Lysbeth Cockrell, originally from Louisiana, moved to Maryland in 2010 with her husband to be with their 3 children and their 6 grandchildren. She became a She spent her professional career doing what she could to help others. She was a high school teacher, and a school counselor. When she completed her degree in Sociology and was certified as a professional counselor she began organizing and working with a state legislated program called Families in Need of Services. As she continued with that program, she received a degree as a Licensed Family Counselor. It was this program that truly moved her to pursue the ministry. She received a Master’s Degree in Theology from Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas. While working on the degree, she was appointed to serve two small churches in Louisiana. Following that appointment, she served at St. Andrew UMC in Monroe, LA. From there she transferred her credentials to Maryland and began her ministry at Cape St. Claire UMC, where she served for 6 years. She was asked to take a larger church in Halethorpe, MD where she served for 2 years. Because of health problems, she retired in 2018 and became connected clergy to Solley UMC. In 2022 she was asked to take a small church in Lothian, where she served for the past two years. The two-hour drive back and forth had become too difficult, so she retired a second time-until she was asked to serve as Pastor to Solley UMC starting July 1, 2024.