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    Quyis Dudley

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    Quyis Dudley and David Bradwell
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     By “Nunnie” Robinson, Westside Gazette Sports Editor

          At a recent worship experience at Mt. Hermon AME, Fort Lauderdale, I was captivated by a young man with whom I was unfamiliar. What captured my attention was this young man’s aura, his physical presence and demeanor. As a former football coach, I find myself constantly profiling those that I perceive as being or having been an athlete in the past. I even mentally assess their physical attributes such as height, weight, strength and speed while imagining the sport and/or position he or she played. So it was on this fortuitous Sunday at Mt. Hermon AME Fort Lauderdale where I observed this young with a body like Terry Crews of AGT/Everybody Loves Raymond fame reading scripture and leading the youth choir as a soloist. I thought to myself what an amazing, admirable young man. Because our youth were leading the service that Sunday, I had been politely asked to change my seating to accommodate the youth on program. Curiosity got the best of me so when he came down from the choir stand and sat across from me, I beckoned him over to sit next to me. I could see that he was a little taken aback, but he obediently acquiesced. Having to get right to point because we were in the middle of service, I introduced myself as a steward, former educator and football coach presently serving as the sports editor of the Westside Gazette. I intimated how much I admired his participation  as a youth and leader in Church School activities, then queried him about his  athletic prowess. His name is Quyis Dudley, a student-athlete at Dillard High School and that he did indeed play football.

    I told him that I would love to do a feature story about him, that I knew his coach very well and that I would contact them both later. Just  my initial impression and encounter suggested to me that young people like him doing the right thing, setting positive examples for those who might choose to emulate him, and demonstrating his Christian values, deserve our support and recognition.

    In a recent Bible study session about evangelism, I mentioned my encounter with Quyis to Mt. Hermon Senior Pastor, Rev. Henry E. Green III, who immediately responded with tremendous praise about Quyis and his consistent participation in our church’s YPD.

    I’m looking forward to interviewing Quyis in the immediate future and learning more about him personally and influencers that have shaped his life up to presence.

     

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    Carma Lynn Henry Westside Gazette Newspaper 545 N.W. 7th Terrace, Fort Lauderdale, Florida 33311 Office: (954) 525-1489 Fax: (954) 525-1861

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He has grown his flock from the 25 or so students who showed up at his first services to more than 200 each Sunday. Sometimes, it’s standing room only. “We’ve been trying to figure out what to do next because on Easter Sunday we had 342 people, and some were standing in the back,” he said. Word In Black talked to Lockett about the secrets of his success: how his adjustment of Sunday ser-vices got people into the pews, why his philosophy for guiding students on their spiritual journey centers on independent thought, and how his “Spin the Block” initiative is shaking things up on campus. The in-terview has been edited for length and clarity. Word in Black: The first thing we want to know is, how do you get so many young people to chapel every Sunday?. Lawrence Lockett: Well, first of all, I changed the time of service from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. I realized a lot of the students like to sleep in late. It gives them time to do whatever they need to do. I’m sure many of them still like to party hearty over the weekend. So they have a good chance just to kind of refocus, recali-brate, get themselves lunch, and then come over to the chapel for service. When I started in November, maybe 20-25 students came, but now it’s over 200 that come every Sun-day, and it’s pretty cool. So now we’re repositioning ourselves to go after the freshman class this year. If we have the same success as last year, there’s definitely not going to be any room. Word in Black: Tell me about pastoring on a college campus. Lawrence Lockett: Morgan actually started as a biblical institute, so the Christian traditions have al-ways been here. As a pastor or shepherd, I’m walking students through their questions, not always just trying to preach answers to them. It’s about being vulnerable. I tell them I was in their same position, just trying to figure it out. And it’s not me just trying to give them answers. 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