Andrew “Jack” White

Beverly Allen High, West Point (1949)

Baptist Minister

Reverend Andrew White was born in King and Queen County. He attended the Rappahannock Industrial Academy for one year and graduated from Beverly Allen High School in 1949. In high school, he played baseball and basketball and joined the drama and debate clubs. He received his B. S. and M. Div. degrees from Virginia Union University in 1953 and 1956, respectively. He taught history and social studies at A. T. Johnson High in Westmoreland County for ten years. Throughout his distinguished career, he was a champion for education, health care, and community service. In 1969 Rev. White helped found the interracial Downtown (Petersburg, VA) Churches United, which worked with other community groups to provide food, clothing, shelter, and job assistance. He was the first African American President of the Southside Virginia Mental Health Association and was a member of the Petersburg Hospital Authority, which oversaw the construction of a new facility. He co-chaired the successful capital campaign to construct a new public library in Petersburg (2014). Prior to his retirement, he concurrently pastored Zion Baptist Church (Petersburg) and Union Branch Baptist Church (Prince George County, VA) for more than 40 years. Still a resident of Petersburg, VA, Rev. White was recognized in 2019 among a group of Strong Men & Women in Virginia History for his contributions to the state.