Biographical Data: Reverend Dr. William F. Buchanan
William F. Buchanan was born in Broxton, Georgia - the third of four children born to the late Millinease and John L. Buchanan. He spent his formative years in Georgia, but later the family moved to Florida, where he graduated from high school. In 1976, he received a Bachelor of Science degree from Bethune-Cookman College. He later matriculated at the University of Florida’s Business School in Gainesville. In 1983, he received a Master of Divinity degree in Pastoral Counseling from the Morehouse School of Religion- Interdenominational Theological Center. Ever thirsty for knowledge, he was a Proctor-Booth Fellow at United Theological Seminary where he earned the Doctor of Ministry degree in 1995.
Dr. Buchanan was ordained into the ministry in 1985, and since that time has devoted himself to fulfilling his ministerial calling. From 1985 to 1988, he served as youth minister at Greenforest Baptist Church in Decatur, Georgia, and as a chaplain intern at Emory University Hospital in Atlanta. He was called as the senior pastor of First Baptist Church in Huntington, West Virginia in 1988. After successfully completing his mission at First Baptist, he was called to the pastorate of the historic Fifteenth Avenue Baptist Church in Nashville, Tennessee in 1994.
Since coming to Fifteenth Avenue, Dr. Buchanan has led Fifteenth Avenue into becoming a beacon of light for ALL persons in the community. Fifteenth Avenue Baptist has become an example of love and brotherhood to humanity - through numerous ministries, which serves the homeless, the elderly, the young, former addicts, and prisoners as well as seasoned saints. In 2001, Fifteenth Avenue was recognized by a national research team as one of only 300 churches from among 100,000 Protestant and Catholic churches in the nation as being an outstanding congregation in America - one that daily meets the needs of the people. Under Dr. Buchanan’s visionary leadership, Fifteenth Avenue realized a long held dream of enlarging its worship space by moving into a new multi-million dollar sanctuary. The church continues to grow spiritually and numerically and serve as a model for 21st century ministry .
Dr. Buchanan has received many awards and honors. One of his most recent honors was being named the recipient of the Lily Foundation’s Clergy General grant, which allowed him to take a brief sabbatical to study at Harvard University’s School of Divinity. Dr. Buchanan is an adjunct professor at the American Baptist College in Nashville and a Field Education supervisor at Vanderbilt University’s School of Divinity. He serves as Vice Chair of the Board of Operation Andrew Group, a non-profit organization of multi ethnic and multi-denominational churches partnering to build a better community. Additionally, Dr. Buchanan is in great demand as a preacher, lecturer, and facilitator at churches throughout the nation.In addition to his busy schedule as a pastor and teacher, Dr. Buchanan is the loving husband of Audrey Cave Buchanan. They are the parents of four children -Kwame, Shani, Dashan, and Aubrey Buchanan; grandchildren Kwame, Omari, Kiara, Masyn and Cayman.