Rev. Dr. Larry A. Blakeburn – Pastor
Larry was born in Muskogee, OK, but grew up in a mobile environment as his father prepared for and participated in full-time ministry. He has lived in Oklahoma, Arkansas, Texas and Tennessee. Tennessee is the area in which he has lived the longest.

 

He graduated from Greeneville High School, Bethel University, and later earned a Master of Divinity degree at Memphis Theological Seminary. Additionally, he was the first recipient of a Doctor of Ministry degree from MTS. Larry spent two years in the United States Marine Corps, and served in Vietnam in 1969, where he was awarded the Vietnamese Cross of Gallantry.

 

Pastor Blakeburn has over 35 years of pastoral experience. He has served four churches; Bolivar CP Church, Bolivar, TN (1976-1981), St. Luke CP Church in Ft. Worth, TX (1981-1993), West Nashville CP Church (1993-1997) and Dyersburg First CP Church (2001-2015). Dr. Blakeburn was President of Memphis Theological Seminary from 1997-2001.

 

Larry has three children and three grandchildren. His oldest daughter, Krista, is married to David McGee. They have three children; Emma, Ellie and Thomas. His son, Will, is married to Kandice Friedhof Blakeburn. His youngest daughter, D’Ann, is married to Cody Ricketts.

Ace Edewards was born in California but raised in France. After graduating Summa Cum Laude with a Bachelor of Music from the California State University at Sacramento, Ace returned to France to study voice at Le Centre d’Études Supèrieures de Musique et Dance in Toulouse; then to Glasgow, Scotland, graduating with a Master of Opera from the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama. Ace then pursued a dual emphasis master’s in both voice and choral conducting and an Artist Diploma in orchestral conducting at the University of Denver’s Lamont School of Music. Ace is now a doctoral candidate in orchestral conducting at the University of Arizona Fred Fox School of Music under the tutelage of Dr. Thomas Cockrell. In the summer of 2014, Edewards advanced to the finals of the 6° Concorso per Direttori D’opera “Luigi Mancinelli” held in Orvieto, Italy.

Paula Winn – Youth Director
Paula has been an active member of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church for most of her life. Children and Youth Ministry has been her love in the church, including camps. She holds a Master of Social Work and an Ed.S in Special Education. Paula served as a youth director in Nashville Presbytery, social worker in a behavior hospital, and activities director in a nursing home. Paula has been a Special Education teacher at Sunbright School since 2007.

Barbara was born in Wickliffe, KY and attended Murray State University, the University of North Carolina and the University of Tennessee. She retired from Cardiology Associates of East Tennessee in 1997 as Physician Coordinator. She has two sons, a daughter, and 5 grandchildren. Her hobbies are music and crafts.

Crystal currently holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Religion with a minor in Piano Performance and grew up in Europe, which is where she took the vast majority of her piano lessons as a child. As a teen, she played in a worship band at church as she continued her piano lessons. Although she has been classically trained, she has performed with jazz bands, worship bands, and many other ensembles.

 

She and her family moved to Clinton from Atlanta in August of 2013 and she is a magazine editor for community publications here in East TN.