Percival McClaren Vanterpool

Local Preacher

I was born August 31, 1940 to Charles and Melanie Vanterpool of East End, Anguilla. My Father was a Primary School teacher for about 30 years. My Mother was a homemaker with responsibility for 10 children.

I attended East End Primary school for 11 years. My favorite subjects were math, science, history and geography. Life in the sixties was very simple. I grew up in the Anglican Church. It was there I began learning about our Creator, God. As time passed I began to understand about the persons of the God Head. At age 17 I found that I had a desire to know about the Bible.

At the age of 18 I left Anguilla to work at a hotel on St. Maarten. It was during my stay on St. Maarten I attended the Phillipsburg Methodist Church. Here, as a lad of 18, my interest turned to learning about God. A year later the Methodist Church began Open Air Services during the Lenten season. This type of worshipping was all new to me. As I attended these nightly meetings the Spirit of God was working in my heart.

It was a Friday night. The time came for the message and I was ready to hear from God. I was listening to how Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He rose from the grave and is alive making intercession for us before our Father who is in Heaven. At this point a spark lit up in my soul giving me a thirst for the things of God. This was the beginning of an about turn towards the things of God for me.

In 1965 I married Lucille Irene Fenton, a school teacher on Montserrat. I returned to St. Maarten with my lovely bride. She was given leave for three months, and returned to Montserrat after those 90 days, solo. How sad it was to be alone.

A year later I left St. Maarten for St. Thomas seeking employment. God would have it that I was unsuccessful there, so I returned to St. Maarten. Sometime later that very year I met a friend, B. B. with whom I had worked sometime before. He was working at a hotel on St. Croix. I told him of my desire to relocate. Without hesitation he said to me, “man come down and I will help you.”

With a thankful heart I said “hasta la vista”. Two months later I arrived in St. Croix by Caribair, a Puerto Rico airline. My friend kept his word. When I landed, the smiling face I saw was B.B. Thank God he kept his word and everything went well.

During my first year on St. Croix, the Pastor I left on St. Maarten came to St. Croix and gave me a push. He said, “Perci, I want you to became a Lay Preacher.” I heeded the call even though I had very little free time. But God made a way. At this time my lovely Bride was now with me to stay. Praise God!

I was at this time working hard to cope with Crucian life. I started night school to do the GED Exam. At this point I really thought that I had everything under control. I was working at the hotel as a waiter, going to night school, and studying to become a Lay Preacher. The year was 1971.

Then there came a change in my duties at work. I was assigned to work as a bartender. Everything went well for a while. After a lot of late nights I got home one night and found my Wife with her Bible open. As I arrived at her room she said, “P come and see this.” Then she pointed to Habkkuk 2:15:

Woe unto him that giveth his neighbour strong drink pouring out

your wrath to them until they are drunk.

From that night I prayed to the Lord to open a new door for me. At that time I was due for a vacation. So I took my 14 days and left the island. Everyday on vacation I prayed to the Lord to help me to find a better job. My vacation was over and I returned to St. Croix. The very day I arrived a man met me and shouted out, “Man where were you? I have a job for you.”

The next day I went to check out the job. I told the boss that I would be there after 14 days. This job had a longer work schedule, but it was not without problems. The first thing that had to go was my night class. I just could not keep up as the class load became more advanced. Good or bad, eternity will tell! However, I was able to continue the Preacher’s Plan. The Lord was with me throughout the training.

In November 1982, after a heavy schedule on the job and preparation for final exams, I was accepted as an accredited Lay Preacher. It came as a reward for faithfulness to my Lord. The hymn 578 in our Methodist Hymn Book describes this journey very nicely for me:

A charge to keep I have,

A God to glorify,

A never dying soul to save

And fit it for the sky.

To serve the present age

My calling to fulfill;

O may it all my powers engage

To do my Master’s will.

Now I turn my thoughts to all our Preachers, especially my fellow Local Preachers. Let us remember the words of 1 Peter 4:18:

It is hard for the righteous to be saved, what will become

of the ungodly and sinners?

As men and women of God, let us give out the Word without fear. In our hearts let us sanctify Christ as Lord, always ready to make our defense to anyone who demands from us an accounting for the hope that is in us. Yet do it with gentleness and reverence remembering Isaiah 52:7:

How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of the messenger who

announces peace, who brings good news, who announces salvation, who

says to Zion, “Your God reigns.”

Praise the name of the Lord! Amen.

10/16/05