Dr. Rev. Ray Owens was appointed to serve the Lexington First United Methodist Church in 1999. His wife, Susan, a U.M. preacher's kid, is an instructor in the School of Communication at Illinois State University and continues to be one of our church pianists. Ray and Susan are very proud of their family: Brian who is a counselor at Hartgrove Hospital in Chicago along with his wife, Carlie who is a school psychologist in the Skokie, IL school district; Meredith Hopping who is an actor/singer in Chicago along with her husband Nate who is a seminary student at Garret-Evangelical Theological Seminary in Evanston, IL; and Will who is a sophomore at Illinois State University majoring in Political Science.

A native of Rantoul, Illinois, Rev. Owens, received his Bachelor and Masters degrees in Social Work from the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana, A Masters of Divinity degree from Southern Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky and the Doctor of Ministry degree from Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary in Evanston, Illinois.

Rev. Owens has served churches in the former Central Illinois and current Illinois Great Rivers Annual Conferences including Wellington & Stockland UMCs, Decatur Grace UMC and Arthur UMC. Immediately prior to his appointment to Lexington First UMC, Rev. Owens served as the Academy (Council) Director for the former Central Illinois and newly formed Illinois Great Rivers Annual Conferences.