Beloved Community

"Our goal is to create a beloved community and this will require a qualitative change in our souls as well as a quantitative change in our lives." ~ Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Our mission at The Beloved Community is to inspire all people to work together, creating a city on a hill that is a powerful witness to God's love and reconciling grace.

These are the established seven priorities of the committee:

We want Suntree UMC to be known as a safe space.
We want to see diversity in Leadership and Membership.
We want to engage in partnership with Diverse Churches.
We want there to be less fragility in the congregation, especially around hard conversations about diversity.
We strive to be unapologetic in identity, with space for ideological “compatibility” in diversity.
We strive for alignment of staff and resources to commit to reconciliation initiatives at all levels of ministry.
We want to work within advocacy and justice priorities in our values.

The Beloved Community Committee periodically hosts events and produces materials throughout the year to help educate and cultivate a culture of diversity and inclusivity.

Want to know more or want to get involved? Contact Pastor Bailey at:

February is Black History Month

In honor of Black History Month, Suntree’s Beloved Community Committee has put together resources each week highlighting historic places and individuals that celebrate the diversity of the Brevard County area.

The Moore Center

Did you know?

Within an hour’s drive north of Suntree UMC is the Harry T. & Harriette V. Moore Memorial Park and Cultural Complex in Mims. Excerpts from its website (https://www.harryharriettemoore.org/) - Story of the Moores: The Moores were the first true civil rights activists of the modern civil rights era in the State of Florida. Harry organized the first Brevard County branch of the NAACP in 1934 and became its president. He would later coordinate chapters throughout the state, and in 1941 became President of the Florida Conference of NAACP branches.

In 1944 Moore formed the Florida Progressive Voter's League and became its Executive Director. The league was instrumental in helping register over 100,000 Black voters in the State of Florida.

As the head of the Florida State Conference of the NAACP, Harry T. Moore led the fight against injustices on behalf of the state's African American population on a number of fronts, including voting rights and the equalization of pay for the state's black teachers.

Significantly, Moore also served as a forceful advocate against racial violence and lynching in Florida. His efforts in bringing attention to the lynching of the African American teenager Willie James Howard in 1944 and to the miscarriage of justice in the Groveland Rape case in 1949 are vivid examples of his activism on this front. Moore's vocal criticism of the failures of the criminal justice system—especially the ineptitude and complicity of law enforcement and the racism that permeated the courts—offered a much-needed critique of the tragic intersection of Jim Crow and civil rights violations.

The Bomb on Christmas Night: On Christmas Night, 1951, a bomb exploded under the bedroom of Harry T. and Harriette V. Moore’s home in Mims, Florida. The couple had gone to bed after celebrating both Christmas and their 25th wedding anniversary. Mr. Moore was killed in the blast; Mrs. Moore died nine days later.

The Legacy Lives: A replica of their home now stands in place on the very site of the original home. The interior is designed to look the same way it did on that tragic day of the bombing.

The story of the Moores is now told over and over again.

The plight of Harry T. Moore and Harriette V. Moore and their roles in drawing state and federal attention to injustices and inequalities will never be forgotten.

Want to know more?

Investigate the Moore Center’s site at https://www.harryharriettemoore.org!

Go visit! The Moore Center and Cultural Center is located at 2180 Freedom Avenue, Mims FL 32754.

It is open:

Monday – Friday | 9am – 5PM (closed 1pm -2pm for lunch)
Saturday | 10am - 2pm

Enjoy the exhibitions, explore the museum, wander through the replica of the family home, and walk the Civil Rights Walking Trail.

Admission is free, but, of course, donations are much appreciated.

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Melbourne Founders Mueseum

Did you know?

So close to Suntree UMC, in south Melbourne, is a new museum and historic home that points to the founding of Melbourne, Florida! According to a brochure produced by The Greater Allen Development Corporation (GADC), The Melbourne Founders Museum at Crane Creek tells of three Black freed slaves, Wright Brothers, Peter Wright, and Balaam Allen, who settled on Crane Creek after receiving nearby property in the late 1880s.

Shortly thereafter, in a house at 2310-1/2 Lipscomb Street, which was owned by Wright and Mary Brothers, Robert & Carrie Lipscomb and Balaam & Salina Allen met to organize Melbourne’s “first house of worship”. In 1885, the first church structure for Allen Chapel A.M.E. was built and later renamed Greater Allen Chapel A.M.E. Church. In 2020, GADC relocated the house to 1001 Brothers Avenue, the site of the Museum. The “renovated, restored, and re-purposed” historic house “highlights the culture and history of local Blacks and other ethnicities and the roles they played in the development of Crane Creek, now known as Melbourne, FL”.

Also a statue project is currently underway to honor Melbourne’s original settlers. Information can be found at Founders of Melbourne – Est. 1867 (FoundersMonument.org).

Want to know more?

Attend the Grand Opening and Ribbon-Cutting of the Melbourne Founders Museum at Crane Creek on Saturday, February 22, at 11am. It’s free and open to the public!

