Our Directors

Richard L. Wallace, Sr. was saved at age fourteen, and he surrendered to preach that same year.  He served the Lord eagerly and faithfully in his local church, and was active in teen revivals and street preaching.

Don Fanning is the Assistant Executive Director for the Spanish graduate School of Religion Masters of Ministry program at Carolina University.

Don found Christ as a Junior in high school, then gave up a golf scholarship to go to Bob Jones University to prepare for the ministry. There he met his dear wife Janice. God burdened their hearts for an aviation jungle church planting ministry in Amazonas, Colombia for 10 years.

With a growing burden for teaching, God opened the door at Word of Life Argentina, then planting churches in Buenos Aires and Asunción, Paraguay. While there Don was asked to put into Spanish the ABEKA BOOK Christian School curriculum and train teachers across Latin America.
When these projects became self-supporting, Don was asked to become the chairman of the Missions Department at Liberty University in Virginia, a position he held for 16 years, until
Don’s mother became sick, so he and Janice moved to Pensacola to care for her.

In 2021, Joe Jordan invited Don to join him in developing a Spanish Seminary Master’s program online, the greatest honor of a lifetime.

Dr. Byron Edens is the Executive Assistant to the President for Online Learning and the Professor of Preaching and Christian Ministry of Brewton -Parker College, based in Mount Vernon, Georgia. He holds the academic rank of Professor with over 20 years of collegiate teaching experience. He serves as both a national and international conference speaker. He has over 40 years of pastoral ministry experience spanning 12 different churches. Healso served as the 2018-19 Vice President of The Tennessee Baptist Convention, TN. Additionally; he is also a Georgia POST certified Law Enforcement Chaplain with over 20 years of Law Enforcement Chaplaincy experience.

Dr. Edens is a native of West Columbia, S.C. where he was saved at the age of seven and was called to ministry at the age of 18. He accepted that call and was later licensed and ordained at Northside Baptist Church, West Columbia, SC. After graduating from Brooklyn-Cayce High School, he began his college education. He graduated with his Associate Degree from Midlands Technical College in 1979. He then transferred to the University of South Carolina in Columbia, SC and completed an Associate Degree in Commercial Education in 1982 and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Interdisciplinary Studies in 1984. He completed his seminary education at New Orleans Baptist Seminary earning a Master of Divinity in Pastoral Ministry in 2001 and a Doctor of Ministry Degree in Expository Preaching in 2012. Additionally, he did further post graduate doctoral studies at Walden University in Applied Management and Decision Sciences in Information Technology and completed his Ph.D. in Leadership from Carolina University in 2021.

Dr. Edens is married to the former Theresa Ann Wilson of Miami, who received her Associate, Bachelor of Arts, and Master of Divinity Degrees in Christian Education from NOBTS and her Doctor of Philosophy in Leadership from Carolina University in 2022. They have two children, Danielle and Philip (wife Emily).

Dr. Edens ministry of preaching and evangelism has allowed him to share the gospel in South East Asia, the Holy Lands, Israel, Jerusalem, Judea, Greece, Moldova, India, Africa, Russia, Cambodia, Japan, North and South Vietnam, Jamaica, Mexico, Dominican Republic, Brazil, Sierra Leone and many other countries. He has a heart and passion to reach the people that Jesus challenged each of us to reach in all walks of life, especially to those underprivileged of the world and give them an opportunity to gain a Christian education. There is an old saying, “Man’s flight through life is sustained by the power of his knowledge!” Without the knowledge of Christ, the world is lost. The Edens challenge is, “we must reach the world for Jesus!”

In December 1971, at 19 years of age and with a wrecked life, my sister invited me to a camp run by Joe Jordan. During camp, I was confronted with my sin, with my actions before God’s holiness. I had a deep sense of filth and justice, recognizing I was without hope or a future not only in this life but  also eternally. After camp Joe, my spiritual father, became my best friend and mentor. A lot of changes took place in my life after acknowledging I was clean. I began to love the Word, to feel God’s caring voice daily, to see the lost, and to face the reality that Christ had  placed me to reach them with the Gospel and to lead them to the decision that would lead them to Everlasting Life.

In December 1974 I married Silvia, the love of my life, and we started a family with three children who love God and serve Him. Alejandro is a teacher of the Word with a passion for preaching and teaching college and career. Dan Jr. is married to Johana and they have two children, Ezekiel, and Antonella. He is serving the leadership of many churches and constantly challenging young people to impact the world by making a difference as a child of God. Johana has a ministry called Authentic and more than 400 women in leadership receive instruction weekly through the beautiful team they have. Andrea works as an administrative manager in town and is married to Matias. He is a good man living close by and taking good care of us every day.

I studied at a seminary in Brazil. Later, with Joe, we started a Bible Institute in Argentina. Around 11,700 students from 32 countries studied at the Bible Institute from 1975 to 2019. Ten years ago, we felt an immense need to attend to the lives of many that are in God’s work but not necessarily taken care of. For this reason, we started the Master of Arts in Ministries Program, and my work is connecting with many that need to continue their studies.

Every weekend I have activities in numerous churches and with the church I am a member of. To be useful and fear the Lord is the motto of my life, and to understand that in ministry, success hides what error and failure teaches you. We must always improve by His grace and mercy and for His glory.

