My name is Roger Bridges. I have been the pastor of Elkridge Baptist Church since March, 2003. I grew up and went to college in North Carolina where most of my family still live. I have lived in Maryland for 35 years. I have one son who lives in Westminster, MD. I enjoy home projects (changing things more than fixing them) and woodworking.
I serve EBC as a bi-vocational pastor. My fulltime job is as Associate Professor of Religion at Stevenson University. I have been there since 1985. I really enjoy the combination of teaching and pastoring. I teach courses that cover all of the major world religions and have met a lot of very interesting people over the years.
I may not fit the mold of a typical Baptist pastor. I believe a pastor is the servant of God first and then a servant of the people. I am at a point in my life that I pretty much know who I am. I have the same struggles and issues (sometimes more) that every other person. I am not afraid of showing my weaknesses to the church. They are a very accepting and loving family. I have grown a lot in the last five years and I hope to continue growing until I no longer breathe. I still have a lot of rough edges that need to be sanded and shaped. If you are looking for the perfect pastor, you will have to look elsewhere.
I enjoy being around people I know and love. I like our church fellowships at the homes of members and especially when I host one at my house. A church member long ago once described being around me was like wearing a comfortable old shoe.
I hope we have a chance to meet so I can learn about you.
In Christ,
Roger
I have been a member of Elkridge Baptist Church since 1962. I was ordained to the Deacon Ministry in 1978 and am currently serving as Chaiman. I have been married to Gloria Steele for over 50 years. We have three sons, six grandchildren, and four great grandchildren. I teach a Sunday School class for adults as well as working in several other ministries of the church.
I am retired from Westinghouse Electric Corporation since June 1994 where I worked for 41 years as an electrical engineer with the last 28 years being in management.
I love sports. I am a long time Orioles and Ravens fan. I even remember the "Baltimore Colts" and loved to watch John Unitas pass to Raymond Berry on the sidelines or Jimmy Orr in the end zone corner. Golf is my current sport preference. I do wish my current handicap could be lower than it is.
I was raised and attended elementary school and junior/senior high school in Laurel, Maryland. After graduating from Laurel High School in 1961, I attended Montgomery Junior College and worked for Safeway Stores part time. I liked working for Safeway and gave up my interests at Montgomery Junior College in 1963 and started working full time for Safeway. While working at Safeway, I became interested in computers and studied computers at Strayer University. After completing my computer courses at Strayers, I applied for a job at National Security Agency (NSA) in 1965.
In 1966, my personal life changed. I married my current girl friend, Sherron Brookman. I also became a member of the Maryland Army National Guard for six years. In 1968, we bought a house and moved from Laurel, MD to Elkridge, MD. We had our first daughter, Robin, in 1970 and our second daughter, Tanya, was born in 1972.
We started attending Elkridge Baptist Church (EBC) shortly after moving to Elkridge. I have held numerous committee and teaching positions at EBC. I was ordained as a deacon in 1978. We continue to attend and serve at EBC although we moved from Elkridge to Sykesville, MD in 1989, and then we retired in 1996 and moved from Sykesville to Eldersburg. We are currently snow birds who travel to Clermont, Florida from mid October until early May. Due to the modern technology of email, while in Florida we still serve and maintain our “connection” with EBC. While we are in Maryland, we still travel, attend, and serve at EBC.
In 1966, my career also changed. I was offered a position with NSA working with computers. I still worked part time at Safeway when starting my career at NSA but left Safeway in 1973. I continued to work with and study computers at NSA. After many years at NSA, I felt led to go back to school to obtain a degree. So, I started attending University of Maryland University College at night and completed the requirements for my Associates of Arts and Bachelor of Science degrees in Management and Information Systems Management. I applied that knowledge in many different technical and managerial positions at NSA until retiring in 1996.
From a personal standpoint, I enjoy our grown children, Robin and Tanya, our son-laws, Kevin and Tom, and our three grandchildren, Amanda age 8, Travis age 6, and Lily age 5. I also love traveling within the United States with my wife. I also love sports. I am an avid University of Maryland basketball and football fan. I also like baseball and love to watch the Baltimore Orioles. From a professional football standpoint, I loved watching the “old” Baltimore Colts and currently follow the Baltimore Ravens.
FEBRUARY 2012 
Email Dr. Roger
