The United Methodist Church Pastors are appointed by the Bishop to each church in the district.  Millbrook has been particularly blessed to have had The Reverend Dr. Carter Smith and his wife Linda appointed to our church for the past year.  At the time of the appointment, we knew that this was for a short term assignment.  Actually, Carter has been retired for several years and has been preaching as a supply Pastor to all the churches who know and love him.

It is with great sadness that we bid adieu to Carter and Linda.  We hope they will return soon and often to be a part of our fellowship.  We shall always consider them a part of our church family.  We will celebrate his time with us on the 29th immediately following the service.

The Bishop has appointed the Rev. Dr. Benjamin Ellis to lead us for the next term.  Ben comes to us from the west coast.  His wife Theresa will be studying at Drew.  Two of his three children will be in college in New York City.  We are extremely pleased to welcome Ben and his family to our fellowship   We look forward to his arrival in July. 

The following is a message from Ben that I (your webmaster) requested that he prepare by way in introduction to our church family and those of you on the web that may be interested.   Here then is Pastor Ben:

I will soon be in Randolph and I look forward to a wonderful ministry with the Millbrook UMC people. This summer I hope to meet each of you at your homes, in the church office or at some other favorite place. However, let me give you a head start with a little more about me. I expect that you have seen the basic information on my family and experience in the article I sent the church. In it I told of my wife and kids, my education and that I have served as senior pastor in 5 former churches. Here is a less formal look at who I am.

 I believe that there is nothing more crucial to a full life than the empowerment of the Holy Spirit - as I am a pastor I'll bet that is no surprise. Apart from God, my family is the most important thing in my life, and I find my ministry is best when it flows out of that relationship. Fortunately, my wife agrees and my children endure it gracefully. My father is a retired minister and our family has been in the Methodist ministry since the beginning of the church, during the Revolutionary War. You could say that preaching is in my blood. Theresa and I met at the Walk to Emmaus, which is a spiritual refresher course for church leaders and potential leaders, and I understand that some of you have attended “walks”. She was active in a Baptist church; and, the fact that God did not let this stand in the way shows God has the power to overcome all barriers. Later, after only three weeks of dating I asked her to marry me.  (When something is right I say jump in with both feet!) She was first a legal secretary, then a college secretary/administrator, and this fall she will be going to Drew University to earn her MTS and PhD degrees. Two of our three children will be going to college in Manhattan, and will be living with me in the parsonage through the summer. Theresa will not be able to join us until mid-August as it will take some time for her to transition out of her current position as the Program Coordinator for the GIS masters students at the University of Redlands.

 Some of the things I enjoy include: travel, youth and family camp, gardening, making things, art museums, walking on the beach and sitting over a strong cup of coffee. Another hobby I have long held is an interest in history, and we look forward to the many places in the area one can visit with a full day. I play the guitar, plan to learn the saxophone, and have prayed that God would give me the spiritual gift of piano playing so I wouldn’t have to work at it. God has yet to endow me with such talent. I do sing all kinds of music. The one exception is rap, which I tried once and brought my children to tears of laughter.

 God has richly blessed me with the opportunity to share with you in Randolph. I should be in town by the last day of the month and will hopefully be able to attend the Wednesday night backyard worship (God willing and the creek don’t rise). Theresa and I look forward to many good years of ministry as we work with you to share the Good News of Christ to all.

 In the great love of our Great God,
Ben