Lou Ann Gilliam, CBFNC’s new ministerial equipping director.
The CBF of North Carolina (CBFNC) Coordinating Council recently voted to name Lou Ann Gilliam as Ministerial Equipping Director (MED). Previously, she served as the director of Church and Community Relations at Chowan University in Murfreesboro. While at Chowan, she supported the work of campus ministry, coordinated the Ministerial Board of Associates and served as the denominational, church and community liaison for the University.
In her new role, Lou Ann will serve on the staff team to coordinate CBFNC’s ministries to equip and support clergy. She will work closely with and report to Andy Hale, associate executive coordinator, to direct CBFNC’s ministerial transitions process, as well as continuing education and professional development opportunities for pastors and staff ministers.
“I am so grateful for CBFNC. This fellowship has helped me grow in my Christian faith and nurtured me as a woman in ministry. Because of my previous experience, I know the vital need to have strong Cooperative Baptist churches. I look forward to working with the CBFNC team to serve our ministers and congregations,” said Lou Ann.
Lou Ann’s career in Christian higher education began at her alma mater, Gardner-Webb University. There she served in Alumni Relations, Admissions and Student Activities. She also spent some time working outside of the North Carolina lines at Edinburgh Napier University in Scotland and at Farmville Area Habitat for Humanity (now Piedmont Area Habitat) in Farmville, VA.
“Lou Ann is an incredibly gifted minister with rich experience working with congregations and networking with clergy in North Carolina. What our congregations in the search process need now more than ever is not prepackaged answers but creative and collaborative solutions to new challenges,” said Andy Hale, CBFNC associate executive coordinator. “Lou Ann is keen to learn and adapt in the moment, providing tailored insight, guidance and resources. I look forward to partnering with her, exploring and implementing new phases of CBFNC’s ministerial transitions initiative.”
“I am excited to welcome Lou Ann to our CBFNC staff team. She has been a leader in our fellowship for many years, serving in numerous capacities. Her work with ministers and churches in Northeastern NC through Chowan University was outstanding,” said Larry Hovis, CBFNC executive coordinator. “Now, our entire state will benefit from her warm, caring and effective servant leadership. Many of our folks already know her well. Those who will soon meet her for the first time are in for a treat.”
Lou Ann earned a Bachelor of Science in Psychology and a Master of Divinity at Gardner-Webb University. She is a member of Winter Park Baptist Church in Wilmington where her husband Paul Gilliam serves as senior pastor. Their daughter, Matty Grace, is a college student who has interned at Welcome House Raleigh through CBF’s Student.Go program.
Lou Ann will begin in her new role at CBFNC on December 4, 2023
About CBF of North Carolina
CBF of North Carolina is a fellowship of individuals and churches partnering in ministry so that all people may know and believe that they and those around them are loved by God. As a trusted ministry partner to local churches, CBFNC is committed to serving Jesus Christ, preserving historic Baptist freedoms and calling out God’s gifts in Christians and churches to engage in ministry in our state and world. Based in Winston-Salem, CBFNC collaborates with the larger Cooperative Baptist Fellowship network. Learn more at cbfnc.org.
CBFNC’s ministerial transition initiative serves churches and clergy through interactive resourcing, resumé coaching, candidate matching, churchwide discernment conversations, interim and pulpit supply, and more. Visit www.cbfnc.org/transitions for more information.
