Virginia Baptists Committed (VBC), a diverse group of clergyand laity devoted to preserving, protecting, and promoting the witness ofmainstream Baptists in Virginia, is pleased to endorse candidates for the fourannually elected offices of the Baptist General Association of Virginia (BGAV)for the November 2026 Annual Meeting.

Rev. Mark Mofield – Candidate for President

Virginia Baptists Committed is pleased to endorse the Reverend Mark Mofield, Senior Pastor of Melrose Baptist Church in Roanoke, Virginia, for the office of President of the BGAV.

Mark’s roots in Virginia Baptist life run deep. When his family moved to Roanoke during his middle school years, they joined Colonial Avenue Baptist Church, where his mother, Laney Mofield, served first as Music Minister and later as Associate Pastor. As a Virginia Baptist Scholar, Mark attended the University of Richmond, where he became a leader in the Baptist Student Union and served on mission teams throughout the state. He also spent several summers as a ministerial intern at Colonial Avenue.

After earning his Master of Divinity from Duke Divinity School, Mark returned to Roanoke to serve as Associate Pastor of Melrose Baptist Church. Beginning in 2001, he spent nearly two decades as Senior Pastor of two congregations in North Carolina before returning to Melrose Baptist in 2020 to serve once again as Senior Pastor.

Since returning to Virginia, Mark has served three years on the Committee on Boards and Committees, including two years as chairperson. He also completed Next Level Leadership training through the BGAV and participated in Impact Missions projects in Damascus and South Hill and in a "tiny home" build in partnership with Bonsack Baptist Church.

Mark and his wife, Amy, have been married for 31 years and are the proud parents of two sons, Justin and Noah, and a daughter-in-law, Hailey.

Mark will be nominated by the Reverend Dr. Connie Cruze, Minister of Music and Worship Arts at Melrose Baptist Church.

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Richard Szucs – Candidate for First Vice President

Virginia Baptists Committed endorses Richard Szucs for FirstVice President of the BGAV.

Richard is a member of First Baptist Church in Richmond,where he serves as a deacon and former deacon chair. He has served on and chaired numerous committees and teams, and currently leads the Creative Worship and Adult Formation Teams. A longtime adult and youth Sunday School teacher, he sings in the church choir and in a smaller auditioned ensemble, and mentors members of the Youth Choir.

A native of Pennsylvania, Richard graduated from Wheaton College in Illinois and earned his medical degree at Jefferson Medical College of Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia. He spent three years in primary care with the National Health Service Corps on Virginia’s Eastern Shore, then completed his radiology residency at the Medical College of Virginia of Virginia Commonwealth University. He has since practiced radiology in Richmond, in both academic and private settings.

Richard has been deeply involved in organized medicine at the local, state, and national levels. He is a past president of the medical staff of St. Mary’s Hospital, the Richmond Academy of Medicine, the Virginia Radiology Society, and the Medical Society of Virginia.

In the wider community, he has sung with the Richmond Symphony Chorus since 1987 and has served on the Richmond Symphony Board for a number of years, currently as secretary.

Richard and his wife, Ruth, have been married 36 years and have two children, Alexandra and Matthew. Ruth is Worship Ministry Associate at First Baptist Church and recently graduated from Campbell University Divinity School.

He will be nominated by Lee Stephenson, a fellow member of First Baptist Church in Richmond.

Rev. Dr. Derik Hamby – Candidate for Second Vice President

Virginia Baptists Committed endorses the Reverend Dr. Derik Hamby, Pastor of Randolph Memorial Baptist Church in Madison Heights, for the office of Second Vice President of the BGAV.

Derik was born in Indiana and raised in Kentucky. He came to Virginia to attend Baptist Theological Seminary at Richmond, graduating in1998, and served as Youth Minister at Main Street Baptist in Emporia while in school.

In 1998, he moved to Tennessee to serve as Associate Pastor at FBC Oak Ridge, where he met his wife, Katie. They then moved to Louisville, KY, where he pastored Ridgewood Baptist Church for five years and earned his D.Min. from Christian Theological Seminary in Indianapolis in 2007.

That same year, Derik returned with his family to Virginiato become senior pastor of Randolph Memorial Baptist in Madison Heights, where he has served since 2007.

Derik has served on the board of the Religious Herald, published several opinion articles, and stayed active with the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship of Virginia. He has taught classes for Leland Seminary,served as a relief chaplain for Centra Health, and volunteered in th ecommunity, including service on the local school's Education Foundation.

Derik and Katie have been married for 25 years and are proud parents of Rachel and Will.

Derik will be nominated by the Reverend Josh Beeler, Senior Pastor at Madison Heights Baptist Church in Madison Heights, VA.

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Rev. Dr. Timothy N. Madison – Candidate for Clerk

Virginia Baptists Committed is pleased once again to endorse the Reverend Dr. Timothy N. Madison for the position of Clerk of the BGAV.

Tim serves as Pastor of Emmaus Baptist Church in Providence Forge, Virginia. Over the past 36 years, he has faithfully served four BGAV congregations and held numerous leadership roles within the BGAV, including President, First Vice President, Chair of the Budget Committee, Memorial Committee, and Committee on Boards and Committees. He has also completed two terms on the Virginia Baptist Mission Board, where he chaired the Support Services Team.

Beyond his state-level service, Tim has served as Moderator of both the Lynchburg and Dover Baptist Associations, as well as Moderator and Recording Secretary for the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship of Virginia. In addition, he has contributed to his local community as a volunteer chaplain with the Hanover County Sheriff’s Office.

With his extensive background and deep institutional knowledge, Tim brings valuable experience and continuity to the role of Clerk, helping to ensure the accurate preservation of BGAV’s official records and proceedings.

Tim will be nominated by the Reverend Dr. Joseph T. Lewis, pastor of the Second Baptist Church of Petersburg.

Virginia Baptists Committed celebrates these four dedicated, well-qualifiedleaders for their faithful service and commitment to the ongoing mission andministry of the Baptist General Association of Virginia.

VBC is honored to endorse these individuals for leadership positions within theBGAV and welcomes the nominations of other qualified candidates who share apassion for serving Virginia Baptists now and in the future.

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