Pastor Chauncey Mathews
Chauncey L. Mathews was born July 18th 1958 in Oakland, CA. He is the third of four children (two boys and two girls) from the union of Lee and Annie Mathews. He was baptized in 1970 at Corinthian Baptist Church under the leadership of his father, the late Pastor Lee E. Mathews. As a child he and his baby sister, Debra would play ‘Having Church’ in which Debra would sing and he Chauncey would preach to empty chairs and have funeral service for whatever dead animal (fish, birds, ants, grasshoppers and butterflies) they could bury.
Chauncey met the love of his life in 1972, Donna K. Cotton while they were in junior high school. He then graduated from Skyline High School in Jan 1976 and later married Donna in 1980. He began his civil service at the Dept. of Health & Human Services in Richmond, Ca and later transferred to Naval Air Station in Alameda, CA. Like many marriages comes many challenges and one major challenge came in 1995 when his job at the Alameda Naval Station closed. He was given many options to follow his job throughout the country, so he packed-up his bibles and moved the family to San Diego, CA. On November 30, 2013 he retired after 37 years of Civil Service in Coronado Naval Station CA., located in the San Diego bay.
His background includes being reared in a good Christian home of Pastor Lee E. and Annie Mathews (married for almost 64 years until his death). He received his new birth at the age of 12 by way of the “mourner’s bench”. He would not give-up that experience for world! Chauncey attended many, many retreats and vacation bible schools (VBS). In later becoming a VBS youth teacher at Berkeley Baptist Church as a youth. In 1988, despite several attempts to avoid God’s call to the pulpit by running to other ministries (Usher Board, Superintendent of Sunday School, Chairman of Trustees and Deacon Board), young Pastor C. L. Mathews was called to the pulpit to deliver God’s Word. Pastor Mathews was licensed in 1990 and ordained in 1992 by his father, the late Pastor L. E. Mathews.
His ministry experience includes eight years as Pastor of Ebenezer M.B.C. of San Diego, CA under the mentorship of I.J. Bradford; Teacher of Southwest District Association (SWDA) of San Diego and vicinity; Western State Baptist, Instructor; Teacher of Western State Baptist Congress of Christian Education; Member of the Baptist Ministers’ Fellowship of San Diego and vicinity; Graduated from Southern California Bible Institute; Council member of Council of Licensing and Ordaining Ministers’ (CLOM) as well as a wide array of ministry experiences. Above all his sentiments are expressed in the following words:
1 Timothy 1:12 (KJV) 12 And I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who hath enabled me, for that he counted me faithful, putting me into the ministry;