Reverend Tertius "Tony" Neal serves as the Senior Pastor at Hester Grove Baptist Church in Hurdle Mills, where he is devoted to Bible-based preaching and teaching. Rev. Neal emphasizes grounding his messages in Scripture — aiming to accurately represent God's Word and apply it to life today.
"The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?" — Psalm 27:1
Reverend Neal received his education from the Rockingham County Schools, and has since taken classes at the Apex School of Theology in Durham, NC, with Dr. Lafayette Maxwell.
As a youth, he attended St. Mariah Holiness Church regularly and discovered his love for the Lord under the late Dr. Lettie Cohen. As an adult, he moved his membership to Piney Grove Missionary Baptist Church, where he served across many ministries — Associate Minister, Senior Associate Minister, Superintendent of Sunday School, Bible Study Instructor, Sunday School Teacher, organizer of the Men's Day Out, and a member of the Male Chorus and Young Adult Choir, among others.
Rev. Neal served as interim Pastor at Bethesda Missionary Baptist Church in Virgilina, VA, in 2008 and 2009. He has been preaching God's Word since 2003, and was ordained in 2010 under the leadership of the late Pastor Ronnie L. Johnson and the New Hope Association.
Reverend Neal is married to the former Keisha Cheek. They have two sons, Juwan and Jalen, a God-daughter, Typhany, two bonus grandchildren, and two granddaughters, Sariyah Rose and Savannah Iris.