Mark Welshimer markwelshimer@faithsw.com .HERE'S A LITTLE BIT ABOUT OUR PASTOR MARK WELSHIMER: Rev. Dr. Mark Welshimer serves as the Senior Pastor of Faith SW Methodist Church in Amarillo, TX. He is a native Texan from El Paso and made a faith decision at an early age. At Texas Tech University, he became a member of The United Methodist Church through the Wesley Foundation, and served at Ralls FUMC and Brownfield FUMC, while earning his BBA. He received his calling into the ministry as a summer camp counselor at Sky Ranch Camp. Dr. Welshimer is committed to lifelong learning and has served in diverse churches. He has earned a Master of Divinity at Asbury Theological Seminary and a Doctor of Ministry at SMU Perkins. He has served as a pastor at Polk Street UMC, Magnolia UMC, St. Peter’s UMC Katy, FUMC Fulshear, FUMC Houston, FUMC Waco, Bardstown UMC Kentucky, and a Chaplain at Houston Methodist Hospital. Connectional ministry in mission and relationship are at the heart of his ministry. Dr. Welshimer has served in his ministries with enthusiastic spirituality and grace-based missiology. Dr. Welshimer has led many stateside and international mission trips, with trips to Mexico, Honduras, Belize, New Orleans, El Paso, London, and Jamaica. He has also helped lead educational trips to Israel, Jordan, London, Greece, and Rome. As an ordained Elder, he has served in many capacities across United Methodism leadership and beyond with Ceta Canyon Christian Camp, the Lydia Patterson Institute, Rotary International, 4Amarillo, The Walk to Emmaus, and SMU Perkins Preaching Cohorts. Dr. Welshimer has a vision of reaching people where they are with relational connectivity, grace, and truth. He has a passion to make disciples for Christ by serving all people with practical grace, unconditional love, relevant faith, and invitational empowerment as he is intentional about encouraging vital Christian community. He and his wife Sara, also raised in El Paso, have been married for 20 years. Sara is an English Professor at Amarillo College. She previously taught at Houston Christian High School in the Distinguished Scholars Program and was the Chair of the English Department. They have three children (one at McMurry and two at Amarillo High School), an annoyed cat, and a cute dog. He enjoys traveling with his wife, swimming and cooking with his kids, reading, playing golf, and running. |
Angie Bivens angiebivens@faithsw.com Hello, I am Angie Bivens. I am the Interim Part-time Children's Director here at Faith Southwest. I attended FSW from 2005 to 2019 and then again from July 2021 to present. I have been an educator with Amarillo Independent School District for 27 years; 15 years as a teacher and 12 years as a school counselor. I have a husband, Doug, who is a firefighter. I have a son and daughter-in-love, Cory and Allison, who live in Stillwater, Oklahoma. I have a daughter, Aaryn, who goes to West Texas A&M. I was born and raised in Amarillo. |
Mark Bailey markbailey@faithsw.com Worship Leader Mr. Mark A. Bailey is the Director of Choirs at Palo Duro High School in Amarillo, Texas and is a sought after clinician and published researcher. Mr. Bailey’s most recent scholarly work is published in TMEA's 2018 edition of the Texas Music Educators Research Journal and focuses on poverty and music education. He has recently presented similar research at the annual ACDA International Symposium on Research in Choral Singing. His choirs have recorded and premiered original works for Carl Fischer Music. He is entering his 14th year as a professional music educator. Before coming to Palo Duro, Mr. Bailey was the Director of Choirs at Brazoswood High School. Prior to that, Mr. Bailey was Head of Fine Arts and Director of Choirs at The American School of Kuwait, and Director of Choirs at Atascocita Middle School, La Porte High School, and Houston Christian High School. Choir programs under Mr. Bailey's direction receive consistent UIL Sweepstakes ratings and top festival honors. Mr. Bailey is a graduate of Baylor University (B.M.Ed.) and Texas Tech University (M.M.Ed.) and has studied educational research with Dr. Janice Killian and choral conducting with Dr. Anton Armstrong, Mr. Donald Neuen, Dr. Jeffery Ames, Dr. Donald Bailey, and Dr. Carolyn Cruse. Mr. Bailey has also performed under the direction of world-renowned conductors Paul Salamunovich, Eph Elly, Andre Thomas, and Anton Armstrong. Professional affiliations include active membership in Texas Music Educators Association (TMEA), Texas Choral Directors Association (TCDA), American Choral Directors Association (ACDA), and the International Society for Music Education (ISME). Mr. Bailey is a lover of hot tea, MLB Baseball, all books Sci-Fi and Mystery, and is an avid fan of Star Trek, Star Wars, Sherlock Holmes, Agatha Christi, and Murdoch Mysteries. Mr. Bailey’s wife, Hannah, is Head Librarian at West Plains HS in Canyon ISD. Mr. and Mrs. Bailey have two young children, Henry and Charlotte. The Baileys are lovers of travel, hiking, books, Astros baseball, board games, movies, and music. In his spare time, Mr. Bailey enjoys arranging and composing choral works, writing research in education, and playing Mahjong. |
Travis Sills
travissills@faithsw.com Youth Minister Hi church family, I am so excited to be joining you as your Youth Minister. My family and I are so excited to call Faith Southwest, home. We come to you from the Austin area, having moved to the Panhandle in July. Both I and my wife, Nichole, are teachers. I teach 6th grade RLA at Greenways Intermediate and Nichole teaches first grade at Lakeview Elementary School. Our three kids - Hannah (9th grade), Parker (8th grade), and Andrew (5th grade) attend schools in Canyon ISD within the Canyon high school feeder pattern. We are so excited to be here. I bring about 15 years of Youth Ministry experience (full and part time) and eight years of teaching experience. I served in churches in the Waco area and within the central Texas/Austin area. Most recently, I was part-time Youth Minister at Hutto Discovery United Methodist Church in my hometown of Hutto, TX. I look forward to getting to know each and every one of you and serving alongside you within our community. |
A WORD FROM OUR PASTOR...
Welcome...
Faith Southwest is the place you can call home. Here you will find a true family of faith. We seek to serve Christ and love one another. The community of Faith Southwest is a group of people becoming fully devoted followers of Jesus Christ. We work together, play together, grow together, and sometimes even cry together on our journey to finding the peace and grace that only comes through a relationship with Jesus Christ.
Our mission is to REACH people for Jesus Christ; to RAISE people to full maturity in Christ; to EQUIP people to serve Christ; and to SEND people to serve others on behalf of Christ.
We welcome you to come home this Sunday and join us.
— Pastor Mark Welshimer
markwelshimer@faithsw.com
Physical Address:
4415 Wesley Dr
Amarillo, TX 79121
806-356-0985
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