Bishop Jonas was not the only man of faith at the helm of our beloved fellowship. Bishop Riley F. Williams came to Ohio in 1931 and was the first Bishop of Ohio North. Bishop Williams was one of the first 5 Bishops consecrated in the Church of God in Christ. His accomplishments as a national leader were applauded in a special exhibit in Memphis Tennessee recently.
Hundreds of people were immersed in one of the largest baptizing services in the history of the Church of God in Christ which was conducted on the shores of Lake Erie under the auspices of Bishop Williams. Bishop C.H. Mason conducted the ceremony over a public address system from a strategically placed yacht, the brain child of Bishop Williams. Bishop Williams was a dynamic preacher who sowed and built churches throughout the United States. Historic Williams Temple in Cleveland, Ohio was named after him. Under his leadership, the church on Woodland Avenue grew to become one of the largest is the denomination. Williams Temple was one of the first to have its own credit union, radio broadcast, Mothers Board, Boy Scout Troupe, scholarship program, and other innovations at the time.