Brewton-Parker student/pastor earns ministerial scholarship

The Toombs Area Ministerial Association awarded its second annual ministerial scholarship Jan. 30 to Jonathan Jenkins, a Christian Studies major who also serves as pastor of Normantown Baptist Church in Vidalia. The scholarship is awarded to a BPC student preparing to go into full-time ministry. At left, Director of Mercy Ministries Clint Hutcheson presents a $1,000 ministerial scholarship to Jenkins while Steve Echols, president of Brewton-Parker, stands nearby. LAURA HAY/BPC

By Lauren Moye

BPC managing editor

MOUNT VERNON— The Toombs Area Ministerial Association (TAMA) awarded their second annual ministerial scholarship on Tuesday, Jan. 30. The ministerial scholarship is collected for the dedicated purpose of giving it to a Brewton-Parker student who is preparing to go into full-time ministry. The 2018 recipient of this scholarship is Jonathan Jenkins.

TAMA, an inter-denominational group of local ministers, put together two community events each year. They organize Holy Week and also hold a Thanksgiving service. It is at the latter that they collect money for their ministerial scholarship. The scholarship amount awarded to Jenkins was $1000.

Jenkins stated: “I am beyond grateful to receive this scholarship from the TAMA organization. This scholarship was an enormous blessing for me this semester.”

Jenkins was selected through an essay competition, where he shared about his faith and call to ministry. Jenkins is also serving as the pastor of Normantown Baptist Church. He originally learned about the scholarship when he met Hutcheson while on a tour of Mercy Ministries. He only visited the clinic because Normantown is a supporter of Mercy Ministries.

Jenkins said: “It was by an awesome act of God that Clint and I were able to meet. If I had not been a pastor, or if I had not have gone on that tour, I would possibly have never met Clint or heard about the scholarship that I have now received.”