Nine years of commercial banking in Oklahoma and Texas.  Nine years with the Baptist Church Loan Corporation.  Married to Lesa with one son, Spencer.

As reported in the February 2015 Tennessee Baptist Reflector, “Gilder was a fully funded pastor in Memphis in the early 1990s before joining the staff of the Tennessee Baptist Convention as church and community ministers director.  When he was asked to take over bivocational ministries in 1995, Gilder made a decision that some people questioned. He specifically requested to give up his “full-time” status with the convention so he could serve as a bivocational pastor. Gilder moved to McMinnville and began serving as a bivocational pastor. As he began to work and minister with other bivocational pastors, Gilder had “credibility” because “I was one of them,” he affirmed.

Since 2006, Charles Higgs has been Director of the Western Heritage Ministry of Texas Baptist. He has helped in the start and development of 150 new Western Heritage Church starts. Charles received his Masters Degree from Dallas Baptist University and his Doctor of Ministry from Trinity Theological Seminary. 

Charles is also Director of the Western Heritage Studies Program at Dallas Baptist Church.
Charles was pastor over thirty years before accepting his present position with Texas Baptist. Charles has pastored churches throughout Texas and Oklahoma. In 2004, Charles & Nancy moved to Stephenville, Texas were they founded the Cowboy Church of Erath County. Charles also has served on the Executive Board of the BGCT and on the Board of Trustees of the Texas Fellowship of Cowboy Churches.

Charles has recently co- authored the Book, “Get Your Bible out of the Saddle Bag-Volume One.” This book was published by Westbow Press owned by Thomas Nelson Publishing Company. There will be five more volumes of this book in the coming months and years.

Darrell Jackson is a servant leader with over 20 years of ministry experience who is committed to making disciples for Jesus Christ. During his tenure in ministry, Jackson has served as a Senior Pastor, Adjunct Professor, Pastoral Care Director, and Worship leader. Currently, Darrell serves as a Church Consultant and Director of Leader Development for the San Felipe Baptist Association. Darrell also serves as a Crisis Counselor for the NOVA Texas Crisis Resiliency Team.  Jackson is a Board Certified Chaplain, and he holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Christian Leadership from the College of Biblical Studies, and a Master of Divinity from Faith Evangelical Seminary. Darrell Jackson is married to Marsha, his wife of 22 years, and they have three adult children.

After serving as a pastor for 25 years in Southern Baptist churches, Dr. Jones came as the DOM of Neches River Baptist Association in December 2005. Dr. Jones earned his M.Div. from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, TX, and a D.Min. and Ph.D. from Louisiana Baptist University in Shreveport, LA. He and his wife Karen both give their whole lives to serving the churches of the Neches River Baptist Association, resourcing, training, and equipping our churches to do the work of the Great Commission.

Jim Newton has pastored the Riverside Baptist Church for twenty years. The church is located in a town of 500 people and the church has had two pastors for the last 43 years. In Bro. Newton’s fourth year as the pastor, he went through a church split. He will tell you that although he would never want to have to experience the horror of that again, the lessons God gave him through those storms of opposition have been the most life changing and ministry altering ever learned and he would not trade them for anything in the world.

Has served as pastor of Needham Road Baptist/The Church at 242, since November, 1996. Brother Dennis has served in several churches in Texas and New Mexico. Dennis holds a Bachelor of Arts in Bible and a Master’s Degree in Christian Counseling Psychology and a Doctorate of Ministry and Doctorate of Philosophy in Ministry.  He and his wife of 42 + years, Karen, have two grown children and 12 grandkids.

Dr. Roger Yancey has served as the Executive Director of the Tryon Evergreen Baptist Association since 2004. He and his wife Pauline have been married for29 years. He is a graduate of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary with his D. Min. concentration being in Evangelism and Missions. He served for 20 years as a church planter and pastor prior to coming to the Association. His heart is for the developing of leadership, church health, and being part of a church planting movement in the TEBA.