Bro. Thomas Thornton
Brother Thomas Thornton starts and ends nearly every day by participating on the prayer line here at St. Matthew A.M.E. Church. At 91 years old, he said it is getting a little harder to be on the 6 a.m. call, but he will continue to be on as many morning calls as possible as well as the 9:30 p.m. prayer line call.
Bro. Thornton joined St. Matthew in 1956. Back then, he said, he could walk to the church because he lived in East Orange. And the church was much smaller. Services were held in the parsonage for years before the new building was constructed under the Rt. Rev. Reginald T. Jackson.
He joined because his future wife, Marlene Cawthorne, was already a member. She and her friend, Rev. Shirley Roberts, had grown up in St. Matthew, he said. And he married Marlene that same year, 1956, in St. Matthew. Their union lasted 53 years until she passed away. They had three children, and he now also has three grandchildren.
Bro. Thornton now lives with his daughter and son-in-law, Andre and Herman Williams, in Piscataway. He shared that his daughter had recently returned home from the hospital and was recovering nicely.
He served 13 years as one of the first sextons hired for the church by Rev. Jackson. He is very proud of his work during that time. "Being hired as a sexton changed my life around," he said. "I would come to the church seven days a week. I met a lot of people and found out about programs the church had."
In addition to his work as a sexton, he also served on the church's Board of Trustees and was an usher for many years. "I really enjoyed being an usher. And I am so proud of them. They are very organized. And even though I am in a wheelchair, whenever I am able to come to the service they treat me like I am still active. When I am at the service, they will wheel me down to the altar with them."
One of Bro. Thornton's favorite memories was being selected as an unsung hero from the church. His work was celebrated during a program held in Atlantic City, he said. "That really stood out in my life."
"What you do while you are living is what's important."
Philippians 4:13 guides his life. "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me," Bro. Thornton said. And he feels Pastor Melvin E. Wilson is doing just that. "He gets everyone involved in the church," he said, "from the oldest to the youngest. If you want to be involved, Pastor Wilson will get you involved."
By Sandra Long Weaver