10th Episcopal District AME Church Bishop Vashti Murphy McKenzie visited Cleburne on Friday afternoon as part of her tour of all the AME churches in Texas.
“This is her first time in Cleburne and she is only the fifth bishop ever to visit Cleburne,” the Rev. John Warren said. “She’s also only the second bishop to attempt to visit every church in the 10th District.”
The district is large to say the least. It includes the entire state of Texas.
McKenzie was on hand to visit Warren’s church, Bethel Salter AME, a church Warren said is 128 years old.
McKenzie first met with Warren and fellow members of the congregation for a late lunch at the Booker T. Washington Community & Recreation Center.
She called the center — which used to be part of Booker T. Washington High School, Cleburne’s school for black students before the school closed and integrated with Cleburne High School in 1965 — a beautiful thing.
“It’s good to see an old thing turned into a new thing that serves the community well,” McKenzie said of the center. “There’s a sermon in there somewhere.”
McKenzie and her husband, 10th District Supervisor Stan McKenzie, spoke of the church’s outreach effort and a state level and the importance support from the local churches bring to those efforts.
It’s important, McKenzie said, that the local churches make use of the resources the district has to assist.
Source: Cleburne Times Review | Matt Smith/msmith@trcle.com
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