For Immediate Release
October 4, 2022
CONTACT: Clem Boyd
Infinity Concepts
(O) 724.930.4003
(E) clem@infinityconcepts.com
ASHEVILLE, NC – The Sextons and Parrishes have deep connections to western North Carolina—pastors from their families have served there since the 1700s. They also have a long-standing love for Israel.
Dr. Ralph Sexton, Sr., who founded Trinity Baptist Church in Asheville, North Carolina, was perhaps the only non-Jew on a boat transporting Jewish Holocaust survivors in 1951 to the newly formed state of Israel.
With Jews in the midst of celebrating High Holy Days, this is a good time to reflect on the devotion for Israel began more than 70 years ago, which has continued generation to generation among the Sextons and now the Parrishes.
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A new ambulance will be dedicated in Israel at the beginning of December with 100 Christians from around the U.S. in attendance.
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Winston Parrish, 32, a fourth-generation senior pastor who took over the reins of Trinity Baptist from his grandfather, Dr. Ralph Sexton, Jr., is leading his family and his church with this same kind of passion.
“My mother and father had this love for Israel, and I have the privilege of carrying that mantel now,” said Parrish. “I pray that my children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren do the same. In our family, we talk regularly about cultivating ways to give, and Israel is always part of the dialogue.”
Trinity Baptist and Ralph Sexton Ministries have already sponsored a Life Support ambulance, a Mobile Intensive Care Unit (MICU) ambulance and a Medicycle for Magen David Adom (MDA), Israel’s Red Cross organization and national emergency medical services (savinglivesinIsrael.org). The MICU was purchased in honor of Parrish’s late grandmother, Muzette Sexton.
During a recent four-hour share-a-thon, Trinity raised $120,000 to purchase another ambulance, which will be dedicated in Israel at the beginning of December with 100 Christians from around the United States in attendance. The trip to Israel will be the 57th for Ralph Sexton Ministries.
Winston Parrish was himself a paramedic in Asheville for 11 years. So, he appreciates the work MDA is doing and how special it is to be involved in saving lives and bringing life into the world. A Jerusalem-based MDA crew delivered a baby boy in May and a baby girl in June using a Trinity Baptist-sponsored ambulance.
“It’s a blessing for an ambulance to be used in a way it’s not normally used,” Parrish said. “An ambulance is usually there at the end of life or for a traumatic injury, but to see life born puts tears in your eyes.
“I helped deliver little ones when I served as a paramedic. There’s nothing more beautiful than life.”
“The Parrishes are a remarkable family,” noted Catherine Reed, chief executive officer for American Friends of Magen David Adom. “We are grateful for all they have done to help Israel and support the emergency medical services offered by Magen David Adom. We are saving lives every day in Israel because of friends like them.”
To learn more about Magen David Adom, visit savinglivesinIsrael.org.
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For more information and to interview Winston Parrish or Catherine Reed, chief executive officer for American Friends of Magen David Adom, contact Clem Boyd, director of public relations, at clem@infinityconcepts.com or 724.930.4003.