Murphy – Lee Whitman is welcomed as pastor of Seventh-day Adventist churches in Murphy and Andrews.
Former pastor in the LaPorte, Ind., area, Whitman brings his distinct interest in youth ministry as well as service to membership and communities. His family includes wife April Whitman, an emergency department nurse, and four young adult children: Caleb, Joshua, Matthew and Madison.
Whitman, a 2003 graduate of Southern Adventist University in Collegedale, Tenn., earned a master of arts degree in evangelism in 2010. He has served in districts that support Adventist Christian elementary schools and day-care centers, as well as Pathfinder and Adventurer clubs. He started Pathfinder and Adventurer clubs in his churches and organized attendance at five International Pathfinder Camporees. Whitman is also a HAM radio operator.
Whitman said his compassion for and interest in others stems from his walk with Jesus and childhood memories.
“I was one of six children my mother raised on her own,” he said. “There was a Christian couple in church at the time who took an interest in me. Their sacrifice for me helped me realize that true evangelism involves reaching out with true interest and compassion into the lives of others. Scripture reminds us that the Savior mingled with men as one who desired their good.”