In May of 2014 Pastor Jackson earned the Doctor of Ministry degree from United Theological Seminary, Dayton, OH. Reverend Dr. Jackson served under the leadership of the Reverend Dr. Jeremiah A. Wright, Jr., as the Associate Pastor to Men’s Ministries and the Pre-Marital Counseling Program at the dynamic Trinity United Church of Christ (TUCC) in Chicago. In 2004, Reverend Dr. John E. Jackson, Sr. was called to serve as Senior Pastor of The Trinity United Church of Christ in Gary, IN. Since its first worship service the second Sunday in October 2004, Trinity UCC-Gary has been consistently growing. In order to accommodate the ever-expanding ministries, Trinity UCC-Gary completed construction of their new sanctuary for worship, and held their first worship service in the new edifice on October 5, 2008. It is located at 1276 West 20 th Avenue in the City of Gary. The motto of Trinity UCC-Gary is “We are not just another church but we are a culturally conscious Christ centered church committed to the community!” We are "Unashamedly Black and Unapologetically Christian” Dr. Jackson formerly served on the Board of Directors for the Indiana -Kentucky Conference of the United Church of Christ. The Board of Directors is the governing body of the Indiana-Kentucky Conference serves to minister with and to over 7 associations that include over 122 congregations of the United Church of Christ. Dr. Jackson is also a Board Member of Faith In Place, an environmental organization that serves to Empower people of diverse faiths and spiritualities to be leaders in advancing environmental and racial justice, providing resources to educate, connect, and advocate for healthier communities. Dr. Jackson also serves as a member of the Anti-Racism Task Force of Indiana- Kentucky Conference of The United Church of Christ. Pastor Jackson holds sacred both arms of the Cross; the vertical arms allow us to connect with heaven for the holy power to carry out the work of liberation on the horizontal. To that end Pastor Jackson believes that the Church of Jesus Christ should be the one place in life where anybody can come with any problem they have and get an answer to that problem. Pastor Jackson works tirelessly in the community of Gary, with National organizations like the Samuel Dewitt Proctor Conference while at the same time seeking collaborations with the global community to be a voice for the voiceless and bring justice to the oppressed. Reverend Dr. John E. Jackson, Sr. shares his life with his wife the former Janiece N. Barney, their three adult children, five grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.