Bishop Mark H. Blade, Jurisdictional Prelate

 

 Bishop Mark Henry Blade is the second of three children, born June 30, 1926 in Terre Haute, Indiana, to Leonard and Cinderella Tyler Blade. Bishop Blade and Dorothy M. Owens, married since December 25, 1951, have been blessed with five children, Mark Jr., Michael, Cedric, Marvin, and Linda born to this union. All the children serve the Church of God in Christ.
Bishop Blade was educated in the Vigo County public school system. He served three years in the United States Army at Fort Lewis, Washington, Okinawa and in the Philippines. He attended Moody Bible Institute and received a Doctor of Ministry from the C.H. Mason School of Theology.
Saved and baptized in the Holy Ghost in September 1949 under the leadership of Elder Lewis Burnice. Appointed Pastor of 8th Avenue Church of God in Christ in 1961 and ordained 1962. He served under the late Bishops C.E. Bennett and W.O. Blakely. Bishop Blade served as the Ordination Chairman, Administrative Assistant, Executive Board member, and trustee board member, and the superintendent of the B.J. Watkins district under the leadership of the late Bishop Milton L. Hall. He also served as a Chaplain at Union Hospital and on the Teen Challenge Board, and was a board member of the Terre Haute NAACP chapter.