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.
Here’s a song of mine to honor the life of Jdimytai Damour, who I call “The Martyr of Black Friday.” If you don’t know his story, click here to read my blog about it. It’s a tough story, to be sure. But as Black Friday approaches, I hope and pray you will consider honoring his […]
Black Friday is over. So, what now what?For those who want to re-connect Christmas with its real meaning, what now? These guys always have a good idea. [AC] Promo 2011 from Advent Conspiracy on Vimeo. Help them spread the word:Their websiteTheir Facebook .Their Twitter. Even if you don’t get involved in their specific project, get […]
If you want to see just how disturbing “Black Friday” is becoming, zip on over to YouTube, and search it. Just search “Black Friday 2011,” and you’ll find plenty of footage from just last night. For example, here are people almost being crushed last night at a Walmart not far from here, over in Mesquite: […]
For the second year in a row, my blog, “The Martyr of Black Friday,” is getting lots of attention. In fact, as of today, it officially becomes the third most-read blog I’ve ever written. I’m grateful that so many are resonating with the message that something must “give” regarding our consumerist society and the bastardization […]
This is Jdimitai Damour. I am remembering him again this year, on Black Friday, as I have every year for the past several. If you are curious as to why, you can read about it here. It’s just been a few years since his death, at a Walmart store in New York, and even in […]
I keep mixing and remixing. Here’s another version of “Thanks,” just in time for tomorrow. I think it’s the best yet. Happy Thanksgiving, everybody…EF “If the only prayer You ever prayed In your entire life was “Thank You,“ It would be enough.” — Meister Eckhart https://soundcloud.com/eric-folkerth/thanks THANKS For mountains green with aspen stands, fluttering like […]
Below, there’s a new version of a very old song for you. But first, a story…. Because, if you grew up in Dallas, even almost fifty-years later, you know what today is. Yes, it was a deep and scarring event for the entire nation. But for those of us from here, it’s always been a […]
It’s early Friday morning, and I need to be going to bed. Sufficed to say, a lot has happened in the past 24-hours with “Occupy Dallas.” The camp has been dismantled by the Dallas Police. I’ll have much more to say about this in coming days. The short version is that, pretty clearly, the City […]
Given that lawyers for Occupy Dallas and the Dallas City Attorney are meeting tomorrow, I have written Mayor Rawlings to express my own views, and I thought I would share them here…EF Dear Mayor Rawlings, For some weeks, I have been visiting the “Occupy Dallas” encampment in an attempt to offer spiritual advice and counsel […]
Last Wednesday, I was honored to be the guest on the “Lambda Weekly” Radio Program on KNON in Dallas. Lambda Weekly is the longest running radio program on LGBT issues in the nation. Host David Taffett invited me in studio, and we ended up having a wide-ranging discussion of the the inclusion of LGBT people […]
You must be logged in to post a comment.