Texas Baptist Men completed disaster relief work in the Hawkins area after donating 792 volunteer days in the wake of tornadoes and high winds that damaged the area. Chainsaw crews completed 166 jobs, heavy-equipment operators logged 395 hours and volunteers prepared 1,951 meals. TBM provided access to 415 showers and washed 261 loads of laundry. In the process, disaster relief volunteers made more than 300 ministry contacts, presented the gospel to 19 people and distributed 78 Bibles.
Hardin-Simmons University presented Altom Christian Service Awards for Outstanding and Exemplary Christian Service to Carlene Spicer, former HSU faculty member and sponsor of Sigma Alpha social club, and Charles Richardson, who served 30 years as director of media relations at HSU. Richardson is involved in the prayer ministry at First Baptist Church in Abilene and has served as a volunteer chaplain for the Abilene and HSU police and for the Abilene Regional Medical Center. Spicer teaches an adult Sunday school class at First Baptist Church in Abilene, where she also leads the bereavement food ministry, and she is involved in global prayer ministry.
The Baptist General Convention of Texas Executive Board recognized the first group to graduate from the nine-month Leadership Texas Baptists program—Debra Blake, director of student services at Dallas Baptist University; David Cook, director of the master of arts in leadership program at Dallas Baptist University; Carlos Francis, youth pastor at Bethlehem Baptist Church in Mansfield; Carlos Garduno, associate pastor at Tilden Baptist Church in Tilden; Lynn Harper, senior pastor at Promised Land Missionary Baptist Church in Dallas; Rachel Jones, minister of music and children at Haltom Road Baptist Church in Fort Worth; Bryant Lee, pastor of Higher Expectations Baptist Church in Humble; Joshua Minatrea, interim director of communications, BGCT; Ronald Session, pastor of Shiloh Baptist Church in Garland; and Meagan Stewart, ministry assistant for church starting, BGCT. Applications will be accepted until June 15 for the second Leadership Texas Baptists group. The program will begin in September. For more information, contact David Adams at david.adams@texasbaptists.org, call (214) 828-5253 or click here. \
Retiring
Don Shannon as pastor of First Baptist Church in Coldspring after 47 years. The church will recognize him during a worship service at 10:15 a.m., June 5, and in the celebration program and luncheon that will follow at Jones Hall in Coldspring.
Ordained
Bruce Stovall, Brad Harvell, Glen Nicks, Jim Bob Maples, Forrest Starr, Jake Franke and Robert Gorr as deacons at First Baptist Church in Cisco.
We seek to connect God’s story and God’s people around the world. To learn more about God’s story, click here.
Send comments and feedback to Eric Black, our editor. For comments to be published, please specify “letter to the editor.” Maximum length for publication is 300 words.