Thank You Dr. Kirby

There’s always that one – that one pastor that you always remember. Rev. Dr. Wallace Kirby was the first and major influence that nudged me to ministry.

When I served as acolyte I can remember the 50-ish Dr. Kirby giving me a high 5 as we moved into position in the choir room. His wisdom and playful spirit adored him to the congregation and to me.

As I continue to be nurtured by my home church (Edenton St. UMC, Raleigh, NC) we received other pastors, but I always remembered Dr. Kirby. One year when I, as a youth member, was at Annual Conference, Dr. Kirby approached me and said, “Warren you’re going to be a pastor one day.” At the time I didn’t think much of it, nor really believed it. I thought that that’s what every pastor said to every young person.

It wasn’t until I receive my call to ministry and was actually before the annual conference again for ordination that I ran and to Dr. Kirby again. Several years retired, Dr. Kirby made it a point to attend the Annual Conference Session where I was ordained for ministry. After the service, Dr. Kirby sought me out and said in his jovial, loving way “See, I told you so!”

I believe that at our baptism we are all called into ministry. We may all live out our calling in different ways, yet we are each called. If you are an older youth or young adult and you have had someone tell you “you’re going to be a pastor one day,” I would invite you to check out explorecalling.org to learn more how you can participate in a national event that they UMC sponsors to help young people explore their calling into ministry.

I simply wanted end this article with a huge thank you to Dr. Kirby… Without his prodding, I might never have served God in this way!