Bobby Rackley
Lead Pastor
Bobby grew up in Haws Run, NC, a small community close to Camp Lejeune and where he spent his summers growing watermelons and selling them on Topsail Island. He graduated valedictorian from Dixon High School and accepted the North Carolina Teaching Fellows Scholarship. After graduating from Western Carolina University with a degree in Secondary English Education, Bobby taught high school English at Lake Norman High School for five years. At the same time, he found himself drawn to ministry and began working part-time as the Youth Pastor at Christ-Boulevard UMC in Statesville, NC. Leaving his “nets” and lesson plans behind, Bobby attended Duke University and earned his Master of Divinity degree in 2011, and his Doctor of Theology (Th.D) degree in 2020. The primary focus of his doctoral work was Methodist-Wesleyan studies, with a secondary concentration in early Christianity. Along the way, he was blessed to serve Leasburg UMC and Church Street UMC as a Duke intern, Mt. Bethel UMC as Pastor of Christian Formation, and Fuquay-Varina UMC for 7 years as first a Youth Director and later as Pastor of Christian Formation and Missional Outreach. Bobby was appointed to Spring Hill in 2021. Bobby is married to Amanda Rackley, whom he met and wooed at Duke Divinity, and together they have three young boys/dinosaurs/lovers of trains – Josiah (6), Silas (4), and Jude (almost 2).