Friday, September 25, 2026

First Baptist Family:

I am writing with the news that our friend and minister, Rev. Chris Cherry, has shared with the Personnel Committee and me his decision to resign from his position as Associate Pastor for Youth & Families, citing a desire to take space for his personal and emotional health amidst a significant time in his life. This news is sudden, no doubt, but Chris has come to this decision with a great deal of love for our church, care for himself and his family, courage for his present and hope for his future. He also makes this decision with the assurance that he is fully loved and supported by our Congregation.

Please take time to read below and learn more about Chris’ decision, lovingly shared in his own words, which is followed by some additional information from the Personnel Committee and me.

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To my First Baptist Church family,

It is with a heavy heart and fresh tears that I write to you today to inform you of my

resignation as the Associate Pastor of Youth and Families. Over the last couple of weeks, I have taken some time away for myself and my family while engaging in several conversations with Alan and members of the Personnel Committee. Within those conversations, I was asked several times by committee member, youth parent, and friend Brad Wall, “Chris, are you ok?” While I answered Brad with a “yes” each time, the truth is I am not “okay.”

Over the past two years, I have struggled personally and emotionally. It has impacted my food choices, my motivation for exercise, and especially my sleep. Within that time, the number of days I would be running on just two to three hours of sleep began to grow to unsustainable numbers. Interestingly, the timing for these struggles connect with one of the greatest moments in our church’s history, which was the adoption of our Statement of Inclusion. I celebrate the statement in full and all of the forward moves our church has been able to accomplish since then. Being a part of the historic ordination of Rev. James Dolph was genuinely one of the biggest highlights of my ministry career. As recently as Sunday, September 13, the day after we celebrated Greensboro Pride, I offered the Prayer of God’s People and spoke the line:

We give thanks for the beautiful diversity of your people. We know every person is wonderfully made and no one should have to hide who they are in order to receive love, dignity, or belonging.

I believe that with my whole heart, but it also impacts how I could answer Brad’s question. I am not “okay” because I have been the one who is hiding the fullness of who I am. I am a husband, father, and minister, and I am non-binary (He/They). I have known this about myself for a very long time, and I finally developed language around it in the fall of 2018 thanks to a ton of work with my therapist. Since that time, I have let a few friends in, which has been a blessing, but it was never going to be enough to allow me to be my full self. As I approach my 40th birthday, it is time to stop saying “maybe one day,” and to finally own and live my truth in a real way.

As I step into this new chapter, I feel an entire range of emotions, but one thing was clear for me: I need to step away from my role in ministry to slow down and take some time for me and for my family. I do not know exactly what that is going to look like at this time, but I am blessed to have Tory’s full support in this decision, as well as her continual love for who I am. Tory has been on this journey with me from the day we started dating, even when it was clumsy, and I cannot adequately express how grateful I am for her support and patience each step of the way. I am blessed to have Margaux in my life, who constantly helps me remember to celebrate and laugh, even when things are hard. I am sad to step away from a place that has been a home and community for my family and I for 8.5 years. I am devastated that I must have a hard conversation with our youth, who are my world. And, at the same time, I am excited about what it might look like to try something new and fresh. I am excited to enter the world in a brand new way.

I especially want our youth to know that since July 1, 2018, my first official day at First Baptist, I have given all I have and I hope it was enough for this season of the life of the church. I love First Baptist, I love what has been built inside and outside these halls, and I love all of you. Soon enough, there will be an extremely fortunate minister who will get to step into this space, who will get to love you as much as I do, and who will be fantastic for the future of First Baptist. I am praying for that individual, even now.

My last day at First Baptist will be Sunday, October 18. It is bittersweet and it is not how I ever imagined it would take place, yet I feel an overwhelming sense of peace at the same time.

Thank you, First Baptist. Thank you for caring for me and my family. Thank you for helping raise Margaux in a place that fills her with confidence and joy. Thank you for the many laughs, stories, and sacred moments we have shared. Thank you for trusting me with your youth during their most formative years. And to the youth, thank you for everything. You are my world. I love you with every fiber of my being. You are the reason I was able to keep going, and you are the reason I feel brave enough to take this step in the first place.

I am grateful. I am sad. And I am also anxiously excited.

With all that I am,

Chris

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Church Family, I’m sure that you join me in affirmation of Chris, in appreciation for his courage, and in support of this step towards health and wholeness. As we receive this news from Chris, there are many things we want our Congregation to know.

First, be assured that Chris knows the affirmation and acceptance of our church. As he mentions in his letter to us, First Baptist Greensboro wants all people to know the love and affirmation of God in the fullness of who they are. We celebrate who Chris is and are grateful for this important step to live fully and openly. We also know that such support means understanding, and that you might have questions about non-binary identity, what this means for Chris, and how best to be an ally and friend. While we don’t necessarily want to burden Chris with this education, our pastoral staff has resources we’d recommend, and we are also happy to talk. Please reach out if we can be a resource in any way. 

Second, you should know that our Personnel Committee has shared the full support of our church. Chris cites a desire to tend to his emotional health in this decision. Our church holds a holistic view of health, and we support Chris, including discussing ways we can help provide any resources he believes he needs as he seeks the most healthy steps forward.

Third, we celebrate Chris’ ministry with us these 8-and-a-half years. He has impacted our youth, our community ministry, and our Congregation as a whole. We honor that and will be celebrating him in all the ways you’d expect as we mark this transition. You will hear more detailed plans about ways you can be a part of that, including on his last Sunday, October 18.

Finally, we are confident in the future of our youth ministry. The youth ministry is in a place of strength and stability. Our youth and their families are well-poised for continued growth and thriving, and we are grateful that Chris leaves the ministry with such promise for a hopeful future. When the time comes, we will be working on plans for continued leadership of our youth ministry, both in the near future and long term. For now, we want to express our church’s commitment to our youth. Nothing is more important to us and we will make every effort to support them in this time of transition. That includes this Sunday evening, when our youth will have the chance to gather with Chris and with other ministers and leaders to share more together.

Thanks for your prayers and expressions of love for Chris, Tory and Margaux. What we want for Chris is what we want for all — assurance that the skies part for him, and that God calls him “beloved.” We are grateful for the ways Chris helps us to live out this witness of God’s love more fully, and we remain committed to sharing it boldly.

Together In Love,