New Covenant Pastor Transitions

Because we value the connections that are made through our Presbyterian churches and presbyteries, a brief accounting of the comings and goings of pastors and other church professionals are noted in this section.

New to New Covenant - Welcome!

October 2011

Rev. Craig S. King, Sr. has been called to serve as pastor at First Presbyterian, Alvin. No stranger to the area, Craig grew up in Galveston and attended Galveston College. He spent 15 years as a police officer in Galveston County and received a BS degree from the U. of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston School of Allied Health Sciences. Craig received his MDiv from Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary. Transferring from Arkansas Presbytery. Craig has served congregations in Arkansas and Missouri.

Rev. Dr. Brian Wiggins has been called to serve as pastor at First Presbyterian, Lufkin. Brian was raised in Dallas and received degree in Business from the U. of Texas at Austin. He spent 5 years working in the corporate world before discerning a call to ministry. He received his MDiv from Princeton Theological Seminary and served a church in Florida. The call “to get back to Texas as soon as he could” led him to serve a church in Brady, Texas, in Mission Presbytery where he served as Moderator. Brian received a DMin from Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary.

Rev. Kristin Galle has been called to serve as Interim Pastor at Covenant Presbyterian in College Station. She received her MDiv from Austin Presbyterian Seminary in 2001 and was ordained in the UCC-South Central Conference. Kristin is from the Marble Falls area. She has served as an associate pastor, a hospice chaplain, and interim pastor. Kristin is married to Dr. Brent Hampton, pastor of Brenham Presbyterian.

Rev. Tracy Williams, received as Member-at-Large, came to Houston last July after marrying minister-member of New Covenant Presbytery, the Rev. Bruce Williams, HR. They live in West Columbia. Previously, Tracy served a church in Harmony, Arkansas. Tracy received her MDiv from Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary and attended General Assembly in 2006 as a theological student (TSAD) from Austin Seminary.

Rev. John Dearman is serving as associate pastor at First Presbyterian, Conroe. John received a BA in History from the U. of Texas at Dallas and his MDiv from Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary. Having a passion for missions, John went to La Paz, Bolivia, for two years after college, where he worked on discipleship and leadership development.

Rev. Isabel S. Rivera-Velez has been serving Juan Marcos Presbyterian, Houston, since last September as Stated Supply. She received her MDiv in 2010 from Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary. She attended General Assembly as a Commissioner in 1973.

June 2011

Rev. Paul Alexander, counselor at Interfaith, Beaumont, was introduced and welcomed into the presbytery as Member-at-Large. He is transferring from Indian Presbytery. Paul grew up in St. James PC in LaPorte in the 1980s. He is the husband of the Rev. Dr. Connie Alexander.

February 2011

Rev. Frederick (Fred) Seay is serving as Pastor of First Presbyterian, Sugar Land. Fred has transferred from South Louisiana Presbytery where he served First Presbyterian in Lake Charles. A native of Mississippi, Fred attended Reformed Theological Seminary in Jackson, Mississippi. He received his MDiv and DMin from Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary. His first call to the ministry was as a mission volunteer with Puentes de Cristo and as a mission worker with Communities United for Health (CUPS). His work included Texas-Mexico ecumenical border ministry which consisted of translation, preaching, mission interpretation and coordination between Mexican communities, and visiting church work groups. Fred and his wife Ruth have three children. Fred is returning to New Covenant where he previously served First Presbyterian in Navasota.

Granted Honorably Retired status - Congratulations!

October 2011

Rev. Carol Burgeson was granted Honorably Retired status at the October presbytery meeting. Accepting a call from God as a teenager, Carol followed that call as a lay leader in the church and community. Feeling a renewed sense of call during the time she was an active Stephen Minister, Carol became a candidate for ordination. She graduated form Iliff School of Theology and was ordained in 2003. In New Covenant Presbytery, Carol has served as a member of the COM subcommittee on Care of Congregations.

June 2011

Rev. Connie Alexander was ordained as an elder when she was 17. She says she may have heard God’s call as a 17-year-old but waited to answer the call until after successful careers as a banker and a high school teacher. She received her MDiv from San Francisco Seminary and DMin from McCormick Seminary. Connie has served churches in Plainview and Dimmitt, Texas, and Ruston and Winnfield, in Louisiana.

It was during her time in Winnfield that she signed up for a trip to Jordan with a group of Presbyterian pastors. On the flight there, she sat with two other pastors, John and Paul Alexander. “The three of began to talk,” reports Connie, “and we have been talking ever since!” Connie and Paul married in January 2007. Connie came to Texas as pastor for Drake Memorial Presbyterian in Orange. In retirement, she intends to keep enjoying her love of opera, biographies, and travel. “How blessed I am – living in interesting places, doing very satisfying work, and finding the love of my life at age 60 when I least expected to!” says Connie.

Rev. Tom Atkins is one of eight children born to Salvation Army officers who were missionaries to Hispanics in Mexico City and Laredo for more than 40 years. After serving in Vietnam, teaching in secondary schools, and ministry-related work with the Salvation Army, he received his MDiv from Columbia Theological Seminary. After frequent encounters with U.S. Navy chaplains from the Naval Air Station in Corpus Christi, Tom decided to serve as a chaplain.
 

“I had the privilege of working in the world’s largest youth ministry – the U.S. Military!” remarked Tom. “There was no way I could have anticipated such tremendous fulfillment and challenge in my ministry to Sailors and Marines.” The fast-paced 24 years at sea with Sailors and on deployments with Marine units to hotspots around the world, made the encounter of Jesus with the Roman centurion (Matthew 8) all the more meaningful. “Time and again, I could say with Jesus: I have not found anyone … with such great faith!”

Tom served as pastor in Sarasota, Florida, and at St. Thomas Presbyterian in Houston. “At St. Thomas, I have been richly blessed by the regular prayer gatherings that have undergirded every expression of worship, study, outreach, fellowship and service in that family of faith. I will forever remember the incredible privilege and thrilling journey that God has afforded me as a Pastor.”

Tom and his wife, Alice, look forward to long visits with their three daughters and six grandchildren living in England, Germany, and New Hampshire. Their home base will be in Sarasota, Florida.

February 2011

Rev. Kenneth W. (Ken) Jack received Honorably Retired status last October and was recently elected Pastor Emeritus by the congregation of First Presbyterian, Huntsville. He was born, ordained, served in ministry, and retired all within Brazos Presbytery, now New Covenant Presbytery.

At age 18 Ken served three months as a student missionary in South Korea, where he taught conversational English and gave slide show presentations of his life as a Christian American college student. At Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary he was one of the creators of “experiential” worship that used multi-media to structure the worship experience. During his early years of full time ministry, Ken’s became the “architect” in the development of Interface, which is now part of Samaritan-Interface.

Ken left full-time ministry to enter the business world, working in an executive/technical search firm. For 30 years he continued to serve in part-time ministry as pulpit supply and as a parish associate. It was in 2001 that Ken began part-time preaching at First Huntsville which led to his acceptance of a call from that congregation, where he served until his disability retirement last October.

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