SMU Perkins Honors Tom Sellers for Lifetime of Service
Tom and Pam Sellers
On April 7, SMU Perkins School of Theology recognized longtime Sulphur Springs resident and community leader Tom Sellers with the Woodrow B. Seals Laity Award. The Seals Laity Award honors laypeople in the United States who exemplify an exceptional commitment to service to Christ through faith and action in the church, community and world.
In accepting the award, Sellers, a banking executive, community volunteer and lay leader at First UMC Sulphur Springs, spoke of how this award really is for the entire church and community. His wife Pam Sellers, daughter Katy Sellers Ramirez, and son Jacob Sellers were in attendance, along with his pastor, Rev. Peter McNabb and his wife, Daria.
Over the years, Sellers has taught Sunday school, chaired multiple church committees and served on committees for the North Texas Conference of The United Methodist Church. Most recently, he began hosting “Toddler Time with Tom,” a weekly playdate in the church gym to welcome local families with young children.
Sellers graduated from SMU’s Southwestern Graduate School of Banking and joined Alliance Bank in 1988, rising to chief executive officer in 2004. In 2021, he was named chairman and CEO of Alliance Bank, and he has served as past chairman of the Independent Bankers of Texas. Among those recommending Sellers for the award was Craig Roberts, a competitor at Guaranty Bank & Trust and a member of the Sunday school class Sellers taught for 20 years.
“As a professional, Tom and I have battled for business for 23 years,” Roberts said. “Never have we battled negatively. At times, we teamed up as bank leaders to help those in need or in our community development by sharing common goals.”
Barbara C. Law, a member of the church who was Sellers’ high school English teacher, highlighted his leadership. “I believe that Tom exemplifies the Wesleyan concept that, while we cannot do everything for everyone, we can do something for someone.”
“We as a church have an incredible past, and we are going to have a beautiful, expectant future,” added tMcNabb, senior pastor of First UMC Sulphur Springs. “Tom has been key in helping us to see that. Tom carries the torch of that long line of saints who have come before us and shines the light for the church going into the future.”
As well as being an Eagle Scout, Sellers is a recipient of the Silver Beaver Award and the Outstanding Eagle Scout Award. He currently serves Hopkins County as president of the Economic Development Committee and has served as a member of the Sulphur Springs ISD school board. A graduate and active supporter of Texas Tech University, he has served as past president of the National Board of the Texas Tech Alumni Association. He has been a past board member of the CHRISTUS Health System Advisory Council. He was a Founding Board Member of CASA Child Advocacy of Northeast Texas, and volunteered at the Shadow Ranch Therapeutic Horse-Riding Center.
Since 1993, the Woodrow B. Seals Laity Award has been presented annually to a layperson embodying the Christian faith and commitment of service to Christ as exemplified by Judge Seals, a distinguished layperson whose interest and energy were instrumental in establishing the Perkins Theological School for the Laity (now the Perkins Summit for Faith and Learning.)
With reporting by Rev. Peter McNabb
