Brian Colbath, pictured with his wife, Kelli, and daughter, Bailey, has become the youngest Texas Baptist camp manager in the state.

ETBU Graduate Brian Colbath (08) was recently named camp manager at Circle Six Ranch Baptist Camp.  That makes him the youngest Texas Baptist camp manger in the entire state!

Circle Six Ranch Baptist Camp is located in the heart of West Texas, about 5 miles north of Stanton.  Boasting beautiful and spacious facilities for worship, dining, and living,  and plenty of activity areas, such as a pool, challenge course, even archery and rifle ranges, Circle Six has a lot to offer churches, organizations, and individuals, whom they’ve been serving  for over 50 years.

Congratulations to Brian and way to go!  GO BLUE!

Learn more about Circle Six Ranch here

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ETBU Alum Sabrina Bentley (’95) was recently appointed to the Specialty Courts Advisory Council. Pursuant to House Bill 1771 of the 82nd Legislative Session, the council will evaluate applications for grant funding for specialty courts in Texas, and make funding recommendations to the criminal justice division.

Sabrina Bentley of Georgetown is a senior DWI and drug court officer for the Williamson County Community Supervision and Corrections Department. She is treasurer of the Texas Association of Drug Court Professionals and Williamson County DWI/Drug Court Foundation. She is also a past member of the Texas Probation Association and Texas Gang Investigators Association, past co-chair of the Hill Country Community Resource Coordination Group, and past president and past member of the Bowie Cass Adult Education Co-Op. Bentley received a bachelor’s degree from East Texas Baptist University. She is appointed for a term to expire Feb. 1, 2015.

We are very proud of Sabrina and the work she is doing!  GO BLUE!

Read the State of Texas Office of the Governor Official Press Release here.

Julie Kay Roberts

ETBU Graduate Julie Kay Roberts recently joined the staff of the Governor of Florida, Rick Scott, as the Director of Scheduling, and as of January 1, the second role of Chief of Protocol.

Julie is a  Marshall native and graduated ETBU with a degree in Speech Communication and Political Science. After graduation, she moved to Washington D.C. and served in Bush’s Administration.  In 2005, she moved to Tallahassee, Florida and started JKR Consulting, L.L.C.,  a communication firm specializing in emergency communications, non-profits, and public relations.

She joined Governor Scott’s staff in October 2011, bringing over 10 years’ experience to his team.

We are very proud of the work Julie is doing!  Way to go!  GO BLUE!

Learn more about JKR Consulting here and follow her on Twitter @juliekayroberts

You can read the full story from the website of the Office of the Governor of Florida here.

Butch and Barbara Hickey were recently named Distinguished Jackets at Elysian Fields, a recognition for their support and service to the Elysian Fields ISD.

Butch and Barbara both graduated from EF in ’77 and ’80 respectively.  Butch attended UT and graduated with a bachelor’s degree and Barbara graduated from ETBU with a bachelor’s degree and currently serves the University in the Business Office.

The Hickey’s have been involved in the EFISD in many different areas from service on the school board, the dixie baseball league, EF Athletic booster clubs, Little Dribblers, and were even awarded the EF Fan of the Year award in 1999.  The list of their involvment at EF goes on and on!

The Hickey’s have 3 daughters, all of whom played softball at Elysian Fields for their father and coach.  The Jackets have been successful in softball reaching the UIL State Softball Tournament in Austin in 2005.

We are so proud of Butch and Barbara for their service to their community!  GO BLUE!!

David Brown, Pastor of The Avenue Church in Waxahachie, with his wife, Dawn.

I have an ivy in my office.  I’m not very good at gardening – at all – but I am smart enough to tell when my ivy is doing badly and when it is growing.  When it is doing badly, I go into “fix” mode (which is generally bad for any plant I own), but when it is growing, it is evident.  The leaves reach for the sun and look strong.  Even new leaves begin to appear.

It is pretty easy to tell whether a church is alive and growing as well.  And based on this analogy, The Avenue Church in Waxahachie, Texas is doing pretty well.

Recently, Outreach Magazine published a special “100 Largest and Fastest-Growing Churches in America” edition, and of the 100 churches listed, sitting at number 36 is The Avenue Church.  Pastor David Brown, a 1985 ETBU Alum, has been the pastor of The Avenue Church since 1990 where they are experiencing phenomenal growth.

According to Outreach, The Avenue, founded in 1943, has experienced a whopping 51% growth over the last year.  In terms of numbers alone, the church grew by 404 people.

I’ve heard people say before that numbers aren’t everything.  Maybe.  But when a church is experiencing steady growth over the past 12 months, there has to be something going on there. A quick spin around the website at theavenuechurch.com will prove that what is going on is a genuine move of the Holy Spirit.  People are desperate for something real, genuine – something that fulfills their lives.  People will come by the droves when they find it.  They are finding it at The Avenue.

Just like that ivy on the ledge in my office.  I know it is healthy when it is growing.

We are so proud of David and his team for the work they are doing in Waxahachie.

GO BLUE!

Learn more about The Avenue Church here.

Learn more about Outreach here.