Rev. Dr. Sam Parkes is a native of Lawrenceburg, Tennessee where First UMC was his spiritual home. He started performing in community musical theatre at age 11 and as a teen began singing in the church choir. Sam received a Bachelor of Arts in Music (1988 – Voice Performance) with a concentration in Theatre from The University of the South at Sewanee, TN. Sam began serving churches as a licensed local pastor in 1991 and attended seminary at the Candler School of Theology of Emory University where he received a Master of Divinity (1998) from the Candler School of Theology at Emory University and a Doctor of Theology in Homiletics (the art and craft of preaching) from Emmanuel College in the University of Toronto (2016). He is an active member of the Academy of Homiletics. Sam is a contributor to the 2024 Abingdon Preaching Annual and to the recent Abingdon Theological Companion to the Lectionary.
Dr. Parkes is serving in his 33rd year under episcopal appointment in the United Methodist Church and is a clergy member of the Alabama-West Florida Annual Conference. He led the Preaching Excellence Team of the conference which provides programming for preachers seeking to grow in the craft of preaching through collaborative sermon series planning. Sam also developed a small-group coaching model called Partners in Preaching which he has led with groups in Alabama, Mississippi, and North Carolina. In 2016, Sam was named the Director of Worship for the Southeastern Jurisdictional Conference of the UMC and served in that role through conferences in 2021, 2022 and 2024.
Sam works in both church and community to establish systems of support for LGBTQ persons. He frequently travels in his conference to help localities and churches establish Reconciling Ministry groups. Sam was also the founder and vice-president of PFLAG Niceville which provides support, education, and advocacy for the people of Okaloosa County, Florida. He LOVES being a “PFLAG Dad.”
An avid home cook, Sam can be found in the kitchen most evenings. Otherwise, he reads, writes, and loves a good movie while curled up on the sofa with his two tuxedo cats. He is very proud of his two young adult children: Will, 20, lives and works in Fort Walton Beach, FL, and Harper, 18, begins college in Alabama in Fall 2024.
