Our Pastor
Senior Pastor, Preacher, Teacher, Sister, Daughter, Mother, and Wife are some of the divine assignments Rev. Sallie has embraced in her life. Known for her powerful preaching style under the Holy Spirit’s anointing, she has been serving in ministry for more than 34 years. Rev. Sallie is passionate about the call that is on her life to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ so that souls might be saved. Her desire is that the unchanging truth of the gospel will impact lives.
Rev. Sallie was raised by God-fearing parents who exposed her to the ministry early in life, raising her to attend Sunday School and teaching her that Sunday School and Bible Study would be the foundation on which to build upon. This early exposure at the age of 8 left a mark on her life when she accepted Jesus Christ as Lord. It was not until her mother and mentor, the Late Sanella McDowell, went home to be with the Lord that she embraced the mandate from God to preach and teach His Word. Rev. Sallie was licensed to the gospel ministry and delivered her first sermon on October 5, 2003. On March 3, 2007, Rev. Pamela Sallie was ordained and continues to spread God’s Word.
In 1984 Rev. Sallie was 1 of the 14 people at her parent’s home at 117 Linden Street, Passaic, New Jersey, where she was born and raised when her father organized the Mt. Pilgrim Missionary Baptist Church. She has been so blessed with the opportunity to be mentored and trained under the tutelage of her Dad and Pastor the Rev. Dr. W Louis McDowell.
She served as the Women’s Ministry advisor, Bible Study Teacher, and overseer to the Music Ministry, New Discipleship Training, and Youth Ministry. Rev. Sallie faithfully served 10 years as the Assistant Pastor of Mt. Pilgrim Missionary Baptist Church in Passaic, NJ, assisting in overseeing the church’s ministries for over 20 years.
April 11, 2020, her father and Pastor, The Rev Dr. W. Louis McDowell, pressed on to his heavenly home. During one of the most unprecedented times in history, she took on the mantle of leading God’s people, becoming Pastor of the Mt. Pilgrim Missionary Baptist Church.
On the morning of April 12, 2020 Easter Sunday, Rev. Sallie preached through her grief realizing that God would be her strength and uphold her with His righteous right hand She will never forget her dad, mentor, pastor and founder that constantly reminded her You” can’t hurry God, you just have to wait. He reminded her often in ministry, “You must carry on”. Rev Sallie is committed and dedicated to ministry—always ready to address the needs of Mt Pilgrim the community in which she serves.
Rev. Sallie is a graduate of Kean University with her B.A. Degree in Communications. She has studied at New York Theological Seminary and Drew Theological Seminary. She attended the Congress of Christian Education National Baptist USA, Hamptons Ministers Conference, ” and Lott Carey Foreign Mission Convention, where she envisions a higher calling to Global Mission Work
Currently Rev. Sallie is furthering her education obtaining her Master of Arts in Ministerial Leadership. Her passion lies in building and strengthening leaders; preparing them to impact the world globally.
Since the Spring of 1992, Pastor Sallie has been a proud member of Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority Inc. where she is a Ruby member on the road to Life Membership.
Out of all that Pastor Sallie had done in life, she finds her greatest joy spending time with her family, being a wife to her best friend Deacon Barry Sallie and mother to her daughter Nala Sanella.
Joshua 1:9 Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest.