Gambo Installed as Hughes Chair of Christian Ministry

August 29, 2018

Dr. David Gambo, assistant professor of Christian ministry, was installed as the second recipient of the Reverend A.E. and Dora Hughes Chair of Christian Ministry during Oklahoma Baptist University’s Convocation held Wednesday, Aug. 29. The event took place in Raley Chapel’s Potter Auditorium on the OBU campus in Shawnee.

Gambo joined the Herschel H. Hobbs College of Theology and Ministry this semester. He earned a Bachelor of Science in biochemistry from the University of Jos in Nigeria. He later earned both a Master of Divinity in preaching and biblical languages as well as a Doctor of Philosophy in preaching and pastoral ministry from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary.

He has spent several years serving in Nigeria as both an instructor and minister. Before coming to Bison Hill, he served as associate pastor at the First African Baptist Church of Fort Worth, Texas; as the church planting resident at Omni Fellowship in Cedar Hill, Texas; and as an adjunct professor of homiletics at Nigerian Baptist Theological Seminary. He has written two books, both focusing on Christian discipleship.

At OBU, endowed chairs and professorships are awarded to select professors who are outstanding teachers and who have demonstrated exceptional ability in their academic disciplines. The gift which provides an endowed academic position is invested in the University's permanent endowment fund, and the annual earnings are used to assist with compensation.

OBU alumna Alta Faye Hughes Van Sickle provided an endowment gift in honor of her parents, the Reverend A.E. and Dora Johnson Hughes, to support an endowed chair in Christian ministry. Born in Tillman County, Oklahoma, in 1897, Alter Eli Hughes was a Southern Baptist pastor and missions leader in Oklahoma and Texas. He attended Decatur Baptist College (now Dallas Baptist University) and Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. In 1917, he married Dora Johnson in Elbert, Texas. After his death in 1958, Mrs. Hughes returned to Oklahoma and was a longtime member of First Baptist Church of Frederick.

Van Sickle attended OBU as a member of the Class of 1947 and also attended the University of Hawaii. She fulfilled her goal of becoming a licensed private pilot and was employed by General Dynamics as an aircraft design engineer for 20 years. She was married to Colonel Charles T. Moreland until his death in 1980. In 1987, she married Major General Neil Van Sickle. She died in Kalispell, Montana, Jan. 13, 2010, at the age of 85.

Dr. Heath Thomas, dean of the College of Theology and Ministry, is thrilled to welcome Gambo to the faculty of the Hobbs College.

“I believe that God has provided a wonderful gift to the life of our University in David Gambo,” he said. “He provides a unique skill set that combines a high level academic rigor, a passion for preaching and Christian ministry, experience in local churches and a global perspective in ministry.”