Specialists

Rev. Wade P. Floyd

Wade grew up in diverse areas, in terms of size, socioeconomic status, race, and church size. This made him want to serve people of all people and helped him serve students of all kinds during his ten years in youth ministry. In February 2014, Wade moved from youth ministry to pastoral ministry and has been under appointment in the Texas Annual Conference since then. In that time, he has served churches both large and small, in rural, urban, and suburban settings. Wade is married to Julie, and they have three amazing kids who keep them busy. Wade also enjoys outdoor activities, writing, and UTSA Athletics.

Wade says: "Understanding the demographics of the areas I have served help me to be a better pastor and helped the churches I have served grow. MissionInSite is a great tool for ministry no matter where you serve or how long you have served." Wade stands ready and willing to help you learn MissionInSite. Let Wade help you learn to use the tools of MissionInSite so that your church can grow, and you can grow as a pastor/leader.

Don R. House, Sr.

I have benefitted from years of local church involvement as a layman and years of studies of growth and decline of churches through local church year-end reports—from 1974 to 2020. I serve as president of the Institute for Local Church Growth (ILCG), supervised by the West District but serving annual conferences and local churches throughout the U.S.

Long range planning begins with an accurate assessment of the state of the local church and realistic visions of the future. Effective planning considers existing strengths and weaknesses across the church’s ministries and should energize a congregation. Planning should include the financial sustainability of the congregation.

Rev. Luis Ramirez

Pastor Luis was born in Stillwater, Oklahoma and raised in Maracaibo, Venezuela. He is a graduate of the Moores School of Music and the College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences at the University of Houston where he studied Opera Performance, Italian and Spanish. He received his Master of Divinity from Perkins School of Theology at Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas.

Pastor Luis has been active in ministry and in the community through Walk to Emmaus, Kairos Prison Ministry International, United Way, Meals on Wheels, Interfaith Ministries for Greater Houston, SHSU Charter School, UPWARD™ Soccer, Spring ISD Ministerial Alliance, Northwest Area Assistance Ministries and UM ARMY.

In the Texas Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church, he has served as the Founding Pastor of Misión Milby UMC in Houston, as the Associate Pastor at Servants of Christ UM Parish, also in Houston, and Cedar Bayou Grace UMC in Baytown, and as the Senior Pastor of Cypress Trails UMC in Spring.

While at Cypress Trails UMC, Pastor Luis led a Change Management process that emphasized Community Engagement and Outreach. Over a period of six years, the Church’s congregation accurately mirrored its multiethnic community Demographics. This process included the transformation of the Music Ministries in style and multigenerational engagement, charismatic Preaching, and an emphasis on fruitful Stewardship.

Pastor Luis spurred Cypress Trails UMC’s Revitalization through Fundraising. In six years, he helped raise over $500,000 inclusive of grants, individual gifts, bequests, corporate support and building rental revenue. This caused the Church to re-engage its Vision and develop Mission Strategies for reaching the neighborhood.

Pastor Luis has been involved in Clergy Mentorship as a mentor to the Conference’s Exploring Candidates for ordained ministry. He has also mentored the Associate Pastors, Lay Ministers and Staff members under his leadership throughout his ministerial career.

Currently, Pastor Luis lives in Baytown with his wife, Heather, their daughter, Isabella, and their dog, Luna, where he serves as the Senior Pastor of Cedar Bayou Grace UMC.

Rev. Sharon Sabom

A native of Fort Bend County, I’ve serving churches in the Texas Annual Conference in some capacity since 1996.  I have served in the district as the chair of the Finance Committee, chair of the District Committee on Ministry and as a District Trustee.  On the conference level I have chaired the Committee on Spiritual Formation, chaired the Health Benefits committee, and served on the Pensions Committee.  I also currently serve on the board of Texas Methodist Foundation as a trustee. In retirement, I became certified as an Intentional Interim Ministry Specialist.  I have a passion for serving and helping the smaller churches in our Conference.

One of the first things I do after being appointed to a new church is to study the demographics of the community.  It’s an interesting way to learn about the community and to see where the possibilities are.  For me, this is Step One and needs to be done to get an understanding of the community, and what role the church is playing or could be playing in that community.

Rev. Dr. Vastine Watson, Jr.

Dr. Watson is a 15-year UMC Pastor, who holds a Doctor of Ministry from Southern Methodist University, Perkins Seminary, Dallas, Executive Director of Kingdom Blue Productions, member of BMCR, and specializes in church and non-profit demographic studies.

As pastor of Norris Chapel UMC, Dr. Vastine Watson Jr. used MissionInsite to reveal insights about the community around us. MissionInsite data helped us make decisions to build deeper connections, expanded ministry options, and increase our capacity to serve, invite, and engage with our local community. Dr. Watson believes authentic assessment, careful analysis, and training leads to a greater understanding of a churches position in their assigned community, and ultimately, the ability to cast their vision and bring about a transformational impact. He is willing to help you the same for your ministry.

Rev. Fred Willis

Raised in the UMC, I started ministry working with youth while in college before being ordained in 1997. Since then, I have been a pastor both in rural East Texas churches as well as communities along the Gulf Coast. Most recently I have been serving in the suburbs of Katy. This has exposed me to a wide variety of settings and cultures for ministry in our Conference.

Besides my work in Youth and Camping Ministry, I have spent a time in the Methodist Healthcare System of Dallas as a Chaplain, completing 2 credits of CPE (Clinical Pastoral Education), received certification as a Pastoral Counselor through Krist Samaritan Counseling Center, and was trained by Coaching4Clergy, learning to stand alongside Pastors.

Most recently, I was one of original members trained to bring the Vibrant Church Initiative to our Annual Conference, spending several years walking alongside clergy while coaching the congregations. One of my biggest passions is to help congregations discover their own way to make Disciples and take Christ into their own unique settings.

Before a congregation can reach into their community, it is important to understand who their neighbors really who are not just we think they are. By working with MissionInsite, I can help them discover for themselves not only the demographics now but what is expected in the future and from there, begin to vision for how the Church will reach out.