United Methodist Bishop Roy C. Nichols, Dead at 84

October 11, 2002

OAKLAND, Calif. – Roy C. Nichols, the first African-American bishop elected after the United Methodist Church was created in 1968, died Oct. 9 at the age of 84.

A quiet hour will be held at Fouche's Funeral Home, 365 Telegraph Road, Oakland, Calif., at 7 p.m. on Oct. 16. Funeral services will be 11 a.m., Oct. 17, at Downs Memorial United Methodist Church, 6026 Idaho St., Oakland.

The United Methodist Church resulted from a merger of the former Methodist and Evangelical United Brethren churches in May 1968. At that time, each of five bishops elected previously in a racially segregated Central Jurisdiction of The Methodist Church were assigned to areas of supervision in one of the five geographic jurisdictions of the new denomination. Nichols was elected a bishop at the Northeastern Jurisdictional Conference in July 1968 and assigned to the Pittsburgh Area where he served for 12 years. He then served the New York Area until his retirement in 1984.

Nichols was born in Hurlock, Md., March 19, 1918. He attended public schools in Philadelphia and earned degrees from Lincoln University in Philadelphia and Pacific School of Religion in Berkeley, Calif.

A clergy member of the California-Nevada Annual Conference, he was the organizing pastor of South Berkeley Community Church, one of the first interracial churches with African-American and white co-pastors. He also served as pastor of Downs Memorial Church where he was a popular radio preacher with a program entitled "The Christian Answer." During his last year at Downs (1963-64) he served as president of the Berkeley Board of Education.

In 1964 Nichols went to New York City to become pastor of the 4,600-member Salem United Methodist Church. Under his leadership the congregation became deeply involved in service to the Harlem community, including the construction of a million dollar, four-story community center.

Following retirement, Nichols remained active, serving for several years as chairperson of the development committee of Africa University, a school created and developed by the denomination in Zimbabwe.

From 1968 to 1975, Nichols served on the executive and central committees of the World Council of Churches. He is the author of three books: Footsteps in the Sea, 1980; The Greening of the Gospel, 1985; and Doing the Gospel, 1991. Footsteps in the Sea was a collection of sermons he preached on The Protestant Hour radio series in 1979.

He is survived by his wife Ruth Richardson Nichols whom he married July 23, 1944, and three children: Melisande Nichols Schwartzfarb, Allegra Nichols Lewis, and Nathan Richard Nichols.

United Methodist News Service