Pastor Nelson Stokes is a native of Cleveland, OH, where after finishing high school he pursued his degree in ministry at Oakwood College and received a BA in Religion in 1996. While attending Oakwood College, he served as Youth Pastor of the 1 st Seventh-day Adventist Church in Huntsville, AL for eight years. Out of all the blessings that the Lord has bestowed upon him, one of the greatest was being called into the ministry by South Central Conference in Aug 1996, to pastor the Greenville/Hollandale, Mississippi district. He served in that district until February 2000, where he was then assigned to the New Life Seventh-day Adventist Church in Chattanooga, TN. Pastor Stokes is very interested in church growth and he believes in taking a holistic approach towards ministry which means church and community. Pastor Stokes believes with all his heart that the youth are the life blood of the church and they should be challenged and trained to be leaders. In August 2007, he was assigned to pastor at the Breath of Life Seventh-day Adventist Church in Memphis, TN.

He has been married to the love of his life, Lornette (Meecy) since 1981 and they were blessed with two daughters: Nicole, a school teacher for Avondale Adventist Academy in Chattanooga, TN and Tracy, who in September 2003, at the tender age of 18 years old closed her eyes in Jesus and is sleeping awaiting His soon return.

Pastor Stokes loves to claim the promise of Rev 3:20 - "Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me."