Melody Knox, Interim WMU Executive Director
By Sharon Mager, BCM/D Correspondent
COLUMBIA, Md.—Melody Knox has stepped into the position of interim Women’s Missionary Union (WMU) executive director while continuing in her position as missionary for women’s ministry. She succeeds former executive director Gayla Parker, who left for Arkansas, where her husband Freddy was called to pastor a church.
While serving as the missionary for women’s ministry, Knox travelled with Parker to promote unity within the two groups. In the past, many churches had either WMU groups that studied and supported missions or Women’s Ministry groups that were more Bible-study focused. That was somewhat age segregated, Knox said, but that has been changing.
“We are concentrating on a more holistic approach to women’s ministry,” said Knox, and after a lot of hard work, women are catching the vision.
“Women want to take what they’re learning in their Bible studies and apply it by doing a mission immediately afterwards,” explained Knox.
Knox will work with women’s groups in her new position to help them develop missions that will work for their members and to help strengthen existing WMU ministries or start new ones.
Human trafficking is a major focus of the national WMU. After attending a Samaritan Women sex trafficking conference in 2011, her eyes were opened for the first time to the severity of human trafficking, both internationally and domestically.
Knox made a confession of faith when she was nine years old in a church pastored by her cousin. She was formerly a member of Colonial Baptist Church for 16 years where her training began in women’s ministry.
She and her husband David currently attend Temple Baptist Church, where she teaches Sunday school and serves as the worship leader. The couple have been married 25 years and have two grown children, Jenna and Justin, and two grandchildren, two-year-old Treyton and six-week-old Brenton.
Knox is available to consult with churches or to speak at special events upon request. Interested parties may also contact Knox about several new WMU executive board positions that will become vacant in the next year. Contact Melody Knox at (410) 960-9500 or at mknox@bcmd.org.