The longtime pastor of an active CBF congregation is set to become the next Moderator-Elect for the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship at the 2018 General Assembly in Dallas.
The CBF Nominating Committee has selected Kyle Reese to serve as Moderator-Elect in 2018-2019. Reese has served as senior pastor of Hendricks Avenue Baptist Church in Jacksonville, Fla., since 2006. He previously was pastor of First Baptist Church, San Angelo, Texas (2001-2006) and First Baptist Church, Valley Mills, Texas (1997-2001).
Reese is a graduate of Wayland Baptist University (Bachelor of Arts), Truett Theological Seminary at Baylor University (Master of Divinity), and earned the Doctor of Ministry in Preaching from Northern Baptist Theological Seminary as a participant in the Association of Chicago Theological Schools program in 2003. He was ordained to the ministry by First Baptist Church of Mertens, Texas.
A deeply engaged participant and leader in the life of the Fellowship, Reese has held several roles in the denomi-network, including as a supervising pastor for CBF’s Ministerial Residency Program from 2005-2010, a preacher at the 2011 CBF General Assembly in Tampa, Fla., and a member of the search committee that called CBF Executive Coordinator Suzii Paynter in 2013. From 2009-2018, he served as the chairperson of the Board of Directors of Baptist News Global.
He has also been active in the Jacksonville community as a board member of Baptist Health and participant in Leadership Jacksonville, OneJax and the San Marco Rotary Club. Reese and his wife, Amy, have three children: Peyton (20), Hannah (19) and Wyatt (17).
Reese expressed excitement to step into this new role and shared his appreciation for CBF.
“I have received so much from this Fellowship,” Reese said. “It is an honor to serve this beloved community which has surrounded me with support and encouragement throughout my ministerial journey. In 1994, when I began as a student at Truett Seminary, CBF provided a scholarship for a portion of my tuition. What a gift of grace! Over the years, CBF has partnered with the churches I’ve served to provide avenues for mission in our community and around the world. I look forward to walking with the CBF staff, embracing this new day with all of its promise and challenge.”
CBF Executive Coordinator Suzii Paynter praised the nomination of Reese and said she “welcomes Kyle as a friend and faithful leader to the Fellowship team.”
“Kyle Reese brings gifts of vision and vibrancy to the Fellowship,” Paynter said. “He has served with energy and wisdom and I know that he brings those gifts to the Moderator role in CBF as well. While he has served in leadership at Hendricks Avenue Baptist Church in Jacksonville, CBF Florida has become CBF Florida & the Caribbean—expanding with churches in the Bahamas and Puerto Rico and developing important relationships with Baptists in Cuba. These local churches and global church relationships characterize the talent and gifts of Dr. Reese and the work of our Fellowship in the days ahead.”
The CBF Nominating Committee, chaired by Jenny Howell, an adjunct professor at Baylor University and member of DaySpring Baptist Church in Waco, Texas, will also present for approval from the Assembly additional nominees to serve on the Fellowship’s Governing Board, Missions Council and Ministries Council.
Additionally, the Governing Board, led by CBF Moderator Shauw Chin Capps, will bring forward nominees to serve on the Nominating Committee and Council on Endorsement as well as the board of the CBF Foundation.
At the conclusion of the upcoming General Assembly, June 11-15, CBF Moderator-Elect Gary Dollar will assume the role of Moderator, the Fellowship’s highest-ranking office. Dollar will succeed Capps, who will transition to the position of Past Moderator and serve as an ex-officio member of the Nominating Committee in 2018-2019.
Dollar, a nationally-recognized nonprofit leader and former executive, serves as a partner with the St. Louis-based EMD Consulting, which assists nonprofit groups in fundraising, leadership development and building organizational strength. He retired in 2013 as CEO of the United Way of Greater St. Louis after leading the organization for 12 years. Learn more about incoming CBF Moderator Gary Dollar here.
The slate of nominees to be submitted for approval at the Dallas Assembly from the Nominating Committee are listed below. These nominees will be voted on by members of the Fellowship during the June 15 morning session at 9:30 a.m.
Nominating Committee Report
Governance
- Moderator-Elect — Kyle Reese, Pastor, Hendricks Avenue Baptist Church, Jacksonville, Fla.
- Nominating Committee Chair-Elect — Christopher Mack, Minister of Young Adults, Trinity Baptist Church, San Antonio, Texas
Governing Board
- Ann Beatty, Chief Executive Officer, BEATTY Consulting; Member, ESIC Baptist Church, Edwardsville, Ill.
- Jason Callahan, Vice President, Human Resources and Risk Management, TruckPro; Member, First Baptist Church, Memphis, Tenn.
- Jeff Roberts, Senior Pastor, Trinity Baptist Church, Raleigh, N.C.
- Alan Sherouse, Senior Pastor, First Baptist Church, Greensboro, N.C.
Missions Council
- Alyssa Aldape, Associate Pastor for Young Adult and Youth Ministries, First Baptist Church of the City, Washington, D.C.
- Dani Jones, Minister of Music and Education, Heritage Baptist Church, Heflin, Ala.; Adjunct Professor of Music, Jacksonville State University, Jacksonville, Ala.
- John Moore, Pastor for Missions, First Baptist Church, Abilene, Texas
- Heather Mustain, Minister of Missions and Advocacy, Wilshire Baptist Church, Dallas, Texas
- Randy Shepley, Senior Pastor, First Baptist Church, Newport News, Va.
Ministries Council
- James Cobban, Pastor, First Baptist Church, Middletown, Ky.
- Kevin Collison, Pastor, Island View Baptist Church, Orange Park, Fla.
- Scott Dickison, Pastor, First Baptist Church of Christ, Macon, Ga.
- Andy Hale, Senior Pastor, University Baptist Church, Baton Rouge, La.
- Kristopher Norris, Visiting Distinguished Professor of Public Theology, Wesley Theological Seminary, Washington, D.C.
- Megan Pike, Chaplain Resident, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences Medical Center, Little Rock, Ark.
- Scott Stearman, Pastor, Metro Baptist Church, New York, N.Y.
- Megan Turner Doud, Associate Minister in Student Ministries, Aiken’s First Baptist Church, Aiken, S.C.
- Buddy Wagner, Retired Professor; Member, Northside Baptist Church, Clinton, Miss.
- Cassandra Wilson, Staff Chaplain, Mt. Carmel Health Systems, Gahanna, Ohio