Bryant Wright (middle), Send Relief president, prays with Myles Dowdy (left), lead catalyst for missions and ministries for the Florida Baptist Convention and Brian Stowe (left), pastor of First Baptist Church, Plant City, Fla.
ALPHARETTA, Ga. — After five years serving as president of Send Relief, Bryant Wright is set to retire at the end of March.
“I am so thankful for the opportunity to steward Send Relief as we sought to extend the ministry’s reach these last several years, going from a national compassion ministry to an international one,” Wright said. “I feel my calling with Send Relief at this stage of my life has been to help the ministry to get up and running. Thankfully God has allowed that to happen.”
He led the organization as the Southern Baptist Convention’s (SBC) two missions agencies, the International Mission Board (IMB) and the North American Mission Board (NAMB), came together to establish an international reach for Send Relief after it initially started with a focus on compassion ministry in North America.
“Bryant helped launch the Send Relief partnership between NAMB and the IMB in a great way,” said IMB President Paul Chitwood. “He rallied Southern Baptists for compassion ministry and opportunities for gospel proclamation around the world, including the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East as well as the devastating earthquake in Turkey.”
The very week that Send Relief global began in March of 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic led to outbreaks and shutdowns around the world, generating a greater spotlight on the ways compassion ministry affords Christians and local churches opportunities to meet material needs for the sake of sharing the gospel.
“Bryant is such a statesman whose presence in churches around the nation has helped raise the awareness of Send Relief and encouraged thousands of churches to get involved in Send Relief’s compassion ministry work,” said NAMB president Kevin Ezell. “Tens of thousands of people have come to faith and hundreds of thousands around the world have been served through Send Relief’s efforts during Bryant’s tenure as president.”
Wright traveled the globe in support of compassion ministry efforts, particularly in response to major crises. He visited Turkey following a major earthquake in 2023, traveled to the border of Ukraine after Russia’s invasion in 2022 as Send Relief assisted churches that were ministering to the thousands of refugees fleeing the war, and visited with partners in Israel following Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, surprise attack that led to war in the region.
When a major hurricane, tornado or wildfire generated a crisis response, Wright would travel to raise awareness of Southern Baptist response efforts and encourage volunteers with Southern Baptist Disaster Relief and local churches who were meeting the needs of survivors.
Before joining Send Relief, Wright served 38 years as the founding pastor of Johnson Ferry Baptist Church in Marietta, Ga., before leading the church through the transition to current pastor Clay Smith in 2019.
“I still remember being in Southwestern Seminary’s library as a student years ago,” Ezell said, “and reading a Home Mission Board magazine that featured Bryant Wright when he was planting a church in Marietta, Georgia. Little did I know that I’d get to know Bryant, and he’d become a good friend that I’d get to serve alongside through the years.”
Wright’s retirement marks a new season in Send Relief’s partnership between NAMB and IMB. Ezell and Chitwood will give leadership to Send Relief while Josh Benton, the vice president of Send Relief national with NAMB, and Jason Cox, the vice president of Send Relief international with IMB, will be overseeing the team members from each mission board.
“I just say thanks for the opportunity Kevin and Paul gave me to serve,” said Wright. “And I’m very thankful to the Send Relief staff, especially to Jason Cox and Josh Benton, as they and all the Send Relief staff work every day to serve people and share the gospel as we share the love of Christ to people in need.”
In a statement, Chitwood recognized the immense value of Wright’s work in laying a foundation for Send Relief’s future.
“Bryant helped grow the footprint of NAMB’s Send Relief centers across the US and Canada and fostered healthy relationships with pastors and churches across our convention,” Chitwood said. “We are incredibly grateful for the many ways God has used him and the Send Relief team to get this partnership and ministry off to a strong, mission-focused beginning.”
(EDITOR’S NOTE — Brandon Elrod writes for the North American Mission Board.)
