Reverend Dr. Ronnie Bernard Tucker Sr.

Rev. Dr. Ronnie B. Tucker, Sr. was born July 5, 1953, in Monticello, Arkansas. The first child of Bertha T. Hewing. His mother preceded him in death.

Rev. Dr. Tucker earned a Master’s Degree in Political Science from the University of Arkansas. He held a Ph.D. in Public Administration and Public Policy from Mississippi State University, and he earned a Th.D. from the New World Bible Institute in Hayti, Missouri.

Rev. Dr. Tucker committed his life to Christ as a young man. He accepted the call into the ministry and was ordained at Morning Star Baptist Church in Monticello under the leadership of Pastor Skipper. God gave him the opportunity to pastor churches in Arkansas, Pennsylvania, and Mississippi.

He was a devoted member of St. Ollie Missionary Baptist Church of Star City, Arkansas, under the leadership of Pastor Rev. Melvin Harrison. Rev. Tucker was the proud Pastor of Mt. Peiler Missionary Baptist Church of Starkville, Mississippi.

Rev. Dr. Tucker served as a Chaplain for the Starkville Police Department. He was President of the Oktibbeha County Branch of the NAACP and a Board Member of the Emerson Discovery Center. He previously served as a Trustee for the Starkville Public Library and served as President of the Mt. Olivet District Congress of Christian Education.

He was actively involved in the community, working to enhance parenting skills and reduce crime in the city of Starkville. Rev. Dr. Tucker organized “Gospel in the Park,” an outreach initiative designed to spread the Gospel and minister to the homeless. He was also a high school basketball official and a collegiate Women’s Basketball Official for the Mississippi Association of Community Colleges, the Gulf South Women’s Basketball Conference, the Southern Athletic Association Women’s Conference, and the Women’s Collegiate Conference of the South.

Pastor Tucker was an active member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. He was a 33rd Degree Mason. He also was a published author. His life motto was “Just Trying To Help Somebody,” and his favorite scripture was Proverbs 3:5–6.

He departed this life on February 2, 2026, at Baptist Golden Triangle Memorial Hospital in Columbus, Mississippi.

He leaves to cherish his legacy, a devoted wife, Lenore, two children, Kristie Tucker, Ronnie Tucker II (NaTasha), three siblings, Danny Tucker, Andrea Binns, Lanee Dunlap, three grandchildren, Bradley, Eryn & Darius, a host of cousins, other relatives and friends.