From times of singing in a dark closet to founding a national
women’s mentoring ministry, Thelma Wells' life
has been a courageous journey of faith. The name on her birth certificate read
simply: Baby Girl Morris.
Thelma’s mother was a severely deformed teenager
with no husband and no place to go, since her own abusive mother insisted that
she take the baby and leave the house. So when the baby was born, her unwed
teenage mother found work as a maid cleaning “the big house” while living with
her baby daughter in servants’ quarters. Eventually, the baby went to live with
her great-grandparents, who called her Thelma Louise Smith and loved her dearly.
They took little Thelma to church, where she learned to love the hymns and
praise songs.
On those occasions when Thelma was taken to her
grandparents’ home, her grandmother abused her, just as she had tormented
Thelma’s mother. She was locked in a dark, smelly, insect-infested closet until
just before her grandfather came home when her grandmother would bring her out
of the closet, clean her up, and act as if all was well.
In spite of her deep fear, little Thelma spent
her time in the closet singing every hymn and praise song she could remember.
She would sing herself to sleep in that closet, and the Lord received this
little girl’s innocent praise and rewarded it with an abundant life of joy,
protecting her from feelings of anger or bitterness.
Thelma grew up to
become a trailblazer for black women, a prominent international speaker and
author, and a wife, mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother. As a student at
North Texas State University in Denton, Texas (now the University of North
Texas), she was a member of the first group of girls to integrate the school’s
dormitories. She earned her Bachelor’s degree there and eventually received a
Master’s of Ministry from Master’s International School of Divinity in
Evansville, Indiana. In 2002 she became the school’s first black female
professor.
In 1980 Thelma became the first black woman in the South to organize her own
international speaking and consulting corporation. Her natural talent for public
speaking and storytelling attracted the attention of the Women of Faith Tour,
and in 1996 she became the first black core speaker for the organization. She
has authored several books, including God Is Not Through With Me
Yet, an inspiring examination of her own life experiences in which
she encourages readers to “sing in the closets of their
lives.”
She serves as the president of The Daughters of
Zion Leadership Mentoring Program, an organization she founded in 2000 (another
first for a black woman). Through this ministry, “Mama T,” as she is
affectionately called, has mentored over 100 spiritual daughters, received an
honorary doctorate degree and was ordained into the Christian Ministry on
December 16, 2008, from St. Thomas Christian College and Theological Seminary
and the Association of Christian Churches in Jacksonville, Florida. She was also
was named Extraordinary Woman of the Year 2008 at Extraordinary Women
Conferences an affiliate of the American Association of Christian
Counselors.
Thelma has been married to George Wells, her best friend,
supporter, and encourager, for over 45 years. The couple lives in Dallas, Texas,
and has three children, eight grandchildren, and two
great-grandchildren.
Visit Thelma’s website to see her books at www.thelmawells.com
Follow me on Twitter @RitaSGalieh
From times of singing in a dark closet to founding a national
women’s mentoring ministry,
Thelma
Wells' life has been a courageous journey of faith. The name
on her birth certificate read simply: Baby Girl Morris.
Thelma’s mother was a
severely deformed teenager with no husband and no place to go, since her own
abusive mother insisted that she take the baby and leave the house. So when the
baby was born, her unwed teenage mother found work as a maid cleaning “the big
house” while living with her baby daughter in servants’ quarters. Eventually,
the baby went to live with her great-grandparents, who called her Thelma Louise
Smith and loved her dearly. They took little Thelma to church, where she learned
to love the hymns and praise songs.
On those occasions when Thelma was
taken to her grandparents’ home, her grandmother abused her, just as she had
tormented Thelma’s mother. She was locked in a dark, smelly, insect-infested
closet until just before her grandfather came home when her grandmother would
bring her out of the closet, clean her up, and act as if all was well.
In spite
of her deep fear, little Thelma spent her time in the closet singing every hymn
and praise song she could remember. She would sing herself to sleep in that
closet, and the Lord received this little girl’s innocent praise and rewarded it
with an abundant life of joy, protecting her from feelings of anger or
bitterness.
Thelma grew up to become a trailblazer for black women, a
prominent international speaker and author, and a wife, mother, grandmother, and
great-grandmother. As a student at North Texas
State University in Denton,
Texas (now the University of North Texas), she was a member of the
first group of girls to integrate the school’s dormitories. She earned her
Bachelor’s degree there and eventually received a Master’s of Ministry from
Master’s International School of Divinity in Evansville, Indiana. In 2002 she became the school’s first
black female professor.
In 1980 Thelma became the first black woman in
the South to organize her own international speaking and consulting corporation.
Her natural talent for public speaking and storytelling attracted the attention
of the Women of Faith Tour, and in 1996 she became the first black core speaker
for the organization. She has authored several books, including God Is Not Through With Me
Yet, an inspiring examination of her own life experiences in which
she encourages readers to “sing in the closets of their lives.”
She serves as
the president of The Daughters of Zion Leadership Mentoring Program, an
organization she founded in 2000 (another first for a black woman). Through this
ministry, “Mama T,” as she is affectionately called, has mentored over 100
spiritual daughters, received an honorary doctorate degree and was ordained into
the Christian Ministry on December 16, 2008, from St. Thomas Christian
College and Theological Seminary and the Association of Christian Churches in
Jacksonville, Florida. She was also was named Extraordinary Woman of the Year
2008 at Extraordinary Women Conferences an
affiliate of the American Association of Christian Counselors.
Thelma has
been married to George Wells, her best friend, supporter, and encourager, for
over 45 years. The couple lives in Dallas, Texas,
and has three children, eight grandchildren, and two
great-grandchildren.
Visit Thelma’s website
at www.thelmawells.com
