By Ashley Benkarski
NASHVILLE, TN — Local Pastor Howard E. Jones, Jr.’s campaign for Davidson County’s Circuit Court Clerk position.
A native Nashvillian with experience in the education sector, Jones is continuing his efforts in the political realm while working to expand Fairfield’s outreach, he said.
Jones previously ran for Metro Council as well as for the late State Senator Thelma Harper’s seat when she retired.
This most recent foray for the clerkship role presented itself as a suggestion from a friend that resulted in a lot of prayer about the decision, he said.
He prayed and did research on the role soon to be vacated by Richard Rooker and found that many people don’t know what the Clerk’s office does, leading to residents not utilizing the services it offers. He’s seeking the office to help Nashvillians learn how to navigate legal issues that have significant impacts on those involved.
“For a loved one, property problems are a heartache,” he said. “The bank won’t let you get your inheritance if not signed [by the deceased] on paperwork.”
In addition to serving as a liaison between the public and the Clerk’s office, it maintains dockets and records and manages the operations of the circuit, traffic and probate courts and the civil division of the general sessions court; legal procedures involving divorces, property disputes, and the probate of wills are among the scope of its management responsibilities.
Ordained in April 1989, Jones was named interim Pastor of Fairfield Missionary Baptist Church in Goodlettsville, Tennessee. He was officially installed as the Church’s Senior Pastor February 25,1990 during its 102nd anniversary, his biography states.
If elected, Jones said he’s ready to go to work on day one, but that doesn’t mean sweeping personnel changes. Leaning on his experience as a principal he said he’ll start by making assessments, looking at system-changing and not people-changing.
He pointed to his record of service not only as a pastor but also as an advocate for education.
The structure of the office will only see changes where change should be made, he explained, and it’s important to consider best practices while maintaining an environment of dignity and respect.
So what would the administration of the clerk’s office look like with Jones at the helm?
“It’ll look like greater service,” he stated. “It’ll look like Nashville–good old Southern hospitality and cutting edge.”
He’s worked in the juvenile court system and the Metropolitan Nashville Public School system as an in-school suspension monitor, curriculum coach, trainer, instructor and assistant principal at five schools, including McGavock and White’s Creek High Schools and Cameron and John F. Kennedy Middle Schools, he said.
Jones also runs Jefferson Street’s Kingdom Café & Grill. More than a restaurant, the business is “an outreach ministry of the Fairfield Church, providing jobs, entrepreneurial opportunities and great food,” the bio reads.
Jones is a product of MNPS, graduating from Whites Creek High School before attending Tennessee State University where he graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Sociology and a master’s degree in education.
He pursued his theological education at American Baptist College and Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and has worked with Bishop Michael Lee Graves, Rev. Foster G. Young and Rev. T.E. Sweeney.
His spiritual mentors include Reverend Oscar C. Myles and Mother Gladys Haley.
Rev. Jones is a Prince Hall Mason and a recipient of the Pink Tie Award from the Susan G. Komen Foundation and the recipient of the Community Service Award on behalf of the Fairfield Church from the Dr. Bobby Jones
Matinee and the Music City Consortium, and has received numerous awards and certificates throughout his professional and pastoral career, his bio continues.
Reverend Jones conducts a 20-minute “Lifting the Lid” leadership call for daily inspiration weekdays at 6 a.m.
Fairfield MBC is located at 1004 S. Dickerson Road, Goodlettsville. Information on Rev. Jones’s campaign can be found at votehowardjones.com.
To learn more about the office of Circuit Court Clerk visit circuitclerk.nashville.gov.
