Mt Olive Missionary Baptist Church History

On March 20, 1990, through the ministry of the Holy Spirit a meeting was held to discuss the formation of a church.  The name Mount Olive Missionary Baptist Church was selected after much prayer.

Rev. J.B. Goodwin was installed as Pastor on April 3, 1990. Our first worship services were held in a rented building at 4675 E. Butler, Fresno. On May 23, 1990, Mt. Olive combined membership with El Bethel and worship services were moved to 1009 S. Hazelwood, Fresno, CA. Feb. 5, 1991, Pastor Goodwin requested a leave of absence and on May 15, 1991, Pastor Goodwin resigned as Pastor of Mt. Olive. Rev. Lin Duke McGee served as pastor of Mt. Olive from April 30, 1991, to December 31, 1996. In July 1997, Rev. Edward B. Lee Jr was called to be pastor of Mt. Olive. God gave Rev. Lee a vision for Mt. Olive consisting of: Parenting classes, childcare, education in a Christian environment, mentoring. 

On September 1, 2002, Mt. Olive moved to Greenberg Elementary School at 5081 E. Lane St., Fresno, CA. In July of 2004, Mt. Olive began purchase of 6.9 acre of land in Fresno which was paid in full in September of 2004.

Mt. Olive was on the move again and on November 28, 2004, we held our first worship service at our current location located at 101 W. Clinton Ave., Fresno, CA. the 6.9-acre property was sold and in August of 2007, Mt. Olive had the opportunity to purchase 101 W. Clinton, Fresno.

Ministries included the Jail ministry, Good News Bible Club, 5-Day Clubs in apartment complexes, after school programs, sewing classes, Mission outreach both Locally and Globally, Food and Clothing Ministry and Evangel Home Bible study. Some of the ministries are currently on hold or discontinued due to Covid-19 restrictions and other obstacles.

In May of 2010 God added a Spanish speaking ministry to partner with Mt. Olive in reaching the lost. Pastor Salvador and his congregation called “Christian Church, Servants of Christ “are reaching a group in our community that we could not reach due to the language barrier. Pastor Salvador became ill and could not continue heading the ministry. Pastor Marco Serrano-Literal has taken the leadership of the ministry. From 2014 to 2022, Mt. Olive shared the facility with a Messianic Jewish congregation. 

In November of 2021 Rev. Lee retired as pastor of Mt. Olive. Through prayer and under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, the church asked Rev. Richard Norman to serve as interim pastor of the church. He served as interim pastor during the difficult years of the Covid-19 pandemic. 

With much prayer and God’s providence, on August 28, 2022, Rev. Richard Norman was installed as pastor of the Mt. Olive Missionary Baptist Church. He began taking the church down a new path which the Lord had given him. He combined the familiar traditions of the church with the new ideas of the post pandemic challenges of the church. This called for remote worship and training sessions such as weekly Bible Study and Sunday School. Under his leadership there has been an increase in outreach through an increased presence on social media such as Facebook live, Zoom, and YouTube along with “Live Streaming”. A new and innovative website has been developed, quarterly newsletter and an email address has been provided for added communication with members and friends. Electronic giving has been implemented for the convenience of members and visitors alike.

Under the leadership of Rev. Norman, the church as selected deacon trainees and new trustees to carry-on the business of God’s work of kingdom building. Women’s Ministries, Men’s Ministry, Youth Church services, Praise Dance training, Music Ministry, Hospitality ministry, monthly Food and clothing distribution, Evangel Home visitation, home visitations, community outreach and many other fruitful endeavors have been undertaken at Mt. Olive under Pastor Norman’s Leadership to reach the unchurched and lost.



Mt. Olive Missionary Baptist Church is a “Place of Promise, Purpose, and Possibilities” because “We are journeying to a place of which the Lord said I will give to you. Come thou with us. We will do you good: for the LORD has spoken good things concerning His church. 

To God be the Glory for the things He has Done.