Lena Mae McLin (née Johnson; September 5, 1928 – October 3, 2023) was an American educator, composer, author, and pastor, who served as a music teacher in the Chicago Public Schools system at Kenwood Academy.

[6] She attended the Pilgrim Baptist Church as a child, where she was exposed to gospel music[7] and served as an accompanist to her uncle's choir.

[1] Her other students included R. Kelly, Tammy McCann, Chaka Khan, Da Brat, Mark Rucker, Robert Sims, and Jennifer Hudson.

She was called "the woman who launched a thousand careers" by art critic Howard Reich of the Chicago Tribune.

She and the ensemble made their operatic debut in November 1960 at the Abraham Lincoln Center in Chicago, with a performance of The Cloak.

[20] McLin composed a wide range of music, including cantatas, masses, and rock operas.

In a resolution passed by the Illinois House of Representatives in 2008, the House stated that: "Prompted by a calling from God on August 9, 1981, Lena McLin started a bible class in a small meeting room in the Conrad Hilton Hotel in downtown Chicago; during the next several months, Dr. McLin fervently studied the Holy Bible and attended divinity training classes and on February 26, 1982, Dr. McLin was officially ordained as a minister; the bible classes became services as Holy Vessel Baptist Church, and Dr. McLin was the pastor and the Minister of Music; and [o]nce established at a permanent address, Dr. McLin implemented outreach programs to help the Hyde Park community; the church began providing food, clothing, bus and train fares, temporary shelter, and Christian counseling to distressed men, women, and children; in 2008, Holy Vessel celebrated its 27th anniversary, and Dr. McLin celebrated her 26th anniversary as an ordained minister of God.