This event will include a viewing of the award-winning documentary,

Moving History: The Story Behind Melbourne Founders Museum.

The Museum is located at: 1001 Brothers Avenue, Melbourne FL 32901

OR visit the Museum independently on the Second Saturday of each month, 10am – 3:30pm.

For more information, contact James Shackelford, President, Greater Allen Development Corporation, at (321) 432-5774 or .

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Howard thurman Historic Home

Did you know?

A bit North of Suntree UMC, in Daytona Beach, stands The Howard Thurman Historic Home. Thurman, a theologian, educator, and civil rights leader, was a mentor to Martin Luther King Jr.

Growing up in Daytona Beach, Thurman developed a deep connection to nature and a profound spiritual awareness. He often found solace beneath an old oak tree, where he first experienced the unity of all living things—a foundation for his later theological insights. Raised by his grandmother, a former slave, he learned that theology must affirm one’s worth as a child of God. He was also inspired by family friend Mary McLeod Bethune, founder of Bethune-Cookman University, where he later delivered her eulogy.

Thurman earned degrees from Morehouse College (1923) and Rochester Theological Seminary (1926). In 1929, he became Professor of Religion and Philosophy at Morehouse and Spelman Colleges, encouraging students to uplift their communities through education. While teaching at Howard University, he and his wife led a pilgrimage to India, where he met Mahatma Gandhi. This experience shaped his philosophy of nonviolent social change, later influencing King and the Civil Rights Movement. His book, Jesus and the Disinherited, became a seminal work in the movement.

Seeking to bridge divides, Thurman co-founded the Church for the Fellowship of All Peoples in San Francisco, the nation’s first interracial, interfaith congregation. In 1953, he became Dean of Marsh Chapel at Boston University, where he continued exploring spiritual unity. Rather than leading protests, he focused on inner transformation, believing personal renewal was key to social change.

Until his death in 1981, Thurman directed the Howard Thurman Educational Trust, supporting students and mentoring leaders. His vast collection of writings and recordings continues to inspire generations.

As he wrote in Footprints of a Dream (1959):

“The movement of the Spirit of God in the hearts of men often calls them to act against the spirit of their times… to dare a deed that challenges and to kindle a hope that inspires.”

Want to know more?

Visit the Howard Thurman Historic Home’s website at: HowardThurmanHome.com.

The Home is open for tours on Fridays and Saturdays 12pm - 5PM. To schedule a tour during the week, call (386) 258-7514 or email:

The House is located at: 614 Whitehall Street, Daytona Beach, FL 32114.

Track down a documentary of his life on Tubi called Backs Against the Wall: The Howard Thurman Story.

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The Town of eatonville

Did you know?

About 1.5 hours west of Suntree UMC is Eatonville, known as “The Town that Freedom Built”. It was established in 1887 by a group of freedmen who envisioned a place where African Americans could “live, govern, and thrive independently”. Eatonville is one of the oldest Black-incorporated municipalities in the United States and is named for a local landowner Josiah Eaton.

The Eatonville website (TownOfEatonville.org/About-Eatonville) tells us: “On August 15, 1887, 27 electors gathered at the “town hall” and cast their votes for Columbus H. Boger as mayor; for Joe Clarks, Matthew Brazell, David Yelder, E.L. Horn, and E.J. Shines as aldermen; and for several other town officers.

The first 10 acres of the land (Lewis) Lawrence purchased were given to the trustees of the Methodist Church, known today as the St. Lawrence African Methodist Episcopal Church. Founded in 1881, St. Lawrence was the first African American church in the area. St. Lawrence A.M.E. Church was originally built in the early 1880s. The second building was erected in 1908 and stood for 60 years until time and the elements took their toll. The church’s present concrete block structure was built in the early 1970s. A second institution, which was a hallmark of the town for years, was the Hungerford Normal and Industrial School. Founded in 1889 by Robert Hungerford and others who made up its governing body, the school was named in honor of Hungerford’s physician son. He had given his life to save the lives of some African-Americans who were besieged with scarlet fever.”

Said to be “Eatonville’s most famous resident”, Zora Neale Hurston, American author, folklorist, and documentary filmmaker, wrote her influential Their Eyes Were Watching God in 1937, depicting life in Eatonville.

Want to know more?

Visit the website - TownOfEatonville.org or in person!

Several annual festivals draw crowds - from near and far - to Eatonville.

Annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Parade Celebration (TownOfEatonville.org/MLK)

ZORA! Annual Zora Neale Hurston Festival of the Arts and Humanities (January & February - dates vary)

Founder’s Day (August) honoring Eatonville’s “rich history and vibrant community spirit”

The Hurston Museum (PreserveEatonville.org/The-Hurston-Museum/) features artists of African ancestry.

Located at 344 East Kennedy Boulevard, Eatonville, it is open Tuesday – Thursday 10am – 4pm and Friday 11am – 3pm. The Museum can be reached at (407) 647-3307.