The Reverend Doctor Michael Douglas Dent was ushered into the Church Triumphant from Tyler, Texas, on Tuesday, July 8, 2025 at 1:55 p.m. CDT.
Dr. Dent was born September 10, 1952, in Beaumont, Texas, to I.O. Dent and Mavis Killion Dent. He was the youngest of three children, preceded in age by brother Gilbert and sister Marilyn.
Dr. Dent spent his entire childhood in Beaumont, surrounded by strong values of faith, service and community. Dr. Dent was shaped by the good influences of North End Methodist Church (later Wesley United Methodist Church) and the Boy Scouts of America, in which he was inducted into the Order of the Arrow and earned the rank of Eagle Scout. Following graduation from French High School in 1971, he enrolled at Lamar University in pursuit of a B.S. degree in Sociology.
In the Spring of 1972, Dr. Dent began to heed God’s claim on his life as expressed in a call into ordained United Methodist ministry. Dr. Dent’s first church job was as the Summer Youth Director at First United Methodist Church in Orange, Texas. His volunteer assistant that summer was a University of Tulsa coed named Sharon Denise Toups. Dr. Dent was issued a United Methodist license to preach on November 25, 1972, and received his first student appointment shortly thereafter at St. Matthew United Methodist Church in High Island, Texas. He and Sharon married on July 20, 1974, journeying together as husband and wife for 51 years.
Dr. Dent attained his Masters of Divinity degree at Southern Methodist University’s Perkins School of Theology, serving his internship at St. Luke’s United Methodist Church in Houston, Texas, and a final student appointment in Edom, Texas. Dr. Dent would later return to Perkins for his Doctor of Ministry degree.
Dr. Dent’s ministry under episcopal appointment lasted for 45 years as a pastor and preacher. Dr. Dent’s appointments after seminary included Associate Pastor: Klein United Methodist Church (Spring, Texas); Pastor: First United Methodist Church (DeKalb, Texas); Founding Pastor: Atascocita United Methodist Church (Humble, Texas); Senior Pastor: Bellaire United Methodist Church (Bellaire, Texas); Senior Pastor: Marvin United Methodist Church (Tyler, Texas); and Senior Pastor: Trinity United Methodist Church (Denver, Colorado).
In addition to his pastoral ministry, Dr. Dent served his denomination beyond the local congregation. In 1994 he was a member of the United Methodist Church South Central Jurisdiction Mission delegation to Seoul, South Korea. He was appointed to the 1996 World Methodist Council in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and to the 2001 World Methodist Conference in Brighton, England. In 2012 he served in Angola with Bishop Warner Brown as part of the denomination’s “Imagine No Malaria” team. In 2016, he served as a delegate to the 2016 Western Jurisdictional Conference of the United Methodist Church. During a portion of his tenure as Senior Pastor at Trinity United Methodist Church, Dr. Dent was a Trustee of United Methodism’s Iliff Seminary in Denver, Colorado.
Dr. Dent’s commitment to social justice led him to service opportunities beyond the denomination. In 1998 he testified before a Texas state legislative committee against alcohol advertising in a State of Texas publication whose target audiences were older children and teenagers. In 2008, he gave testimony at the Colorado state legislature against capital punishment. In 2011, he was chosen as a part of a select civic team to receive special training at the FBI Citizen’s Academy. In 2012, as an extension of his “Imagine No Malaria” campaign efforts, he was part of a lobbying team operating on Capitol Hill in Washington D.C. In 2015, Dr. Dent was awarded the Raul and Paula Murphy Human Sexuality Award from the Center for the Church and Global AIDS.
Dr. Dent retired from appointive ministry in April 2018. In retirement, Dr. Dent devoted himself to writing three books: “Love Whispers: Reflections of a Seasoned Pastor,” “Understanding Jesus in the 21st Century,” and “Blessings Abound: Fifty Years of Praying in Public.” Portions of the proceeds of each book were dedicated to the Alzheimer’s Association.
Dr. Dent is preceded in death by his father, I.O. Dent; his mother, Mavis Killion Dent; his brother, Gene Gilbert Dent, M.D.; and his sister, Marilyn Dent Wright. He is survived by his wife, Sharon Toups Dent; his son, Douglas Gene Dent and wife Jennifer; and his daughter, Martha Grace Dent Smith and husband B.J. Dr. Dent found great joy in his role as “Granddaddy” to his cherished grandchildren Will Smith, Henry Dent, Andy Dent, Anna Smith, and Michael Smith.
He will be remembered not only for his ministry, but also for his humility, humor, wisdom, and unwavering love for his family and his Savior. He leaves behind a legacy of faith, integrity, and service.
A Christian Service of Death & Resurrection celebrating Dr. Dent’s life and faith will be held on Friday, August 8, at 2:00 p.m. CDT, at Pollard United Methodist Church in Tyler, Texas, with a reception to follow. Clergy who plan to attend are asked to wear clergy robes and white liturgical stole, and to sit together in the sanctuary area reserved for them. Memorials may be made to Lakeview Methodist Center, 400 Private Road 6036, Palestine, Texas 75801, or to Trinity UMC Endowment, 1820 Broadway, Denver, Colorado 80202.
“Well done, good and faithful servant…enter into the joy of your Lord.” – Matthew 25:23
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