Lena Thomas, 91, a Pentecostal bishop

Lena Thomas, 91, of Eastwick, a Pentecostal bishop who founded four churches in Philadelphia and several in Liberia, died Monday of complications of pneumonia at Taylor Hospital.

Born the third eldest of 10 children, she moved with her family in 1923 to South Philadelphia from Casey, S.C. Times were tough, and the young woman dropped out of Overbrook High School when she was 15 to work in a factory to help put food on the table.

That same year, she married Julius Thomas, a carpenter, and they raised six children in West Philadelphia. He died in 1957.

She studied for three years at the Main Bible Institute at 15th Street and Allegheny Avenue before being ordained a minister in 1942. She was assistant pastor for 23 years at the House of God Gates of Heaven Holiness Church in West Philadelphia.

"She had a special relationship with young people," said daughter Lorraine Ware. "Youngsters from the region attended her Saturday night services and all-night prayer meetings. On Tuesday and Thursday nights she led them in the summer to minister on the street corners in troubled areas of the city." She also ministered to alcoholics, drug addicts, the homeless and to single mothers, her daughter said.

In 1955, she established the Gates of Heaven Pentecostal Church at 4410 Lancaster Ave., where she was pastor for one year. In 1956, she expanded the church and moved it to 867 Belmont Ave., where she was a pastor before being named bishop in 1962. Bishop Thomas left that church in 1996 to establish Belulah Tabernacle Pentecostal Church at 49th Street and Baltimore Avenue, and Gates of Heaven Pentecostal Church at 1755 N. 57th St. She retired in 2002, and family members now run the churches.

Starting in the 1970s, Bishop Thomas made four trips to Liberia, where she established several churches and a school for homeless girls, her daughter said.

In addition to her daughter, Bishop Thomas is survived by daughters Elaine Pearson and Lena Ballard; 20 grandchildren; 38 great-grandchildren; 12 great-great-grandchildren; three sisters; and a brother. Her son, Calvin Sr., died in 1995.

Friends may visit at noon tomorrow at Gates of Heaven Pentecostal Church. A celebration of her life will follow at 5. Friends may also visit at 9 a.m. Monday at Deliverance Evangelistic Church, 2001 W. Lehigh Ave. A funeral will follow at 11. Burial will be in West Laurel Hill Cemetery, Bala Cynwyd.

Donations may be sent to Bishop Lena Thomas Home for Girls in Liberia, in care of Gates of Heaven Pentecostal Church, 1755 N. 57th St., Philadelphia 19131.