O
ur
Story
2016

2024
A diverse, lively church with a unique history.
MyGeneration Church is proud of their lively, diverse membership that worships in unity.
Praise & Worship at MyGeneration Church
Pastor Michael Polite came to speak for our grand re-opening in April 2019.

An energetic group of young adults came together in 2016 and planned to make a new type of Seventh-day Adventist Church in New York City structured to fit the specific needs of our younger generations.

    “P-DIDDY's” Debut on MyGen LIVE

    “P-DIDDY's” Debut on MyGen LIVE

    February 13, 2021
    Despite the interactive nature of our online church service, holding church service for over a year online became challenging. One of the most challenging audiences to keep engaged were the young children of our church. Pastor Duddley, being a father of two young children himself, felt the need to each them and created a special segment of MyGen LIVE just for the kids. Using the augmented caricature of himself, he recorded special messages for the kids as “P-DIDDY” and talked about the Bible for a few minutes. This became a big hit among the children of our church and eventually inspired pastors at other churches to create the same style of presentation for their own church's young people.
    “MyGen LIVE” is Born

    “MyGen LIVE” is Born

    March 21, 2020
    In the middle of March the city of New York began a total lockdown due the rapidly growing COVID-19 pandemic. In an effort to limit the spread of this deadly virus the city mandated that all businesses and places of worship be closed, a lockdown that would remain in effect until the beginning of 2021. During this time of uncertainty the creative people of MyGeneration Church rallied together and created a super interactive church service experience called MyGen LIVE. Weekly services aired on Saturdays, and thanks to modern technology the presenters could interact with their live audience on Facebook and YouTube throughout the show! This livestream quickly became the second most viewed church service in our conference.
    “Lift Every Voice” Mic Night

    “Lift Every Voice” Mic Night

    February 29, 2020
    Our first big hit open mic night was focused on black talent and black businesses. Our place was packed and energy super high as we listened to fresh music and original poetry from a plethora of performers.
    Dating Auction

    Dating Auction

    February 8, 2020
    As a building fundraiser MyGeneration Church put together a big hit dating auction on a Saturday night. The house was packed with beautiful young people who enjoyed activities and bid on an attractive selection of single young adults.
    Harlem Church Dedication Service

    Harlem Church Dedication Service

    February 2, 2020
    Dr. Rohann Wellington came to our new church and dedicated the church to God and the people of the church to the service of their community.
    First Harlem Church Service

    First Harlem Church Service

    December 14, 2019
    Once renovation was complete we were elated to worship for the first time ever in our own space. You better believe we were praising louder than ever!
    Renovation Complete

    Renovation Complete

    December 12, 2019
    Once the interior finishes were complete we added the new hand rails, brought in our drums and sound equipment, set up our new couch and chairs, and marveled at the final product.
    Finishing the Interior

    Finishing the Interior

    December 7, 2019
    At this point we had finished painting, laying down new floors, installed stone wallpaper, and added black trim around the bottom of the walls. It was exciting to see how much we had already transformed the space into something brand new!
    Updated Branding

    Updated Branding

    November, 2019
    In the midst of renovating our new church Pastor Duddley convinced Ryan Kerbs to refine the brand a little more by simplifying the logo to a single color and reducing our color palette to a single red. Then this red was painted on one of the interior walls and a raised version of the white logo was placed in the back wall of our sanctuary space.
    Renovation Begins

    Renovation Begins

    November 30, 2019
    We began renovation of this storefront property with a work bee. A group of our biggest supporters came together and began helping us take out garbage, tear out old things, and begin painting.
    Discovering our New Home

    Discovering our New Home

    October 10, 2019
    MyGeneration Church's leaders had a goal to find a new place to call our own someplace in Harlem. Our appointed team searched long and hard for a suitable location, but faced many challenges. We had not looked at a single potential location until this fateful day when we jumped at the opportunity to view this storefront property. It was in rough condition, but the price was right and God helped everything align for us to sign a lease!
    First Back to School Drive

