(Montgomery, AL) – Bishop Paul L. Leeland announces that Dr. Chris Eckert has been appointed as the District Superintendent of the Demopolis District of the Alabama-West Florida Conference, effective July 1, 2014.
Currently serving as the senior pastor of Ozark First United Methodist Church, Eckert was ordained as an elder in the AWF Conference in 1991. His previous appointments in the conference include the Pike Circuit, associate at Dothan FUMC, Denton Road UMC, Hartford FUMC, and Greenville FUMC.
“We are excited to have Chris as a fruitful and faithful addition to our appointive cabinet and the Demopolis District. He has proven his leadership abilities in his previous appointments and we look forward to him joining our leadership team in ministry,” Leeland said.
Dr. Eckert received his undergraduate degree from Huntingdon College, attended seminary at Candler School of Theology at Emory University and received his doctorate of ministry from International Theological Seminary. He is married to the former Keri Prather and has one child, Hayes.
Rev. Sara Shaver, who was previously announced as the new Demopolis District Superintendent, is now appointed as District Superintendent to the Dothan District. Rev. Dan Morris, current Dothan District Superintendent, will receive a new appointment into the local church. Rev. John Brooks will serve as the new Montgomery-Prattville District Superintendent and Dr. Larry Bryars will serve as the new Marianna-Panama City District Superintendent.
All other clergy who will be assigned a new appointment will receive calls starting Monday afternoon, March 31, 2014. For more information about the AWF Conference, visit www.awfumc.org.
{Dr. Chris Eckert}