Featuring Rev. Eddie Cruz, ABC-USA National Ministries

Rev. Eddie Cruz has always been what he refers to as a “social and religious entrepreneur.” The “social” part is innate. The “religious” part came later. “No matter how successful you think you are, if you are not successful in relationships, you aren’t successful,” he says. His talent for relationship building has been evident throughout his career in ministry and community outreach. As associate executive director of Mission Interpretation and Development, he has set goals that will use this gift. “My goal is to design a comprehensive strategy to utilize people’s talents for the glory of Jesus Christ, to promote a culture of generosity, and to make a transformational difference in people’s lives,” he says.

Making a difference in people’s lives and their communities has been at the core of his ministry. As a pastor, community activist, and leader of social justice organizations, Cruz says he has tried to follow the lead of Jesus Christ. “Jesus Christ was invested in people,” he says. “He was always with people doing ministry.”

Cruz says he asks God for creativity to think outside the box, and Cruz’s ability to do just that has not gone unnoticed. He was asked by Mayor Richard M. Daley of Chicago to appear in a public service announcement relating to the city’s community activism and invited by the White House to participate in a Latino think tank. While serving as a unit director of the Boys and Girls Club in Chicago, he was approached by the University of Illinois to be part of a program to bring more minorities into its engineering program.

Born and raised in Chicago, Cruz is well acquainted with that city’s mean streets. Even as a youth, he had the gift of leadership, but he was leading in the wrong direction as leader of a gang. God directed his steps, and, at 17, he walked into North Shore Spanish Baptist Church. There he met and was inspired by the words of Rev. Modesto Lopez, a man who, to this day, remains one of his heroes. “It was a transformational moment in my life, and I made the decision to change. It was difficult because there are always people in your life who don’t want you to change,” he says. “I faltered at times, but little by little, Christ kept stripping away the old me.”

EDUCATION:

• M.Div., Northern Baptist Theological Seminary, Lombard, Ill.
• B.A., Psychology-Human Relations with minor in Business, Judson College, Elgin, Ill.

EXPERIENCE:

• Executive Director, Acción Comunal Latinoamericana de Montgomery County (ACLAMO Family Centers), Norristown, Pa.
• Missionary Partnership Team International Coordinator and National Director for Hispanic, Portuguese, and Haitian Ministries, United States and Puerto Rico, American Baptist Churches USA
• Senior Pastor, Iglesia Evangélica Misonera, Chicago, Ill.
• Pastor, Trinity Baptist Church, Chicago, Ill.
• Assistant Director of Minority Engineering Program, University of Illinois
• Unit Director, Boys and Girls Club of Chicago