Paige Patterson has more than four decades of experience in educating pastors and missionaries. After almost 18 years as president of the Criswell College in Dallas, Patterson served for 11 years as president of Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary in Wake Forest, North Carolina, and then 15 years as president of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, Texas. Even as a pastor he offered instruction in biblical studies and languages to congregants in his churches. The focus of Patterson’s leadership is an intense commitment to evangelism and global missions with a foundational component of challenging research and rigorous academic preparation.

After graduating from Hardin-Simmons University, Patterson completed the Master of Theology (Th.M.) and Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degrees at New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary. Southern Baptists elected him to serve as president of the Southern Baptist Convention for two terms (1998–2000). During those years, he appointed a committee to revise the Baptist Faith & Message, the confession most widely employed by Southern Baptists; and he presided over the historic session of the Convention in which this revised confession was adopted.

While studying at New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary, Patterson was pastor of a multi-ethnic church. With street evangelist Leo Humphrey, he operated a coffeehouse in the famous French Quarter. There he shared the saving gospel of Christ with biker gangs, underworld figures, homosexuals, prostitutes, and runaway teenagers from across the United States.

Paige and Dorothy Patterson have traveled to and ministered in more than 135 countries of the world, sharing Christ with various heads of state, including Yasser Arafat of the Palestinian Authority and Menachem Begin of Israel. He has led church planting movements in several states and served as pastor of churches in Arkansas, Louisiana, and Texas.

For several decades, Patterson has led an international ministry through Christian sportsman banquets. Using digital presentations about hunting the world’s most dangerous game and emphasizing the critical importance of fathers in the role of building their sons from “the mischievous, raw material of boys” into manhood, he rejoices that more than 5,000 men have come to Christ through these banquets. These sportsman events developed naturally out of Patterson’s love for the outdoors. He is a scuba diver and an avid hunter, having taken three of the African “big five” (lion, leopards, and cape buffalo). Despite his full schedule, Patterson has found time to pen numerous books and articles. These publications include commentaries on Song of Solomon, 1 Corinthians, Titus, 1 Peter, and most recently the volume on Revelation in The New American Commentary Series. Dorothy Patterson is also a well-known author of commentaries and monographs.

Patterson was born in Fort Worth in 1942 while his father, T.A. Patterson, was completing his Th.D. degree under W.T. Conner at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. Dorothy Patterson has been active in theological education for women, serving as professor of theology in women’s studies at both Southeastern and Southwestern, but she sees her most critically important role as that of wife, mother, and grandmother. Their son Armour is a writer and lives in Melissa, Texas, with his wife Rachel. Their daughter Carmen is married to Mark Howell, pastor of Hunters Glen Baptist Church, Plano, Texas. The Howells have presented the Pattersons with two granddaughters, Abigail (who recently married Aaron Ricks) and Rebekah. Abigail and Aaron, as well as Rebekah, are students at Southwestern. Chayil, a black Labrador Retriever, completes the family circle.

Born into a strong Christian home, Henry Morris IV heard the gospel from an early age and recognized his need for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, at the age of 8. The son of a pastor, Henry was nurtured in his faith by godly parents, and later by the profound work of his grandfather, Dr. Henry Morris Jr, on the scientific evidence that affirms the biblical account of special and recent creation. There is no doubt in Henry’s mind that the Bible is accurate and authoritative in all things.

After nearly 20 years in finance, Henry heard God’s call to leave the corporate world in 2007 and pursue full time ministry work with the Institute for Creation Research (ICR) — a science-oriented ministry founded in 1970 by his grandfather. It was Henry’s privilege to serve alongside his father, Dr. Henry Morris III (CEO), as ICR’s Director of Donor Relations and Operations from 2007 to 2022. Under his leadership, Henry put his financial background to good use and built a comprehensive fundraising and stewardship program that transformed uninvolved followers into enthusiastic financial supporters. God blessed and expanded the ministry of ICR during this time, which culminated with the ICR Discovery Center for Science & Earth History–a multimillion dollar science museum built to showcase the evidence that the Bible is right and its message is true. It was Henry’s greatest joy to serve the Lord as the primary visionary, fundraiser, and operations director to bring this marvelous world-class facility to fruition (all glory belongs to Him!)

Henry holds a BS degree in business administration and a Master of Divinity degree, both from Liberty University in Lynchburg, VA. While at Liberty, Henry met his beautiful bride Kelli and the Lord blessed their marriage with 5 children and 5 grandchildren (so far!). It is Henry’s sincere hope that the Lord will bless him with many more “crowns” (Proverbs 17:6). Henry and Kelli are active members of Denton Bible Church. Henry currently serves as the Director of Major Giving for the American Heart Association.

Brooks is a Vice President and Senior Financial Advisor at Merrill Lynch. He joined Merrill Lynch in 2008 and is a partner on the Leonard Dahlin Wealth Management Team.

Brooks and his team provide financial planning services and investment management services for affluent families and businesses. Brooks and his team have been entrusted with over $900 million in assets under management (as of 12/21).

Brooks holds his Chartered Retirement Planning Counselor and Certified Plan Fiduciary Advisor designations. He is also a specially qualified Senior Portfolio Manager.
Brooks holds a BBA in Entrepreneurship and Venture Management from the University of Oklahoma.

He is a member at Fellowship of the Parks Church and resides in Argyle, TX with his wife, Kristin and their two children.

Brooks enjoys playing Softball, Pickle ball and coaching his son’s select baseball team.