Rev. Rodney Denton - Associate Minister:
Youth Ministries

Hi! I’m Rodney. I work with the Youth and Young Adults here at Memorial UMC. Thomasville and Davidson County is home for me! In fact, I grew up about 15 miles from Memorial UMC in Wallburg, NC . I attended church at Canaan UMC and graduated from Ledford High School in 1989! (Go Panthers!)

I graduated from THE University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 1993 with a Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology. I also served as chaplain of the local chapter ofTheta Chi Fraternity while I was at UNC. I received a Master’s of Divinity Degree from Asbury Theological Seminary in Wilmore, KY in 1997. I became a Permanent Ordained Deacon in the United Methodist Church in 2003. I have had the honor of serving the youth and parents of Mount Zion UMC in Cornelius, NC (3 years) and Simpsonville UMC in Simpsonville, SC (4 years) before finally finding my home here at Memorial in 2004!!! I have also enjoyed serving as a clergy person on numerous Chrysalis Flights in the Central Carolinas and Piedmont Chrysalis Communities.

I married Martha Jo Carroll in 1993. We had our first baby on May 18, 2007. His name is Gracen Reid Denton and two years later we had TWINS!!! The twins' names are Daelyn Vaughn Denton (girl) and Deacon Wade Denton (boy). I am really enjoying the challenges and “learning opportunities” of being a dad. The other member of our family includes Houdi our cat. I am a BIG Tarheel Fan. I like computers & computer games, pizza, Reality TV and “Indiana Jones & the Last Crusade” is the greatest movie ever made (IMHO). I have had a goatee longer than most of the kids my Youth Group have been alive! (since 1991--- That makes me feel SO OLD!)

One of the most life-changing experiences in my life happened in the summer of 1991 when I was invited to become a “Summershiner” at Barefoot RV Resort in North Myrtle Beach, SC. (Shout-OUT to Rev. Chris Thore!) It was at this time in my life that I began to take my faith seriously and Jesus became Lord of my life. It was also through this opportunity that I felt my call to ministry. Although I had considered myself a Christian before this point, and I have had many growing experiences since, I always seem to point to this pivotal time in my life as the moment that I became a true disciple of Jesus Christ!