- Date Of Birth: April 23, 1932
- Date Of Death: February 14, 2015
- State: New Jersey
Reverend Carl Frederick Hunter, Sr. was the seventh child born to Reverend Henry J. and Mrs. Minnie Lee Hunter on April 23, 1932, in Donaldsonville, Georgia. Upon the death of his father at an early age, the family moved to Augusta, Georgia, and joined Ward Chapel African Methodist Episcopal Church. After graduating from Lucy Laney High School in 1949, Reverend Hunter followed the path of his father and uncle, Presiding Elder W.P. Carter of Macon, Georgia, and accepted the call to ministry. In 1950, he was licensed to preach by the Reverend J.L. Little, pastor of Ward Chapel.
Following high school, Reverend Hunter attended and graduated from Morris Brown College and Turner Theological Seminary. In 1952, he was ordained an Itinerant Elder by Bishop Decatur Ward Nichols at Marietta Chapel A.M.E. Church, Marietta, Georgia, and assigned to Smyrna Chapel A.M.E. Church, Smyrna, Georgia.
In April 1954, he was joined in holy matrimony to Virginia Lee Blake, who stood by his side for 61 years. They became the proud parents of Carl F. Hunter II and David H. Hunter.
In 1957, Reverend Hunter transferred to the First Episcopal District, where he served for over 50 years, and distinguished himself as a leader, mentor and visionary. He pastored the following churches: Allen, White Plains; Lincoln Memorial, New York; Bethel, Asbury Park; Bethel, Camden; Mount Zion, New York; Mount Zion, Plainfield; Israel Memorial, Newark; Mount Zion, Trenton; and Bethel, Far Rockaway. At the 45th Quadrennial Session of the General Conference in 1996, Reverend Hunter was elected a General Officer of the A.M.E. Church. He served as Secretary-Treasurer of the Church Extension Department for four years.
Reverend Hunter firmly believed that ministry extended beyond the walls of the church. He participated in the March on Washington in 1963 and in the Selma to Montgomery marches in 1965. He also valued the need to facilitate partnerships and collaborations with community-based organizations, and state and local government to create programs and initiatives to improve the conditions of the downtrodden and the needy. During the 1970s, he was privileged to be involved in the first African-American collaboration to receive a contract with the New Jersey Port Authority.
In Asbury Park, he partnered with the New Jersey Department of Housing and Urban Development to build Vita Gardens and Stephen Manor, which provided more than 100 units of affordable housing to residents in the community. While pastoring Mount Zion, Trenton, he collaborated with J.P. Affordable Housing and the State of New Jersey to build the M. Joan Cousin Senior Complex, which provided over 30 units of affordable housing to senior citizens. As Secretary-Treasurer of Church Extension, Reverend Hunter assisted a number of churches throughout the connection to secure financing to facilitate building and outreach initiatives.
In addition to his great love for the A.M.E. Church, Reverend Hunter was deeply devoted to his family. Known as “Uncle Ram” to the Hunter side of the family and “Uncle Carl” to the Blake side of the family, he made himself available to everyone and did all that he could to support his loved ones.
Reverend Hunter was predeceased by his parents; three sisters, Minnie Graham, Ruby Evans and Vivian Robinson; and three brothers, Joseph, Alexander and William Hunter. Left to cherish his memories are his devoted wife, Virginia B. Hunter; his children, Reverend Carl F. Hunter II, David H. Hunter, Kenneth Hunter, Delores Simmons and William Wilson; a “special” daughter, the Reverend Doctor Danielle L. Hunter; twin brother, Charles Hunter; grandchildren, Ashley C. and Isaiah C.F. Hunter; great-granddaughter, Khloe Hunter; brothers-in-law, Virgil D. Blake (Alice) and John Samuels; sister-in-law, Atheia Hunter; and numerous nieces, nephews, friends and colleagues.
