Pastor Kenneth E. Gooden, Sr. accepted the call to preach the Word of God 29 years ago.
He was born in Clarksdale, MS. His parents, Eugene and Evelyn Gooden, raised Kenneth and his older brother, Keith, in a Christian household.
After being baptized at Chapel Hill, Pastor-Elect Gooden participated in Sunday School,
Bible Study, Baptist Training Union (BTU), the Angelic Choir and the Youth Choir. He received training from local and state Christian Education Associations, the Congress of Christian Education and the National Baptist Convention, USA, Inc.
Pastor-Elect Gooden received his primary education from Immaculate Conception
School and his secondary education from Clarksdale Public School System. He
continued his education at Northwest Mississippi Community College and Delta State University.
In 1995, after much praying, Christian education and Bible Study, Pastor-Elect Gooden humbly accepted the call of Jesus Christ to the Ministry. After 5 years of service to Chapel Hill, he accepted the position of Youth Minister, where he energetically served for 14 years.
In January 2014, he accepted the invitation to serve as Interim Pastor of New Covenant Missionary Baptist Church. In November 2014, he was elected Pastor of New Covenant and was installed in December 2014. He faithfully served for almost 10 years while preaching the Word, teaching, building ministries and being a faithful Shepherd to the congregation.
In 2015, Pastor-Elect Gooden became Project Director of the Dating and Domestic
Violence Program at Coahoma Community College. He coordinates the day-to-day
operations of the program and coordinates education and outreach for victims and
survivors of dating violence, domestic abuse, sexual assault and stalking. He designs
customized therapeutic programs and develops the Coordinated Community Response Team.
Pastor-Elect Gooden was elected to be the 18th Pastor of Chapel Hill Missionary
Baptist Church in August 2024. His vision is: To help the lost find Christ and grow
spiritually. To equip the believers for the work of ministry. And to foster an environment that is Christ-centered and community focused.
Pastor-Elect Gooden is married to Mrs. Shakida Phillips Gooden, and sharing in their
joy are: five daughters - Brianna, Brishelle, Brimaya, Tanialyn and Kaitlyn Evelyn Rose; two sons - Jaylon and Kenneth Jr. (KJ); and two grandchildren.