History Close At Hand: A community coming together to honor Rev. Gregory Leonard

By Beverly C. Tyler

On Sunday, April 14, members of Bethel AME Church in Setauket and the Three Village community came together to celebrate the ministry of Rev. Gregory Leonard who retired in 2020, after twenty-six years as pastor of Bethel AME Church.

I first met Rev. Leonard at the funeral for the Mother of Bethel AME Church, Lucy Agnes Keyes, who died on Friday, September 16, 1994. This was his first funeral at Bethel AME and he said something about getting his feet wet at Bethel or starting here by jumping into the fire. Interesting choice of words, as he soon became the chaplain for the Setauket Fire Department. Mrs. Keyes’ Going Home Celebration was on September 20, 1994.

Rev. Leonard’s extensive community service included serving as chaplain of the Long Island State Veterans Home at Stony Brook University, and the development of Hobbs Farm in Centereach. My wife Barbara noted at the celebration, “My association with Bethel Church and Pastor Leonard began through the Order of St. Luke-a Christian healing ministry. He became one of our two chaplains. Services rotated monthly among  Caroline Church, St. Cuthbert’s in Selden and Bethel.” For us it was a chance to add Christian friends and worship in different ways.

“One of our cherished times was when Pastor Leonard was the spiritual leader for our regional retreat called A Quiet Walk with Jesus. The format was four short talks by the leader who then gave us points for meditation in the quiet times that followed each talk. Pastor Leonard was perfect for this. He had previously attended several of these retreats very quietly. We knew that he would be a wonderful leader, but others were very pleasantly surprised by the leadership of this quiet but dynamic man.”

It was in the spirit of William Sidney Mount that the Bethel AME Church, Setauket and the Museums at Stony Brook held “A Community Coming Together” in the Art Museum on Sunday, February 25, 1996. The reception featured the exhibition, William Sidney Mount: Music is Contagious, plenty of good food — courtesy of Bethel AME — good company, and a few descriptive comments on Mount and on the Three Village Community.

Rev. Leonard, pastor of Bethel AME, opened and closed the museum’s event with an emphasis on the strengths of neighborhood and family, and how important it is to work at getting to know other people in the community-thus adding to the strength of community bonds.

This emphasis of family and community was on display during the Sunday service at Bethel AME on April 21 as well as at the luncheon and talks in honor of Rev. Leonard. Speaker after speaker spoke about his spiritual leadership and his humility. 

As detailed in Bethel AME’s celebration program, “Rev. Leonard built strong ties, bonds and personal relationships with co-workers, community and congregation members. He recalls that his proudest moments during his ministry at Bethel Setauket came in working with members of his leadership team, the congregation and community groups such as Building Bridges, Order of Saint Luke, the Setauket Fire Department and the Vets home.”

Beverly Tyler is Three Village Historical Society historian and author of books available from the Three Village Historical Society, 93 North Country Rd., Setauket, NY 11733. Tel: 631-751-3730. http://WWW.TVHS.org