About
the Candidate

The Reverend Ermanno Willis has been in ministry for 30+ years, currently serving the connectional level of leadership in 2 positions. 

  • First, as the property manager of the CME Connectional Headquarters. 

  • Second, as the Chaplain Coordinator of the CME Church. 

My leadership across the church has taken me from my home in San Jose, California, to Atlanta, Georgia, to Memphis, Tennessee, to Phoenix, Arizona, to Tulsa Oklahoma, back to Phoenix, Arizona, and now again to Memphis, Tennessee. During these connectional travels, I have served as Pastor, Presiding Elder, Board-Certified Chaplain in Healthcare, delegate to the last 3 General Conferences, and also as a member of the Board of Directors of the General Board of Personnel Services and a Trustee of the Christian Methodist Episcopal Church Retirement Plan for one quadrennial.

With the aforementioned highlights, I have grown in stewardship responsibilities from raising $3,000.00 annual assessments at the beginning of my ministry to $21,000.00 annual assessments as a pastor. As a Presiding Elder, I supervised the ministries of 3 different districts, from $42,000.00 annual assessments to $112,000.00 annual assessments. Now, with the Connectional Headquarters, I manage the annual revenue from several profit centers, beginning with $488,000.00 in annual revenue 4 years ago and growing the profit centers to $510,000.00 annually.


Outside of the church, I served as a team lead in chaplaincy at Mayo Clinic. At Mayo Clinic, I ministered to patients and their families across several medical conditions. The hospital had an average bed population of 270 inpatient services and more than 1,000 outpatient services; this allowed me to care for the medical and support team that treated the patients - more than 3,000 employees.  

Educationally, I am a 1998 graduate of Clark Atlanta University with a Bachelor of Arts in English, and in 2002 I earned the Master of Divinity degree from the Phillips School of Theology at the Interdenominational Theological Center (ITC) in Atlanta. 

As General Secretary of Publications, guided by Godly principles, I will seek ways to grow the value and the services the department provides to subscribers and members within and outside the CME Church.


Man in glasses and suit speaking at a podium during a conference at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Atlanta, with a large background banner about the Christian Methodist Episcopal Church and pastors' conference.