February 7, 2005

LONNIE D. BROOKS OF ANCHORAGE TO RECEIVE
2005 WOODROW B. SEALS LAITY AWARD

DALLAS (SMU) — Lonnie D. Brooks of Anchorage, Alaska, is recipient of the 2005 Woodrow B. Seals Laity Award presented annually by the Perkins School of Theology at Southern Methodist University. The award recognizes laypersons exemplifying Christian faith and commitment to Christ through service to others.

The award will be presented at a luncheon on Friday, March 4, during the annual Perkins Theological School for the Laity. It honors the memory of the late Judge Woodrow B. Seals, a senior U.S. district court judge from Houston who was instrumental in establishing the school. Originally called “Laity Week,” this annual event draws approximately 200 laypersons from around the country for workshops and discussions led by Perkins faculty members and guest speakers.

“We at Perkins, the University, and in the church are truly honored by a person such as Lonnie Brooks,” said William B. Lawrence, dean of Perkins School of Theology. “His steadfast faith, actions, words and deeds provide a strong model for Christian discipleship.”

Brooks has been an active, lifelong member of The United Methodist Church and now attends East Anchorage United Methodist Church, where he has served in multiple leadership positions, as well as teaching an adult Bible study class. He has been heavily involved in the ministry of the church in the local, national and global contexts. As a young engineering graduate from Georgia Tech, Brooks attended Perkins School of Theology for one year in preparation to work as a layperson with the denomination’s Board of Global Ministries. When there was not a position available upon completion of his year at Perkins, he went to work in the oil exploration profession, eventually enabling him to carry his personal witness to many corners of the globe.

Brooks has served on the denomination’s General Commission on Christian Unity and Interreligious Concerns, as a delegate to the 2004 General Conference and to the 2000 and 2004 Jurisdictional Conference (governing the church in the western United States), a member of the Joint Consultation on Ministry, a member of the Jurisdictional Committee on Conferences, a member of the Jurisdictional Council on Finance and Administration, a member of the Jurisdictional Conference’s Committee on Nominations, and a 2000 and 2004 candidate for the Church’s Judicial Council.

Brooks has provided leadership to the Alaska Missionary Conference by serving as a lay member of the Conference for more than ten years, acting as both the Conference’s statistician as well as parliamentarian, member of the Conference’s Sexual Ethics Training Team, member of the Administrative Unit, and member of the Conference’s Committee on Nominations. For several years, he organized and conducted, with the cooperation of the Conference and SMU, the Perkins Lay School of Theology in Anchorage, bringing religious scholars from SMU to Anchorage each September for a weekend of lectures and workshops.

For information regarding the award banquet of the Perkins Theological School for the Laity, visit http://theology.smu.edu or call 1-888-THEOLOGY.

Perkins School of Theology was one of the original schools of Southern Methodist University, which was founded in 1911 by what is now The United Methodist Church. Perkins is one of five university-related United Methodist theological schools in the nation. In addition to its programs at the Dallas campus, Perkins offers extension programs in Houston-Galveston and San Antonio.