Retired pastor, associational director Paul Kendrick dies at age 87

Paul D. Kendrick, retired Alabama Baptist pastor and director of missions (DOM), died June 15. He was 87.

A native of the Zion Chapel community near Elba in Coffee County, Kendrick considered Zion Chapel Baptist his home church. He held an undergraduate degree from Howard College (now Samford University) in Birmingham and a master’s degree in education from Troy State University (now Troy University). He went on to earn a master of divinity and doctorate of ministry from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary.

Kendrick served for 39 years as a bivocational pastor to churches in Clarke, Coffee, Geneva and Walker counties while teaching English and French at the high school level. He also taught night classes in English and speech at the Alabama Southern Community College campus in Thomasville.

He retired in 2007 after 18 years as DOM of Washington Baptist Association. The association’s caring center was named the Paul and Mavis Kendrick Caring Heart Center in honor of him and his wife, Mavis, who died in 2007.

Kendrick is also preceded in death by a son, Ronald, and daughter, Candance. He is survived by his daughter, Lisa; sons, Russell and Milton; 13 grandchildren; 34 great-grandchildren and five great-great grandchildren. (TAB)