Our First Lady

Blessed assurance Jesus is mine. Oh, what a foretaste of glory divine. An heir of salvation, purchase of God, born of His Spirit washed in His blood.

This is our First Lady Maudhelen Francine Lewis Burris’ story.  The youngest of five children born to the late Joseph Lewis, Sr., and Mary Frances Junius Lewis, our First Lady was born and reared in White Castle, Louisiana.

At an incredibly young age, our First Lady accepted the LORD JESUS CHRIST as her LORD and  SAVIOR.  First Lady Maud became active in her home church, Mt. Zion Missionary Baptist Church in White Castle, LA. by singing in the Cherubim choir, Youth and Young Adult Choir, the Zionettes, and the Fourth District Association Youth summer session choir.  She was also gifted in the arts by reciting poems, and performing in church plays and skits.

As a young adult, First Lady Maud’s passion for the youth blossomed, so she began teaching Summer Vacation Bible School, the Youth and Young Adult Sunday School, as well as serving as head of the church’s drill team and liturgical dance ministry.

First Lady Maud began her primary school training in the educational school system of Iberville Parish where she attended Our Lady of Prompt Succor Catholic School and White Castle High School in White Castle, LA.  During her sophomore year of high school, she moved to Baton Rouge, LA and transferred to Scotlandville Magnet High and graduated in May of 1987.

Our First Lady is a proud 1994 graduate of Southern University A and M College, where she earned a B.S. in Liberal Arts (Rehabilitation Psychology).

Her career pursuits have included serving as a Qualified Mental Retardation Professional/Case Manager servicing the developmentally disabled and cognitively challenged population, as a Middle School Educator in the East Baton Rouge Parish School system.

However, our First Lady’s love for others led her to return to school to pursue her true passion and God-given life’s purpose and mission. In December 2000, she completed training and received her license as a Licensed Practical Nurse. After practicing as an LPN for five years, First Lady Maud decided to return to school where she obtained an Associate of Nursing degree from Our Lady of the Lake College in 2005, a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette in 2012, and a Master of Science Degree in Nursing Education from Western Governors University in 2019.

First Lady Maud’s nursing career has afforded her invaluable opportunities to hone her nursing skills at various healthcare facilities in and around the Baton Rouge area, Bethesda, Maryland and Houston, Texas. She has ministered to the physical and spiritual needs of the many patients that she has had the privilege of serving. Throughout her career, she has also been blessed to mentor and to serve as a preceptor to novice nurses.

She currently holds a membership in the Academy of Medical Surgical Nurses, and the Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society of Nursing.

Our First Lady’s greatest joy is serving the Lord, serving mankind, and working beside her husband, our Pastor in Ministry. Sensitive to the challenges young women face, by the guidance of the Holy Spirit, our First Lady presented an idea to establish a young women’s ministry. As a result, the GMSBC Young Women’s Ministry led by our First Lady was established in 2016. The GMSBC Young Women’s Ministry is involved in many community outreach endeavors including: giving to the local homeless shelters, battered women shelters, participating in charity walks and much more. In addition, First Lady Maud was instrumental in establishing the GMSBC Health and Wellness Ministry and assisted in our first church Health Fair in 2017.

Beyond the walls of GMSBC, our First Lady serves as a mentor to single mothers with Mentors in Motion Project Ministry, and she serves on the Lead Team with the ElderDoc Outreach Ministry. She is also a member of the East Baton Rouge Parish Ministers Wives and Widows. 

Although she does not have any biological children, First Lady Maud is blessed with a wealth of nieces, nephews, godchildren, cousins, and her fur baby Pinkie Louise.