Aaron T. Murphy’s community and ministry service make him one of Johnson City’s most beloved leaders. He was born in Salem, VA but spent most of his childhood in Memphis, TN. Murphy comes from a loving home with a father and mother who instilled in him Christian values. After his graduation from E.T.S.U. in 2004, Murphy worked in various states with many city leaders throughout the country as an on-site project manager in the Healthcare Construction Industry for Robins & Morton. In 2009, he answered a call to go into ministry and enrolled into Emmanuel Christian Seminary at Milligan University. Shortly after graduating from Emmanuel, Murphy started at Good Samaritan Ministries where he currently serves as the C.E.O./Executive Director and the Senior Pastor of Thankful Baptist Church. Murphy has led efforts to provide education, mentoring and social services to those in poverty. Aaron is a man of unity who longs for all people (young, old, white, black, persons of color, Republicans, Democrats, and other) to come together as one to move forward in advancing our community. He believes that it is his faith in God that undergirds him to love the citizens of Johnson City and serve them well.  Murphy longs for and urges our community to come together and move forward in building our focus on community relationships, educational development and economic recovery. He carries a strong reputation in bringing solutions to problems and people together while bringing out the best in them for a common cause. Murphy believes that Johnson City is called to be a model community for many and has yet to reach its full potential in what’s to come. Recently, Murphy has been involved in working with city leaders, citizens, police officers, and protesters to cultivate love, unity and peace in the Upper East TN Region. He was mentored by and spent a lot of time with the Late Rev. Dr. C.H. Charlton (former Vice Mayor of Johnson City, TN and Senior Pastor of Friendship Baptist Church) and Late Rev. Dr. Noel C. Taylor (former Mayor of Roanoke, VA) as a child until their deaths. Charlton and Taylor remain as heroes and strong voices in Murphy’s life. Murphy is a man of the community for the community.

 

 “There are many great people that live here in Johnson City and the moment we all come together as one, we will see great things to come...”​ - Aaron T. Murphy