Eric Folkerth is a minister, musician, author and blogger.
He is Senior Pastor of Kessler Park UMC United Methodist Church in Dallas, Texas. Previously, he was pastor at Northaven UMC in Dallas for seventeen years.
Eric loves to write on topics of spirituality, social justice, music/art and politics. The entries on this blog reflect that diversity of interests.
His passion for social justice goes beyond mere words. Eric was arrested at the White House, defending immigrants and “The Dreamers;” and he’s officiated at same sex weddings.
Eric was the 2017 recipient of the prestigeous Kuchling Humanitarian Award from Dallas’ Black Tie Dinner. (Human Rights Campaign)
Eric has led or co-led hundreds of persons on mission trips to build houses and bring medical care around the globe, to places such as Mexico, Haiti, Russia, Guatemala, and Nepal. He is proud of have shephereded Highland Park UMC's construction of ten Habitat for Humanity homes, (and one Community Center) and helped forge an alliance with Habitat that led to the construction of 100 homes in Dallas, housing thousands of people.
His wife, Justice Dennise Garcia, has 20 years experience as a state district judge and appelate justice in North Texas.
First elected in 2004, she was the first Latina ever elected to a Dallas County state district bench, and she she left that position whe was the longest currently serving district judge.
In 2020 Dennise Garcia was a elected as a Justice of the 5th District Court of Appeals for Texas. She is currently running to be Chief of the 5th District Court of Appeals in the 2024 cycle.
They have the world’s best daughter, Maria, who is a practicing professional counselor in Dallas.
Find links to Eric’s music-related websites, at the top of this site’s navigation menu.
Star Wars does two unique things no other film series ever has. Each “Episode” pulls us deeper in to a story that, in George Lucas’ own words, is not first and foremost about flashy technology or science….but about family and friends. But it’s the second thing Star Wars does that makes it completely unique in […]
I’ve gathered my favorite videos and pics from our #UniteAgainstHate March and Rally over the weekend. For those who didn’t hear, I’ve been honored to be a part of a multi-faith, multicultural group, that has been meeting/planning for several weeks, to make some response to the growing tide of Islamophobia and hate coming from politicians […]
Friends, please watch and share my video message for the week… Two events we are invited to this weekend: 1) Beth El Binah invites us to a Hannukah celebration, tonight at 7:30 at the church. 2) Tomorrow, there will be a large, interfaith rally to stand against hate and Islamophobia…we will march from Fair Park […]
(Reblogged from RMN. Thanks to them for asking me to write on this topic….EF) At “Gather At the River” back in August, a quote was shared from Audre Lorde that resonated with my soul – “There is no such thing as a single issue struggle, because we do not live single issues lives.” One of the […]
The old expression about sticks, stones, and words has never rung more hollow than in our present day. I wish that weren’t so. I wish I could believe that we all believed “words can never hurt.” I wish flamewars didn’t draw people “offsides” and push them to say things they sometimes regret later. But time […]
What does the Starbuck Holiday Cup Controversy have to do with Black Friday? Everything, it seems to me. But I have yet to hear a commentator anywhere —secular or Christian— make the connection. The 24-hour news cycle long ago pushed the cup story out of our collective memory, despite the fact that the “holidays” in […]
Even in the midst of grieving my Dad’s death this Thanksgiving Week, I wanted to tell you what I am thankful for this year. Because even in the midst of our family’s loss, there is one thing that I know we all agree on that we are thankful for this Thanksgiving. But since I’m blogging, […]
My Dad and I are standing thirty yards from each other, perfectly still and quiet, on the side of a hill, in a small grove of trees. We are looking intently at each other. But we are not really looking at each other at all. It’s a cold winter day in early 1997. Dad and […]
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