Reverend Phillip Carter
Phillip Alphonso Carter
DOB: 6/15/41 - 82 years old
When Reverend Carter’s name is mentioned in Fluvanna, one senses quiet respect for him, especially in the Black community.
Reverend Carter was born, probably at home as was the custom then, in Palmyra, south of the Rivanna River. The youngest of four children, he was raised by his single mother after his father left the home. His mother supported the family by taking in hand sewing projects, doing housework for folks in the community and bootlegging. It was not an easy childhood, Phillip recalls. He spent quite a bit of time at his grandparents’ home, sited where Central Elementary School is now located. His ancestors may be among those buried in the overgrown cemetery behind the school. During his childhood, Phillip remembers playing marbles, going to the Raccoon Creek swimming hole and playing baseball.
Phillip attended the Shiloh School, a Rosenwald elementary school, and graduated from SC Abrams High School in 1962. He proudly states that he never missed a day of school. He remembers walking to school through the Braggs woods.
After graduation, Phillip joined the Army, and was posted in Germany and Vietnam. He had planned to have a career in the military, but—after seeing so much destruction in Vietnam—he decided to return home to Fluvanna after five years. He then married his lovely wife, Helen, and the couple moved to Cloverdale in Fluvanna in 1963. During his time in the service, Phillip was trained to be a telephone lineman. When Virginia Power (now Dominion Energy) hired him, he became the first Black lineman in the company, and remained the only one during his 30 plus years with the company.
In 1971, Phillip says he “had a calling from the Lord to become a pastor.” Formerly a deacon at Shiloh Baptist Church, he became their ordained pastor. He went on to be the pastor for two other Union Baptist Churches, in Scottsville, VA and in Nelson Co., VA. Since retiring, he has served for the past five years as the chaplain for the Fork Union Oakhurst Health and Rehabilitation Center.
Even though Reverend Carter did not grow up with a father role model, he was determined to be a good father to his three children and one foster son. He is gratified that his now adult children have also become good role models.
Reverend and Mrs. Carter are known for their good works in Fluvanna, especially among the African American community. He says he is glad to get along with all people, and to make them feel good. He says, “I let my light shine before them.” Through the portrait painting project, he says he wants to “carry on the Carter name.”