My name is Leyland Collier. I was born in Guyana, South America.  I moved to Trinidad in 1985, where I met my wife of 40 years.  Together we have two adult daughters, 34 and 28 years old.

 

I came to Georgia in April of 1996 and started a ministry in the inner city of Atlanta.  The ministry was primarily for the homeless and underprivileged families in the community.  We utilized an abandoned 12-apartment building, which was donated to the ministry and served as our ministry center.

 

Out of our ministry center, we provided shelter, clothing, food, hot meals, after-school programs, counsel, and spiritual guidance to the community.  Our resources were derived from donations from several churches, ministries, individuals, and grocery stores like Publix and Kroger, and departmental stores like Dillard and JCPenney, to name a few.

 

The after-school program aimed to provide the children with assistance in their academics, keep them off the streets and out of trouble by partnering with the Mayor of the city to provide basketball courts and tickets to attend Braves and Hawks games.  We supplied them with food, clothing, and hot meals to fill the gaps where their parents fell short.  Every summer, we took some children to summer camp in the community and also in Tennessee.  At Christmas, we provided toys and a holiday celebration party for the children of the community.

 

The 12-apartment building allowed us to take several homeless families and individuals off the street and house them for a period of time.  During this time, we provided spiritual guidance, counseling, and food as we helped them to get back on their feet.  We saw some get off of substance abuse and reestablish themselves in society as productive citizens.

 

Underprivileged families in the community were able to visit the ministry center to receive groceries, clothing, hot meals, and counseling for various situations.  We also acted as a temporary haven for people in the community facing violence and abuse.

 

My ministry extended to Conyers and other towns like Clarkston and Decatur, where I worked with other churches doing outreach in apartment complexes and extended stay hotel parking lots, and refugee communities doing block parties, summer soccer camp, and providing them with food and back-to-school supplies. 

 

Over the past 6 years, the ministry has progressed overseas to Uganda, Rwanda, Ghana, and Trinidad and Tobago.  We have supplied over 2,400 Bibles to Pastors and church members in both Uganda and Trinidad.  We have held conferences where we trained over 500 pastors in Uganda for ministry.  We have conducted marriage conferences in Uganda for the past three years, where over 15 churches were represented at these events.  In March of 2026, I will be leaving for northern Uganda to teach at a refugee camp that houses refugees from DRC, Sudan, and South Sudan.  Many of these refugees were Muslims who have now come to faith in Christ.

 

I am currently in the process of acquiring land to establish a ministry center in Kamuli, Uganda.  Kamuli is a remote village in eastern Uganda where there are no modern conveniences like electricity and running water.  The ministry center will be primarily for women and children, where we can provide remedial teaching and life skills in order to help them generate income for living. I have also started a program with the men in the community to help end domestic violence, which is very common in the society.

 

These are just a few of the highlights of what I have been doing.  I pray it gives a clear picture of my ministry work.