Orville Wesley Jenkins (April 29, 1913 – February 5, 2007) was an American minister and emeritus general superintendent in the

Church of the Nazarene The Church of the Nazarene is an evangelical Christian denomination that emerged in North America from the 19th-century Wesleyan-Holiness movement within Methodism. It is headquartered in Lenexa within Johnson County, Kansas. With its members co ...

. Jenkins was born in Bosque County, Texas in 1913. He was the first child born to Daniel Wesley Jenkins and Eva (Caldwell) Jenkins. He came to know Jesus as his savior in a small Nazarene church in

Corcoran Corcoran is an Irish surname, the original Irish language form being meaning 'descendant of Corcrán'. The name itself is derived from meaning 'purple'. History The name Corcoran is an anglicisation of the names of two Gaelic clans. The f ...

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

in 1935. He soon became a part of a Church of the Nazarene in Porterville, California and two years later was sanctified in that same church and called to preach. It was also in this same church he met and later married Louise Cantrell. Jenkins studied at

Texas Tech University Texas Tech University (Texas Tech, Tech, or TTU) is a public research university in Lubbock, Texas. Established on , and called Texas Technological College until 1969, it is the main institution of the five-institution Texas Tech University Sys ...

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and graduated from Pasadena College (now

Point Loma Nazarene University Point Loma Nazarene University (PLNU) is a private Christian liberal arts college with its main campus on the Point Loma oceanfront in San Diego, California, United States. It was founded in 1902 as a Bible college by the Church of the Nazarene. ...

). He pursued graduate studies at

Nazarene Theological Seminary Nazarene Theological Seminary (NTS) is a Nazarene seminary in Kansas City, Missouri. The seminary was established by the Eleventh General Assembly in June 1944 and started its first school year in 1945 with 61 students. It moved to its current ...

in Kansas City and in 1957 received an honorary doctoral degree while a trustee of Bethany Nazarene College (now

Southern Nazarene University Southern Nazarene University (SNU) is a private Nazarene university in Bethany, Oklahoma. History The history of the institution is one of various mergers and, therefore, one of differing institutions. While SNU claims its founding date as ...

). Jenkins pastored several churches in his life of ministry, including Kansas City First Church of the Nazarene. He later served as superintendent of the West Texas and Kansas City districts before becoming executive secretary of the Department of Home Missions for the denomination. Jenkins was elected general superintendent in 1968 and served as a member of the Board of General Superintendents until 1985. In a letter written upon his retirement from the Board of General Superintendents, Jenkins expressed love for the church he served and his hope for its future: :''"I love our church and am jealous for its preservation and its future. I believe that together, under God's anointing and great presence among us, we can have great revivals everywhere and in every land, and I believe we can be true to our God-given assignment of preaching, living, and leading millions of others into the Spirit-filled, wholly sanctified life."'' Jenkins is preceded in death by his wife, M. Louise Jenkins, who died in May 2004. Jenkins leaves behind a legacy in the Church of the Nazarene. His son, Orville W. Jenkins, Jr., serves as the superintendent of the North Florida District and son-in-law John Calhoun is superintendent of the Northern California District. Also, son-in-law David Hubbs is pastor of worship and music at College Church of the Nazarene in

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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jenkins, Orville W. 1913 births 2007 deaths American Nazarene ministers Nazarene General Superintendents People from Porterville, California