Pat McFadden, local councillors, religious dignitaries and family and friends.
The Rev Eric A Brown said: "Dr Lyseight was a bold, confident and courageous leader.
"He had the ability to see the potential in ordinary people and the wisdom to provide opportunities for them to fulfil their purpose."
Dr Lyseight was born in Jamaica and began his Ministry work in 1941. He and his family came to Wolverhampton in 1951. A devoted Christian, he sought a place of worship but soon found that he, and other immigrants, faced a great deal of racism - so much so that some had given up going to church altogether.
Together they realised they would have to start their own church from which they could worship, and established the first UK branch of the New Testament Church of God in Wolverhampton.
Before long, branches had been set up in Birmingham, Walsall and London and Dr Lyseight was appointed as National Overseer by the State Board in the USA. Today, the New Testament Church of God has more than 100 branches across the UK.
The plaque states that, with dedication and commitment, Dr Lyseight "addressed the social, economic and spiritual need of the community."
- released: Thursday 26 September, 2013