Rev. Dr. Rolen Lewis Womack, Jr.
The Reverend Dr. Rolen Lewis Womack, Jr. is the founding pastor of Milwaukee's Progressive Baptist Church, which was organized October 26, 1988. While fulfilling his role as pastor/teacher/prophet, he completed his Doctor of Ministry degree at United Theological Seminary in Dayton, Ohio, as a member of a prominent group of preachers who became the first Wyatt Tee Walker Scholars. Dr. Womack is a native of Houston, Texas, a History and Political Science graduate of Texas Southern University and earned his Masters of Divinity degree at Northern Baptist Theological Seminary in Lombard, Illinois.
In his position as the senior pastor, Dr. Womack has worked to define the ministry at Progressive in terms of social justice activism and community advocacy. This model for ministry is rooted in a strong liberation theology context, and features an Afrocentric frame of reference. This ministry includes a Youth Ministry, Music and Stage Ministry, Discipleship, Men's Fellowship, Women's Fellowship, WINGS HIV AIDS ministry, and Custodial and Fiscal Ministries. For integration into the life of the Progressive Church, Dr. Womack wrote a manual called Foundations, which differentiates the role new church members play in the life of the church.
Dr. Womack has recently completed a rebuilding and renovation program for their worship facility, which helped bring the church into the technologically challenging new millennium. The church has grown in both believers and budget, and is recognized as one of the major players in the greater Milwaukee metropolitan area.
Realizing that the traditional African American church has not always chosen to be at the forefront of social, political, and justice issues, Dr. Womack has purposely pursued a different paradigm. He is one of the strongest advocates in the community on public education issues. He has been the subject of countless articles in newspapers and journals, a frequent guest on local radio talk shows, the subject of articles in Education Weekly and other periodicals, a fixture on local television news programs during debates and demonstrations related to justice and education issues.
Dr. Womack is in great demand as a speaker around his community, city, and this country on social justice and public school issues. He has participated in educational forums in Baltimore, Miami, Philadelphia, Tallahassee, Chicago, Austin, Dallas, and Washington, DC. He is the past president of the Wisconsin Baptist Pastors Conference, a director of the Minority Ministers Alliance, past General Secretary of the Wisconsin General Baptist State Convention, one of four members of the Governor's Transition team, and serves on the boards of various social, economic, educational and philanthropic organizations.
He is married to Dr. Betty Washington Womack, and the father of two daughters: Cheray and Brooke.
