NASHVILLE, Tenn. (ABP) — A young associate pastor and a longtime youth minister have been honored by the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship for their dedication to ministry.
Amy Grizzle, minister to adults at South Main Baptist Church in Houston, and Fran Patterson, minster to youth at Broadway Baptist Church in Fort Worth, Texas, received awards during the CBF-sponsored ChurchWorks conference in Nashville, Tenn., Feb. 22-25. The conference brought together Current, CBF’s network for young church leaders, with Christian educators from Fellowship partner churches.
Grizzle received the Young Baptist Leadership Award. South Main Baptist Church Pastor Steve Wells, in nominating her for the honor, said: “From her rigorous academic preparation to her consistent leadership, both in the local church and on the broader Baptist stage, Amy is making a powerful difference in and for the Kingdom of God. Amy’s ministry is transforming lives and systems here in Houston. Her vision for Current has given great shape to a generation of young ministers. Her capacity for caring combined with her ability to identify and disarm coming trouble is a gift to all with whom she works.”
Patterson received the Jack Naish Distinguished Christian Educator Award. In nominating her, Broadway Baptist Church Pastor Brent Beasley said she has devoted her life to generations of the church’s youth — but especially proved her dedication to her calling last year.
“She has always been well loved at our church, but she is loved and respected even more after the way she responded to the situation we faced this summer when [a Kentucky Baptist university] rescinded their invitation to host our youth choir for their mission trip four days before they were to leave. Fran took charge of the situation and had an entirely new trip planned by the end of the week,” Beasley wrote. “And she handled it all in a mature and Christ-like way, setting a wonderful example for our students (and adults).”
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Previous ABP stories:
Broadway Baptist Church youth choir detours through Nashville (7/8/09)
Baptist school cancels mission trip for church dismissed from SBC (6/30/09)