our pastor
Rev. Floyd Thompkins
Lead Pastor
Reverend Floyd Thompkins, M.Div., is a gifted leader, preacher and teacher devoted to Christ, and to creating a strong community. Concurrent to his new role at St. Andrew, Rev. Thompkins serves as the CEO of the Justice and Peace Foundation, an organization continuing the tradition of building the beloved MLK community. He previously served as Vice President and Director of the Center for Innovation in Ministry of the San Francisco Theological Seminary. He was also the Associate Dean of Religious Life at two world-class institutions, Stanford and Princeton Universities. Rev. Thompkins has published three books and many academic papers and is frequently called upon to give his perspectives and opinions on race, health care and spirituality.
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About joining SAPC, Rev. Thompkins commented, “I am honored and blessed to be able to serve this amazing body of believers who have a tradition of being fierce warriors of love and unflinching practitioners of empathy. I am joyfully looking forward to working with the citizens of Marin City who are about the business of creating and maintaining a just and fair community for all people.”
Andrea Norwood, St. Andrew Presbyterian Elder and Chair of the Nominating Committee added, ”After a nationwide search for a new Pastor, following the departure of Pastor Veronica Goines in December 2018, we are thrilled to welcome Pastor Floyd. He brings a deep love of God and scripture along with a commitment to social justice, in keeping with St Andrew’s long history of activism. We are also so grateful for the leadership of the Rev. Dr. Laurie Garrett-Cobbina, who served as our Interim Pastor these past two years—she kept us uplifted and inspired. We are especially thankful for her loving ministry and pastoral care during Covid, as we transitioned to online services.
The previous pastor, Rev. Dr. Garrett-Cobbina will continue her work as a professor at the University of the Redlands School of Theology in San Anselmo, CA, but will remain an active participant in the congregation of St. Andrew. “It’s been an honor to lead the congregation of St. Andrew, and I know God will continue to bless the church and its people,” said Rev. Garrett-Cobbina.
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As the news about the new Pastor became official, renowned local author Anne Lamott, a longtime member and leader of St. Andrew’s Christian Education program exclaimed, “Over the years, I have always been so excited when Rev. Floyd was scheduled to preach, because of his words, and his joyful, friendly presence. He exudes love—and what a smile! I think he’ll be just right for our little BLM church and the kids in our children’s church will love him.”
Brief history of St. Andrew
We are a diverse church, racially and economically, with a long history of social justice activism, both locally and nationally, from the Civil Rights movement of the 60's to the Black Lives Matter movement of today. Our roots go back to World War II, when temporary housing was created for workers who came from all over the United States to work at the immense shipyards of Sausalito, CA. We began as Marin City Community Church – founded as an inter-racial congregation uniting a diverse group of Christians in worship and prayer, meeting at the local community center. In 1956 we became the First Presbyterian Church, then in 1963 the congregation adopted the name St. Andrew Presbyterian Church, named for the only one of the twelve disciples who is known to have visited Africa as a missionary. The first church building was completed in1965; it remained at the entrance to the community until 1995, when it was razed to make way for the Marin City USA Community Redevelopment. The congregation worshipped at the Marin City Senior Center for three years then in 1998, the new church facility was dedicated, again located at the new entrance to Marin City where it sits today.
Mission / Congregational Covenant
St. Andrew is committed to the belief that the Holy Spirit brings men, women and children of all races together as brothers and sisters united in the family of Jesus Christ.
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As a multi-cultural congregation, our purpose is to model unity in diversity as we worship God, serve one another, and share with others the transforming love of Jesus Christ in the power of the Holy Spirit. As the body of Christ we covenant to:
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Prayerfully discern the will of God in all aspects of congregational life
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Welcome all who God may bring, mutually sharing in the gifts of our uniqueness
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Value all members equally
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Encourage and celebrate all various points of view with respect, kindness and love
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Actively participate in the life of the congregation through worship, service and financial stewardship
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Strive towards peace and social justice
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Practice the spiritual disciplines of prayer and service in our personal lives
PRESS
Click the files to see publication as well as press releases about Saint Andrew Presbyterian and the work we do.
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Marin Voice: Holidays remind us to celebrate the light amid the darkness
Marin Voice: Clean Slate program addresses inequity, injustice on individual, systemic level
Journal of Humanistic Psychology: Using Cross-Cultural Collaboration to Establish a Working Coalition for An Equitable COVID-19 Vaccine Program
Marin Voice: County leaders can do more to fight Marin City development plan