    First Back to School Drive

    August 17, 2019
    At our first back to school drive we gathered donated supplies and backpacks that we handed out to the people of Harlem at the YMCA. Little did we know that in a few months we would be securing a new location for our church only a few blocks away!
    First Baptism

    First Baptism

    June 29, 2019
    On this day we welcomed Frantz St. Vellaire into our family as our first official baptism. Since we had no baptismal facilities at MyGeneration Church he was baptized by our pastor at Shalom Seventh-day Adventist Church.
    Relaunch Weekend

    Relaunch Weekend

    April 13-14, 2019
    After rebranding ourselves we organized a relaunch weekend event with guest speaker Michael Polite and a bunch of guest music artists!
    MyGeneration Church Rebranding

    MyGeneration Church Rebranding

    February, 2019
    After Pastor Duddley's installment, he was reviewing the original branding presentation of concepts that Ryan Kerbs created for the church in 2016. He noticed one of the unchosen logo concepts was far more bold and simple than the one chosen by the founders of MyGen Church. He had Ryan Kerbs touch up the logo design and presented it as an updated rebrand for our church. This also came with an extended name change. The new name for our church would be MyGeneration Church, while “MyGen Church” could still be our unofficial nickname.
    Installation of Pr. Duddley Francois

    Installation of Pr. Duddley Francois

    November 10, 2018
    It was on this day that we welcomed Duddley as our new pastor, along with his wife, Gina, and their two children. His installation was one of the most highly attended events on record at our church.
    Farewell Dr. Ricardo Bain

    Farewell Dr. Ricardo Bain

    June 30, 2017
    It wasn't long before Dr. Bain's accomplishments were recognized and he was called to be Adventist Youth Ministries Director in Florida. He accepted this calling and we had to sadly say goobye to our founder.
    First Health Expo & Fashion Show

    First Health Expo & Fashion Show

    May 20, 2017
    With our first big event we began to build a reputation for planning and execution. At this health expo and fashion show our special guest entrepreneurs showcased their fine vegan cooking, natural beauty products, remedies, and modest-but-stylish fashion.
    First Game Night

    First Game Night

    March 25, 2017
    Our first game night at MyGen Church was a blast! We played a super fun mix of gym games and party games that kept us moving constantly.
    First Baby Blessing

    First Baby Blessing

    March 25, 2017
    On this day Damion and Marbin had their son, Drew Bascombe, dedicated and Blessed by Dr. Ricardo Bain.
    Grand Opening

    Grand Opening

    March 4, 2017
    After another successful test service and gathering lots of feedback we were ready to launch our first official church service on March 4th, 2017.
    First Beta Service

    First Beta Service

    January 20, 2017
    The leadership team planned a lot and built a unique structure of ministries designed to cater to the needs of a new generation of people. Our first test service was held on a Friday night in the gym at Northeastern Academy. Because of their vision to create a more relaxed atmosphere the worship area was arranged with round tables spread around the stage. Snacks and refreshments were served to everyone attending. The service itself had lively worship music, ice breaker bonding activities, thoughtful discussions, and an intentional sermon topic. The beta service was a great success, so we began planning our first official church service.
    First Brand

    First Brand

    December 2016
    The team decided to call this new church “MyGen Church.” MyGen was short for My Generation, which was inspired by the Seventh-day Adventist Church's Adventist Youth Ministries Aim “The Advent message to all the world in my generation.” The team's communications director, Ryan Kerbs, set out to create a new brand for this unique type of church. After creating many options the team voted on this design for our first logo.
    In the beginning...

    In the beginning...

    November 2016
    There was a lively team of young adults organized by Pastor Ricardo Bain. We were united under a single vision, a desire to do church differently. We'd all come from churches that seemed too caught up in tradition, and longed to make a place that returned to the basics of our faith. In November 2016 this team was formed and began planning to plant a new type of church with the blessing and support of the Greater New York Conference of Seventh-day Adventists.