Ministerial Staff of Central Baptist Church (Left to Right)
Randal Whitt: Associate Pastor•Spiritual Development
Dr. Ted Savage: 55+ Pastor
Joel Salazar: Associate Pastor•Worship
Steve Horn: Student Pastor
Barry Jeffries: Pastor
Bro. Barry Jeffries, Gay and their three children, Jacob, Daniel and Abigail, came to Central and Livingston in February 2004. They arrived fresh from Kentucky where Barry had spent 20 years pastoring. How he got here is a great story — ask him about it some time. Barry was trained in ministry at Clear Creek Baptist Bible College in Southeastern Kentucky. He and his family have fallen in love with the people of East Texas and look forward to many years in this area in service to Christ. Barry has a passion for preaching and teaching the Word of God and invites you to come grow in your journey with God at Central.
Joel Salazar, Associate Pastor of Worship, has served at Central Baptist Church for over 15 years. He grew up in Bishop, Texas, received his Bachelor of Music Education Degree from Houston Baptist University, and a Master's Degree in Church Music from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, Texas. Joel served as youth and music minister in Texas and Oklahoma prior to coming to Livingston. He is married to Rebecca Sanson Salazar, and has 3 children: Robin, John, and Ruth. Joel gives credit to his Lord for all the blessings he has received, and his desire is to share the love he has received from God with those he encounters.
Originally from North Texas, Randal Whitt, Associate Pastor of Spiritual Development, has been serving the Lord at Central Baptist church since June of 1994. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Education degree from Texas Tech University and a Master of Divinity with Biblical Languages degree from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, Texas. He has been married to the love of his life, Carla, since 1990 and has two sons, Remington and Reece. His responsibilities include providing direction and oversight to the Sunday Morning Bible Study, Discipleship, Evangelism and Missions Ministries of Central Baptist Church. His heart's desire is to see people come into a right relationship with God through Christ and to help them grow in their faith.
Dr. Ted Savage has been Central's Senior Adult (55+) Pastor since 2005. He was born in Oklahoma and after graduating from high school and Oklahoma Baptist University, he received a Masters from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Ft. Worth Texas, and a Doctorate from Luther Rice Seminary in Atlanta, Georgia. He and his wife, Verna, were missionaries for twelve years in Zambia, Africa. The remainder of his 56 years in the ministry of our Lord has been spent in the pulpit as pastor in Oklahoma, Texas and Colorado.
Steve Horn, Central's Student Pastor (as of July 2006), comes to us from Kentucky with his wife, Dee Dee, and their two sons, Cody and Corey. Steve describes himself like this: "I am just an ordinary guy who loves God and loves teenagers. I am an ordinary guy that an extraordinary God has so graciously saved and has allowed to work with teenagers. I love God, I love my family, and I love the Church, especially teenagers." Steve has a passion for students to know and experience Jesus Christ in a real and personal way and for them to know that they are accepted.