Reverend Brenda Girton-Mitchell
Reverend Girton-Mitchell is the Founder and President of Grace and Race Ministries, Inc – a ministry dedicated to working for racial understanding, healing and reconciliation.
Rev. Girton-Mitchell received a Bachelor of Science degree in elementary education from Ball State University and a Master of Science degree from Indiana/Purdue University in Indianapolis. She graduated with honors from Chicago Kent College of Law. She received her Master of Divinity degree from Wesley Theological Seminary in Washington, DC.
Rev. Girton-Mitchell served the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA as Associate General Secretary for Justice and Advocacy from 2000-2007. She gave leadership to the NCC Washington Office and was responsible for coordinating the social justice and advocacy initiatives on Capitol Hill.
Rev. Girton-Mitchell was licensed and ordained by the Metropolitan Baptist Church where she currently serves as Minister for Stewardship and Missions; under the leadership of Rev. Dr. H. Beecher Hicks, Jr. She serves as the Ecumenical Officer for the Progressive National Baptist Convention, Inc. and is currently Vice Chair of the Board of Governors for Wesley Theological Seminary.
Rev. Girton-Mitchell has received numerous awards including the 2007 National Council of Negro Women Bethune Recognition Award for Outstanding Woman in Ministry, National Bar Association Presidential Award, and the Charlotte Ray Award, named after the first black woman lawyer. She is the recipient of the Sagamore of the Wabash Award, the highest award given to any civilian by the State of Indiana. In April 2008 she was inducted into the Martin Luther King, Jr. College of Preachers at Morehouse College. She also received the 2008 Society of John Wesley Award of Merit, the highest award granted by Wesley Theological Seminary.
Rev. Girton-Mitchell and her husband, James Mitchell are partners in Girton-Mitchell Associates, LLC, a consulting company assisting churches and nonprofit organizations in the areas of advocacy, leadership development, and conflict resolution.