Guy BonGiovanni

Born 18 August 1930, in Sagamore, New York, Guy BonGiovanni was the oldest son (and second child) of Antonio ('Antonino') Paolo BonGiovanni (1894-1956) and Mary nee Fera (1908-1983). Antonio was born in Roccavaldina, Messina, Sicily, and migrated to the USA in 1911, where he made a living as a miner. Guy's siblings included Rev. Frank BonGiovanni, John BonGiovanni (also d. 2018); and sisters, Petrina (later Cacciatore), Ann, Mary (later King) and Jesse (later Carter). BonGiovanni was educated at Niagara Falls High School, for some time at Penn State University, and then Eastern Bible College (later the University of Valley Forge).

During the summer of 1949, BonGiovanni lived with Vincenzo and Nicholas Tavani in Camden, N.J., working with Tavani, as interim Pastor of Broadway Tabernacle (now Cherry Hill Assembly of God), and other interns such as John Albanese, and Joseph Giunta. Guy graduated from Eastern Bible Institute in 1952 (he later went on to earn a doctorate of Pastoral Theology from the Florida-based training institution, Logos University (registered as an institution able to grant degrees through religious exemption). Passionate for the gospel, he spent the early part of his career in regional itinerant evangelism and assisting with church planting.

From 1957, BonGiovanni was senior pastor of Farrell Christian Assembly (now First Assembly of God, Hermitage). It was a church established through the 'grassroots ("door to door") outreach of Ann Miller and Almirina Catalani in 1927' and first pastored by Peter Bonafiglia (Palma, dissertation). It had met in houses, and then in 1929 purchased the the Polish Falcons Hall on Emerson Avenue. BonGiovanni drove development, raised the average giving, and purchased ground for a new building. The church was officially dedicated in the spring of 1960, and soon afterwards a youth centre and Brigade for Boys ministry were added. In 1962, at a missions convention, Bongiovanni introduced the Faith Promise program to raise specific amounts for missions each year to be distributed to churches throughout the CCNA.

In 1955 in the Bronx, New York, Rev. N. J. Tavani presided at the marriage of BonGiovanni and Esther nee Calvelli in Glad Tidings Tabernacle, New York. A mentor and careful reader of every book BonGiovanni was to write, Tavani was a lifelong friend. The families would spend considerable time in each other’s homes, and he was the surprise guest speaker at a celebration of BonGiovanni's 70th birthday and 50th year of ministry. Esther and Guy would have 2 children, including Linda (married Donnie Abraham) and Karen (married Nicholas Sbano) five grandchildren (Christopher, Abby and Casey Pantalone, Stacey (Michael) Sbano Peacock and Nicholas (Charlene) Sbano) and five great-grandchildren.

Ordained in the CCNA in 1960, BonGiovanni rose early into national prominence within the Christian Church of North America (CCNA). He wrote the movement's 'Eight Point Program' in 1964, which described its strategy for extension and churchplanting. Other plans followed, including the 'Cleveland Plan' (1965) and the Graded Share Plan (1966). In 1970, BonGiovanni was made executive director of missions for the CCNA, a position he held for 12 years, followed by service as its Assistant General Overseer, and as its General Overseer (1984-1989). During that time, he significantly increased the giving to missions, reorganized training and church planting, and grew the size of the missions office. He handed over Farrell Christian Assembly to Joseph Magliato in 1971, but continued to write regularly for Il Faro and the English language version, The Lighthouse - it was as Director of Publications for the latter that he changed the name of the movement's journal to Vista, and designed the movement's logo. In 1982, he was inducted into the academic honour society, Delta Epsilon Chi, through the chapter at his alma mater Valley Forge. BonGiovanni went on to author several books and was the owner of Globe Printing Co., as well as publisher of the New Wilmington Globe, a weekly community paper in print since 1880. He was the president of Life Enrichment Ministries and continued to write and travel for ministry in Churches, conferences and conventions after his retirement.

BonGiovanni died on Monday, 2 April 2018, after being in Christian Ministry for more than 60 years. He was buried Green Haven Memorial Gardens, Canfield, Mahoning County, Ohio, after a memorial service at Highway Tabernacle in Austintown, Ohio. His younger brother, John, who had remained in Niagara Falls, passed away on 14 September of the same year.

Writings:

1971: Pioneers of the Faith.

1983: The Ministry of Reconciliation.

2003: Your Spirit Can Speak: How You Can Receive the Baptism in the Holy Spirit;

2014: How To partner with God to get more money for missions: The Faith Promise Concept.

2014: Depression: How to Whip it and put an Upbeat in Your Spirit.

2016: In My Lifetime: An Odyssey of Supernatural Happenings.

Sources:

Ancestry

Galvano, Stephen, ed. Fiftieth Anniversary: Christian Church of North America: 1927-1977. Sharon, PA: General Council, CCNA, 1977.

Newspapers, Obituary, Sharon Herald, 3 April 2018.

Palma, Paul, 'From a Band of Immigrants to a Global Movement: A Century of Italian American Pentecostalism, 1906-2006', PhD dissertation, Regent University, 2017.