In September of 1969, at the age of fifteen, Bishop McClain was baptized in the Holy Spirit during a revival held in Syracuse by Evangelist Mattie Campbell. He was trained and nurtured as a junior deacon and eventually a minister, under the leadership of his pastor and mentor, the late Reverend Alfonso Campbell. He became an ordained Elder in 1974, under the leadership of Pastor Arthur Lee Johnson. During that time, he was a part of an evangelistic team that conducted revival meetings from New Jersey to Florida. On February 15, 1978, he was called into the Pastorate position. His spiritual development has been influenced by the late Elder Louis and Janetta Kerse, Elder McGriff, Apostle Billy Clay, Pastor Walter C. Blue, Mother Davis, Mother Ollie Brantley, Pastor E. Fussell, Evangelist Inez Matthews, Evangelist Earnest Angly and the late A. A. Allen. He received ordination into the office of a Bishop in August of 2004 by Bishop J. Charles Carrington Jr.

Bishop Leroy McClain, Sr. is a graduate of the Syracuse City School District. From there, he’d attend Trinity Theological Seminary in Newburgh, Indiana. Bishop McClain is one of the founding members of ACTS; Alliance of Communities Transforming Syracuse. He served as the Co-Chair during its inception as well as head of its financial committee, later becoming its first President. In early 2004, he received recognition as the St. Matthew’s Seed of Change Award Honoree for his service to the Syracuse community. He was also very influential in forming The Onondaga Creek Partnership, an advocacy group created to stop the environmental injustice of a sewage treatment plant being built and strategically placed within a majority Black neighborhood, leading to hazardous health implications for both adults and children. He has been instrumental as well in uniting people living on the South Side of Syracuse to take a greater interest in rebuilding their community through a project entitled Gateway.

Born the third oldest of four children to Ida Pearl McClain, he was greatly influenced by the family’s matriarch, his grandmother, the late Stella McClain, who was affectionately referred to as “Chief.” Bishop Leroy McClain Sr. married his childhood sweetheart, Pamela Campbell in May of 1976. They reside in Syracuse, New York and are the loving parents of three adoring children, Rachel LaToya (Angel), Leroy Jr. (Mariama) and Michael Cory (Kyasha). Bishop Leroy McClain, Sr. has 10 wonderful and loving grandchildren and an adorable great grandchild.