Pastor Liz Buxton

Born in Tucson, Arizona in 1959 and raised just outside of St. Louis, Pastor Liz’s journey has taken her across the country and around the world in pursuit of education, service, and spiritual growth. She studied Sociology at college in Springfield, Missouri, followed by Elementary Education at UC-Riverside. Her theological education includes an MTS from the School of Theology at Claremont and a Master of Divinity from Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary.

Before entering full-time ministry, Liz taught school in a variety of dynamic and challenging environments—Watts, California; the Arizona-Mexico border region; South Korea; and Oklahoma City. She later served congregations in Virginia for over 20 years before making her way to Texas.

Her areas of special interest include early Christian origins, feminist theology, and social change/community building. She’s passionate about engaging faith with real-world issues and empowering communities to grow in spirit and service.

Liz is the proud mother of her son Ryan, a brilliant (and slightly intimidating) computer geek who builds PCs from scratch and will soon turn 35. In her downtime, she enjoys reading actual, physical books—yes, the kind with pages—and occasionally writes as well.

Choir Director Cathy Frioux

Cathy is originally from southeast Texas, in a community known as the “Golden Triangle,” where she lived for 58 years. She graduated from Port Neche-Groves High School, Lamar University, and taught in the PN-G school district for 25 years.

In 2010 she and her husband, Ron moved to Whitewater Springs outside of Bertram. They joined the First United Methodist Church of Bertram in 2013 where she became part of the worship team. Cathy has actually had the privilege of being a consistent member of worship teams since she was 16 years old!

Besides wanting to live surrounded by the beauty of the Texas Hill Country, Cathy’s daughter, son, and their families live close by, allowing her the true joy of being a part of their lives and watching the grandkids grow into wonderful young adults.

Cathy stays busy! In addition to being the Choir Director at The First United Methodist Church of Bertram, she is currently a member of the Highland Lakes Service League, the Alpha Chi chapter of Delta Kapp Gamm International, the accompanist for the Bluebonnet Chorale, and a shopper for Weakday Ministries. Being a part of these organizations has broadened her appreciation of service to others!