Watch a full video of the 2019 Perkins Distinguished Alumna Award Banquet here.
The Reverend Katherine Glaze Lyle was honored at a banquet on November 12 as the recipient of the 2019 Perkins Distinguished Alumnus/a Award.
Selected by the Perkins Alumni/ae Council, the award recognizes Perkins graduates who have demonstrated effectiveness and integrity in service to the church, continuing support for the goals of Perkins and Southern Methodist University, outstanding service to the community and exemplary character.
“Katherine’s extensive ties to the North Texas Conference of the United Methodist Church and to numerous nonprofits in the Dallas area have made her a valuable ally of Perkins,” said Craig C. Hill, dean of Perkins School of Theology. “She has been a sounding board for every Perkins dean since her graduation in 1993, including myself.”
Lyle received two degrees in history from SMU – a B.A. in 1971 and an M.A. in 1973 – then earned an M.Div. from Perkins in 1993. She was ordained as an elder in the North Texas Conference of the United Methodist Church and served five full-time appointments from 1994 until 2009. At three of her appointments – St. Marks UMC in Mesquite, First UMC in DeSoto and First UMC in Rowlett – she was the first woman to serve as senior pastor.
After retirement, Lyle served as interim pastor at four churches. “Her work as an interim pastor since her retirement has been a lifeline to the congregations to which she was sent,” said the Reverend John Thornburg in a letter nominating Lyle. “Each of those churches received the hope-filled, healing touch they needed after a difficult season.”
Lyle is a member of the Board of Directors for the Texas Methodist Foundation, Chair of the Board of Directors for Dallas Bethlehem Center and Vice Chair of the Board of Directors of Union Coffee. She is also a Partner and member of the Board of Directors of Dallas Social Venture Partners, which honored her as the first recipient of its Katherine Glaze Lyle Transformational Leadership Award, named in her honor. On the national level, she will become Chair of the Board of Directors for Philadelphia-based Partners for Sacred Places on January 1, 2020.