I am pleased to announce the appointment of two faithful and experienced pastors to serve as Presiding Elders in the Trinity Conference of the Global Methodist Church.
Rev. Kevin M. Trantham and Rev. Alberto Williams have been named Presiding Elders for the Arkansas West and Piney Woods Areas, respectively. These appointments follow the upcoming transition of Rev. Clark Atkins and Rev. Brad McKenzie, who will step into their new roles as Equipping Elders beginning September 1.
I know you will join me in offering thanks, praise and welcome for these new Area Presiding Elders. Their bios and requests for prayer are below.
Rev. Kevin M. Trantham serves the Dardanelle, Liberty Hall, and Chickalah Methodist Churches in Dardanelle, Arkansas. In addition to his pastoral responsibilities, he now assumes the role of Presiding Elder for the Arkansas West Area of the Trinity Conference.
Rev. Trantham and his wife, Beth, relocated to Arkansas in late August 2024 from the Mississippi-West Tennessee Conference of the Global Methodist Church. He has served in pastoral ministry since June 1996, beginning as a United Methodist pastor and becoming a Global Methodist pastor in June 2023.
Kevin and Beth were married in June 1995 and are the proud parents of two children, Anna Catherine (27) and Jon Tatum (20), as well as one grandson, Paxton, who is 16 months old. He first sensed a call to ministry in 1993 while working as a lifeguard at Camp Wesley Pines, a United Methodist camping and retreat center in Gallman, Mississippi. That same year, he received his first appointment to Summit UMC in Summit, Mississippi.
Following college, Kevin and Beth moved to North Mississippi, where he began seminary at Memphis Theological Seminary. While pursuing his Master of Divinity degree, he continued serving in the local church.
Although he and Beth never imagined they would serve outside their home state, they are deeply grateful to be part of the Trinity Conference. They feel truly blessed to serve in such a welcoming community in such a beautiful state.
Rev. Trantham's Prayer Request:
"My prayer for this new season of leadership as a presiding elder in the Trinity Conference is that God would grant me wisdom to lead with humility, courage to stand firm in truth, and compassion to serve His people well. I ask the Holy Spirit to guide every decision, unite our cabinet and churches in mission, and keep Christ at the center of all we do, so that together we may glorify God and make disciples in the Trinity Conference."
Rev. Alberto Williams brings over 32 years of pastoral and leadership experience to his role as Presiding Elder in the Piney Woods District. Born into a Catholic family in Nicaragua, his life was transformed in 1992 during a Baptist youth revival at Third Baptist Church in Managua. At just 19 years old, he experienced what he calls his "Aldersgate moment", a powerful assurance of salvation that changed the course of his life. Just one year later, he responded to the call to ministry.
He earned both his Bachelor's and Licenciature degrees in Theology from the Seminario Teológico Bautista de Nicaragua at the Universidad Politécnica de Nicaragua (UPOLI)—a Baptist university known for training ministry leaders in the region. In 2002, he was ordained in the Baptist tradition in Crystal Lake, Illinois. He is currently pursuing a Master of Arts in Ministry with a concentration in Latino Ministry Leadership Formation at Asbury Theological Seminary.
Throughout nearly three decades of ministry, Rev. Williams has served congregations in Nicaragua, Panama, Illinois, and Texas. It was in Houston where he encountered the United Methodist Church and discovered a spiritual home that struck a deep chord—“a balance between heart and mind, personal piety and social action, and God’s sovereignty and human freedom.”
He faithfully served as one of the associate pastors at Clear Lake United Methodist Church, ministering under the leadership of both Rev. Tony Vinson and Rev. Charles Anderson. During his eight years at Clear Lake, he grew in his pastoral calling, deepened his love for the Wesleyan tradition, and walked alongside a vibrant congregation through seasons of growth, care, and transformation. During his tenure there, he founded and planted the Hispanic Ministry known as “Celebración,” which continues to reach the Hispanic and bilingual population of Clear Lake and beyond.
His ministry has consistently reflected a heart for cross-cultural engagement, spiritual formation, and community development. In each pastoral appointment, Rev. Williams has built bridges across cultures, languages, and generations, embodying Christ’s love and proclaiming the transformative power of the gospel.
In 2020, he was appointed as Senior Pastor of Hemphill First United Methodist Church and Pineland United Methodist Church. Both churches have since aligned with the Global Methodist Church. In 2023, he officially transferred his ordination credentials to the GMC and was received as an ordained elder.
Rev. Williams is passionate about expositional preaching, raising up leaders, and proclaiming the Gospel that sets people free. Guided by John 17:4—“I have brought you glory on earth by finishing the work you gave me to do”—he has shaped his life mission around three core commitments:
He shares life and ministry with his beloved wife, Sujey, together, they are the proud parents of Roxy and Randy, both of whom are currently in college. In his downtime, Pastor Williams enjoys reading, exploring beaches and mountains with his family, and playing basketball, baseball, and soccer.
Rev. Williams' Prayer Request:
"As I step into this new season as Presiding Elder in the Trinity Conference, my heart is grounded in one unwavering desire—to love and please God with all my heart, and to faithfully fulfill the Great Commission.
Jesus’s words in John 17:4—“I have brought you glory on earth by finishing the work you gave me to do”—continue to shape my calling and ministry. I embrace this new assignment as an opportunity to lead with vision, preach God’s Word with conviction, and empower the Church to thrive in its mission.
My prayer is that God would grant me wisdom to shepherd with humility and boldness—to care for pastors and churches with the same grace and truth that has shaped my own journey. I pray for healing to flow into tired congregations, for restoration among wounded leaders, and for revival to stir among us through the Holy Spirit.
May this season be one marked by exponential growth in leaders who preach with clarity, live out the Gospel, and remain anchored in Scripture while relevant to the times. May we reach as much people as possible in our area and beyond all those hungry for truth and hope. And may we never settle for the status quo.
As Einstein said, “Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.” So I pray for fresh vision, renewed passion, and a Spirit-empowered ministry that brings lasting transformation to the Piney Woods region—for the glory of God.
