Tony is a native of Walterboro, SC. He started his music path in the 5th grade as a flute player. By high school, he was playing organ for his home church and oboe in the school band. He earned a Bachelors of Music Education from the University of South Carolina. He intended to become a band director, but began to hear a call to music ministry. After a few years at the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, and armed with a Master’s in Church music I headed to North Carolina. He served a Baptist church there until 1997. God lead him out west to New Mexico where he lived and worked for nearly 25 years.
He has served a variety of churches with Messiah Lutheran Church, Albuquerque, NM being the longest and most recent at 16 years. He was also a band/orchestra director, guitar and piano teacher for the Albuquerque Public Schools. He retired from the school system this past May and has returned to SC to be near family after nearly 25 years away.
He has three dogs (Tucker, Yoda and Pablo). They consider him their service human. He enjoy old cars. It won’t be unusual to find him at a car show at some point during the weekend. He is currently working on a Doctorate of Ministry degree at United Theological Seminary of the Twin Cities in St Paul, Minnesota, with an expected date of graduation of Spring, 2023.
He is excited to be back in SC (where sugar is a food group) and to reconnect with old friends and family, and appreciates the opportunity to serve Emmanuel Lutheran Church.
