Hometown: I grew up in Dallas, but was born in Borger, Texas.
Present City: Dallas
Education: My educational and professional background span aerospace engineering (gig ’em, Aggies) to teaching psychology at a university in Morocco, with seminary and pastoring in the middle.
Tell us about your family.
Connie and I grew up, met and married at First Baptist Dallas. We have three children and five grandchildren. Angela, our oldest, and her daughter, Nicolette, are members at Wilshire. Our son and his family are in Washington, D.C., and our youngest daughter and family live in Austin.
How about your work or volunteer life?
I spent 10 years in the aerospace industry working for both General Dynamics on the F–16 and Boeing on the 757. Later, we felt challenged to be involved overseas and pastored an international church in Rabat, Morocco, for a few years. After that we continued living and working in Morocco as teachers for about 25 years. My teaching was primarily at a university teaching psychology. We also worked with several orphanages and charitable organizations. Currently, I’m an ESL teacher at a private institute in Richardson for international students.
Any favorite hobbies?
I like to paint, play the piano and viola and build model airplanes with my grandchildren.
What are your favorite places to travel?
Since returning to the States, we’ve loved exploring Dallas, getting to know parts of the city we never learned about while growing up. My two favorite overseas trips included Israel, Palestine, Jordan and Syria, both times with my son as tour guide.
What brought you to Wilshire and when?
We grew up thinking of Wilshire as the church near Pancho’s Mexican restaurant (formerly in Hillside Village), never dreaming one day it would be the community where we could share in their vision and love for Dallas. For the past 10 years, we often visited Wilshire when we were in Dallas. After returning last fall, we decided to make it official and joined in March 2025.
What do you think God is up to in your life right now?
My faith message today revolves around seeking first the kingdom of God and being a messenger of the peace of Christ that includes all people at the kingdom table
What is something interesting most people would not know about you?
My dream as a boy was to fly planes, and I started flying lessons while in high school, followed by Air Force ROTC at A&M. I was ready to leave college and fly jets when the Vietnam War ended and my career path changed.