Joseph D. Clemmons, Sr. (born 1929) is a former three term Democratic member of the

Connecticut House of Representatives The Connecticut State House of Representatives is the lower house in the Connecticut General Assembly, the state legislature (United States), state legislature of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The house is composed of 151 members representing an ...

from

Norwalk, Connecticut , image_map = Fairfield County Connecticut incorporated and unincorporated areas Norwalk highlighted.svg , mapsize = 230px , map_caption = Location in Fairfield County, Connecticut, Fairfield County and ...

's 140th assembly district from 1997 to 2003. He also served on the Norwalk Common Council beginning in 1995.

Early life and family

He is the son of Frank Clemmons, founder of the First Church of God In Christ in

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

. He attended Long Island University and

Howard University Howard University (Howard) is a private, federally chartered historically black research university in Washington, D.C. It is classified among "R2: Doctoral Universities – High research activity" and accredited by the Middle States Commissi ...

. He earned a Master of Divinity degree from

Yale Divinity School Yale Divinity School (YDS) is one of the twelve graduate and professional schools of Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut. Congregationalist theological education was the motivation at the founding of Yale, and the professional school has ...

and a Doctor of Ministry degree from

Colgate Rochester Divinity School Colgate Rochester Crozer Divinity School is a Baptist seminary in Rochester, New York It is affiliated with the American Baptist Churches USA. History 1820s-1960: Early history Four Baptist institutions merged over the course of the 19th and 20t ...

. Clemmons was ordained by Bishop O.M. Kelly in 1952. In 1975, he was a Martin Luther King fellow, and in that capacity, he traveled to West Africa, Nigeria and Ghana. He was an Elementary School Teacher in

Baltimore Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...

and a Middle and High School Teacher in

Bridgeport Bridgeport is the most populous city and a major port in the U.S. state of Connecticut. With a population of 148,654 in 2020, it is also the fifth-most populous in New England. Located in eastern Fairfield County at the mouth of the Pequonnoc ...

and Norwalk. In 1979, he retired as a certified teacher of Spanish to devote full-time to the ministry. He is a former president of the Hampton University Ministers' Conference, in Hampton, Virginia and he continues to serve on its executive board. He was inducted into the

Morehouse College , mottoeng = And there was light (literal translation of Latin itself translated from Hebrew: "And light was made") , type = Private historically black men's liberal arts college , academic_affiliations ...

of Preachers in 1988. Clemmons is the founder of Miracle Temple Church of God in Christ in Norwalk.

Political career

Clemmons was elected to the Norwalk Common Council in 1995. He was elected to the

in a special election in February 1997 and was re-elected in November 1998 defeating Republican Jon J. Velez and also re-elected in November 2000.

Other offices

* Norwalk Fire Department chaplain * Member, board of directors of Norwalk Economic Opportunity Now (NEON) * Founder of Pivot Ministries, a Christ-centered drug program * Executive director and board member of Norwalk Area Ministry * Elected as an associate justice of the nine-member judiciary board of the Church of God in Christ World-wide. He was elected to a seven-year term in 2004.

References

External links

Joseph Clemmons - Project Vote Smart
{{DEFAULTSORT:Clemmons, Joseph D., Jr. African-American Christian clergy American Christian clergy Connecticut city council members African-American state legislators in Connecticut Living people Democratic Party members of the Connecticut House of Representatives Politicians from Norwalk, Connecticut 1929 births Yale Divinity School alumni Long Island University alumni Politicians from Brooklyn Colgate Rochester Crozer Divinity School alumni 21st-century African-American people 20th-century African-American people