Bishop Silvester Scott Beaman
Bishop Silvester Scott Beaman is a native of Niagara Falls, New York. He is a B.S. graduate of Wilberforce University and a Master’s of Divinity graduate of Boston University. He was awarded the Doctor of Divinity Degree for Meritorious Achievement in Christian Ministry and Public Service by Richard Wright Theological Seminary in Evanston, South Africa. In June 2012, he was the first to receive a Doctorate of Ministry degree from Payne Theological Seminary, Wilberforce, Ohio, and Bakke Graduate University, Seattle, Washington joint seminary program.
Bishop Beaman’s pastoral career began at Bethel A.M.E. Church in Lackawanna, New York, in 1985. In 1986, he was appointed to the historic St. Paul A.M.E. Church in Hamilton, Bermuda. During his administration at St. Paul, the church’s 1.3-million-dollar debt was reduced significantly, new ministries were created, youth programming was further developed and the Fairhaven Christian Drug Rehabilitation live-in program for women was built. On May 30, 1993, he was appointed to Bethel A.M.E. Church in Wilmington, Delaware. Since that time, he has taken in over 2,700 new members.
Under his administration, extensive renovations to the church were completed including, sanctuary technology which was upgraded as part of a $500,000 renovation program. Over 50 new ministries, such as the AIDS Task Force, men’s & women’s ministries, mentoring programs for youth, senior citizen ministries, youth suicide crisis prevention, and a community evangelism outreach program were established. Since 2001, the Beautiful Gate Outreach Center, a full-service HIV/AIDS testing, medical, outreach, and educational program, has been serving the community, assisting thousands of Delawareans annually on the site of Bethel.
Bishop Beaman has served as the Director on numerous community and national boards, organizations, governmental task forces, and commissions. He is the past President of the Interdenominational Ministerial Action Council of Wilmington, Delaware. He has been inducted into the Martin Luther King, Jr. Board of Preachers at Morehouse College in Atlanta, Georgia. He is also a member of the Alpha Phi
Alpha Fraternity and Prince Hall Mason Star of the East Lodge #1. During his farewell as the Pastor of Bethel AME Church, Wilmington, Delaware, Governor John Carney awarded Dr. Beaman with the highest honor as a Delaware citizen, with the “First Order of the State Award.” He is one of a few clergy persons in the nation who has offered prayer in the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives.
Bishop Beaman was honored to be asked by President Joseph Biden to offer the benediction at the January 20, 2021, Presidential Inauguration of Joseph R. Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris.
The Beaman and Biden families have been friends for close to thirty years.
On July 11, 2021, during the General Conference, Bishop Beaman was elected and consecrated as the 139th Bishop of the African Methodist Episcopal Church in Orlando, Florida. He has been assigned to serve the 15th Episcopal District (Namibia, Angola, Boland, Eastern Cape, Queenstown, Cape, and Kalahari Annual Conferences) of South Africa and currently serves the 12th Episcopal District (the states of Oklahoma and Arkansas).
On September 26, 2023, President Biden announced the establishment of a 12-member President’s Advisory Council on African Diaspora Engagement in the United States and named Bishop Beaman as the Council Chair.
He is married to his childhood sweetheart and best friend, Renée Palmore Beaman, RN. Renée currently serves as the Governor-appointed Director of the Delaware Division of State Service Centers, which oversees Delaware’s fifteen State Service Centers, the State Office of Volunteerism, and the Office of Community Services. They are the blessed parents of two adult daughters, Asaiah (Gregory Fisher) and Kori (Walter Cheatham), and four grandchildren, Maliah, Gabriella, Gregory Mason, and Kai.