NASHVILLE (BP and local reports) – Connie Dixon is the new national president of the Woman’s Missionary Union (WMU) auxiliary to the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC).
A lifelong member of WMU-related missions organizations, Dixon is a member of First Church, Elida, N.M., where she was baptized at the age of nine. She has served in her home state of New Mexico as an Acteens and Children in Action leader, state Acteens consultant, state WMU president, and most recently 13 years as executive director of New Mexico WMU.
Active in volunteer missions service around the globe, Dixon has served on mission teams to Africa, China, Thailand, England, and Canada as well as Alaska and Hawaii. She also works with the WMU ministry, Christian Women’s/Christian Men’s Job Corps, and is a certified Spiritual Leadership Coach.
Dixon was elected June 13 at the WMU Annual Meeting and Celebration at First Church, Nashville, held each year prior to the start of the SBC Annual Meeting. The 2021 SBC Annual Meeting will begin June 15 at the Music City Center in Nashville.
Dixon succeeds Linda Cooper of Bowling Green, Ky., who served six years in that position. Cooper was scheduled to conclude five years as president last year before the COVID pandemic derailed plans for WMU’s in-person annual meeting and Cooper’s term was extended.
“When I first received the call asking if I would consider the possibility of becoming the national president, I naturally was overwhelmed with the thought of inadequacy,” Dixon said, “but that’s the way I think it should be. God equips us for what He wants us to and what He calls us to do.
“I feel good that I know I’m not able to do this, but I know that my God is able to do this. I am just so excited at the possibility of Him using me in this position.”
Dixon recalls her formative years as a member of Girls Auxiliary (now Girls in Action, a WMU ministry). “I grew up and married an RA (Royal Ambassadors) and we had two little girls who were both GAs who grew up to both be National Acteens Panelists.”
Sandy Wisdom-Martin, national WMU executive director in the auxiliary’s Birmingham, Ala. headquarters, is confident Dixon is the right person at the right time for this key leadership role. “Every experience in Connie’s life has led to this moment in time,” Wisdom-Martin said. “She will embrace it with great courage, guided by the Spirit of God.
“We will all learn so much from her. I can’t wait to see how God uses her unique giftedness in this role.”
Melissa Lamb, president of New Mexico WMU, said, “Connie and WMU are synonymous. She has a heart for missions. I would say missions is not just a job. It’s not just something she does. It’s who she is. She wants to make sure that every person has heard the Gospel, and she has a passion for helping churches figure out how they can be a part of that.
“One of the great things about Connie is she’s done so much in WMU. She’s going to have such a well-rounded experience that she can bring to the position of national president.”
Dixon said, “When I hear the term or the name, ‘WMU,’ it makes me smile. I have such precious memories of the WMU ladies at First Baptist, Elida, who poured into me as a child. …It’s exciting to think about getting to be one of the people who gets to pour into others.
“God has used Woman’s Missionary Union to stretch me, to push me outside of my comfort zone, and to grow me in so many ways. I know that God has got mighty plans for Woman’s Missionary Union. I am excited to get to be part of that and to help children and adults understand that they’re a part of God’s great mission.”
Dixon and her husband Herschel have been married 43 years and have owned and operated Dixon Oil Company in Elida for 38 years. They are the parents of two adult daughters, Kendra De La Vega and Tammy Bingham, and have three grandchildren.
