Brooklyn Church Gives the Widow of Its Founder 10 Days to Leave Home

DITMAS PARK – Pilgrim Baptist Church posted a 10-day eviction notice on the door of the widow of the late Archbishop Roy E. Brown in Ditmas Park last week. Archbishop Brown, the founder of the church, died this June after a long illness.

Lady Paula Scarlett-Brown, his wife of 22 years, was given no notice to quit the house before she woke up on Friday, August 17, to find the letter posted on her door – for all in the neighborhood to see.

She did not go to church last Sunday, as she had done for the last 28 years, every Wednesday and Sunday, deeply saddened by the way her church had treated her in her time of need. Her need for a bit of time to grieve her husband and spiritual leader, and look for a job, while undergoing therapy for her back, having taken care of him during a crippling illness for the last 13 years of his life.

A deeply devout Christian, Lady Scarlett-Brown was a wife and a congregant, but not a big part of the church’s administration.  Before marrying Archbishop Brown in 1996, she worked at P.S. 251 as a teacher and staff developer from 1993 until her husband asked her to resign shortly after their marriage. She went on to become principal of Pilgrim Christian Academy for several years until the church closed it. Now the widow is left to find employment along with an apartment having lived with her parents and husband her entire life.

“I know I’m the third wife but I was the only one there for him throughout his sick years,” she said.

For the last 13 years, her days involved taking care of the man who lost both of his legs to complications from diabetes and needed dialysis three days a week. As the wife, she was his primary caretaker, with a bit of help from the church that pitched in the last three years of the Bishop’s life. Here she is speaking at the celebration of his life:

Due to the rapid deterioration in Archbishop Roy E. Brown’s health in 2016, an emergency board meeting of the Church was held in the marital home. Lady Scarlett-Brown was warned by the board that she would be required to leave the residence upon her husband’s death. However, she could not imagine she’d be given just 10 days notice.

Following his death, Lady Scarlett-Brown was invited to a meeting with the Board of the church on August 6, but when she showed up with a lawyer, they refused to talk to her with the lawyer present. The Board then had another meeting on August 12 to which she was not invited, which resulted in the letter. Through all this, Lady Scarlett-Brown was attending the church and saw the individuals in person.

Lady Scarlett-Brown is not destitute, her husband did have a life insurance policy worth a $100,000. All she is asking for is a little common courtesy, and not to be locked out of her home of 22 years on Monday with only 10 days notice.

She did a long interview on Larry Reid Show, for those of you who want to hear more:

Q&A with Paula Scarlett-Brown

What was your initial reaction when you saw the notice to quit on your door?

I felt humiliated, embarrassed, devastated and shocked. I stood at my front door shaking in total disbelief. It was so traumatizing. I felt completely abandoned and disrespected. It broke my heart because never in my life have I ever received a notice to quit my home within 10 days. It never entered my mind that the church that I served at for 28 years would do such a thing to me. I am still heartbroken.

Why do you think the church has treated you in that manner?

I honestly have no idea. Some of the church leaders are behaving in a very immoral and ungodly way. I mean why would you post that notice on my door for the public to see when you see me every day because we have fellowshipped together for the past 28 years? It’s so unkind and makes no sense.

Your late husband founded the pilgrim church. What do you think he would say about the way you’ve been treated?

It would grieve my husband greatly to know that the church posted a notice to quit the property on our front door in full view of the public to witness. Also, my husband would have definitely wanted the leaders of the church to do all they could to help make the transition after his death easier for me. I know I’m his third wife but I’m the only one that was there through his years of sickness. Nobody can ever say he wasn’t cared for.

What do you do think about your niece’s efforts to draw attention to your plight?

Tonya has always been disturbed about the way they treated me.  She understood I had no help from the church during many of the years he was sick so when I received the letter she thought it was time to let the world know what’s going on.

Although Lady Scarlett-Brown received money from her husband’s life insurance, it is not enough to buy a house plus cover her legal fees and medical insurance, which is why her niece, Tonya Joy Bolton, who resides in England, has set up a Go fund me page for people who want to give donations to help her get back on her feet. https://www.gofundme.com/i-stand-with-paula-brown.

How would you like this situation to be resolved?

I would have liked to have seen some compassion, leniency and loving kindness shown towards me as well as adequate time allocated for me to grieve the death of my husband. I would have greatly appreciated the Church’s support in helping me transition to a new chapter of my life in which I am independent and healthy again and living in a new place of residence that is safe and comparable to my current home.

Additional reporting by Kadia Goba