Rev. Joel Alvis is coming to Fondren Presbyterian in July
On Tuesday, May 17, as part of its scheduled monthly meeting, your Session decided to offer the post of interim minister to the candidate who it felt was the best person to lead our congregation through the transition period to our next installed pastor, The Reverend (Rev.) Joel Alvis, Jr., Ph.D.
In his capacity as Clerk of the Session, Jim Pitts reached out to Rev. Alvis on Wednesday, May 18, and following the call, delightfully reported that our offer had been accepted.
Rev. Alvis will begin his interim pastorate on Monday, July 18.
Rev. Alvis is an experienced interim minister, having served 11 congregations, ranging in size from 250 to 1,200, in Georgia, Florida, and North Carolina. Over his three decades as a minister, he has also served as solo pastor and associate pastor for churches in Georgia and North Carolina, and as Instructor in Presbyterian History at Johnson C. Smith Seminary. In December 2021, he retired from the position of General Presbyter and Stated Clerk of the Cherokee Presbytery in Georgia.
The Reverend Joel Alvis, Jr., Ph.D.
Joel is a native of Jackson, a 1973 graduate of Jackson Prep, and a former member of Woodland Hills Baptist Church. He is also a graduate of Samford University and holds a Master of Arts degree from the University of Mississippi, a Master of Divinity from Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary, and a Doctor of Philosophy from Auburn University.
Joel was ordained in July 1989, and he is the author of Religion and Race: Southern Presbyterians, 1946-1983, as well as other articles, reviews and published sermons.
View 2016 Sermons on YouTube
View 2017 Sermons on YouTube
Joel’s wife, Vicki, is a retired middle school Spanish teacher. She will be dividing her time between Jackson and their home in the Atlanta area. The Alvises have two granddaughters, one in Marietta, Georgia. and the other in Jackson, Wyoming.
What’s Next?
While his arrival is eight weeks away, your Session still has several things to accomplish before then. One of those things, at the request of Rev. Alvis, is to create a Transition Ministry Team. This team of approximately six to eight members, representing the full spectrum of ages and perspectives in the congregation, will convene before Rev. Alvis’ arrival to make preparations. The mission of the this team will be to help broaden our vision of ourselves as we navigate the transition to our next installed minister, as well as introduce Rev. Alvis to the church, its members, and the community.
The Transition team will do the legwork with assessing where and how we want to proceed with our mission in the future, working with the Pastor Nominating Committee. Over the coming weeks, your Session will be discerning the team positions and contacting members of the congregation to participate. There will be more information about this team in the coming weeks.
Your Session would like to extend its gratitude to Joyce Dortch, who contacted Joel to ask him about possible interim candidates who he might know. After much prayer and thought, he sent us his pastor information form (PIF) and a very informative email. The rest, as they say, is history.