Pastor Mike was born in Lenoir, N.C., and his parents were both public school teachers. He attended Virginia Tech, where he earned a B.S. in horticulture with a double major in agricultural education. He then taught those subjects in public schools in North Carolina and Virginia.

When Mike was called to the ministry, he was a Southern Baptist, and he chose to study at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary in Wake Forest, N.C. During this period, he also studied liberal arts at N.C. State University in Raleigh.

Mike earned his Master of Divinity degree in 1988 and took his first appointment in the United Methodist Church that year in the Shenandoah Valley. He has served as pastor at churches in the Harrisonburg, Portsmouth, Lynchburg and Rappahannock districts.

He is married to Marable Faison Southall, from which part of his name, Southall-Vess, is derived. Mike and Marable have four grown children.

Marable graduated from Mary Baldwin College in Staunton, Va., and earned her Master of Divinity from Union Theological Seminary & Presbyterian School of Christian Education in Richmond, Va. Her father was a Presbytery executive in Statesville, N.C., after serving as a missionary to Korea and as a pastor in New Orleans and Banner Elk, N.C. Marable's mother, the child of missionaries, was born and raised in Korea. Marable has a twin brother, who lives in Utah, and a sister in Indiana.

Most recently, Mike and Marable served as missionaries Aizu, Japan, for the General Board of Global Ministries. Their work involved community development and rural evangelism. Marable is currently serving as the senior pastor of the Madison United Methodist charge between Culpeper and Charlottesville.

In Mike's words:  "Marable and I are excited about our respective assignments and have been overwhelmed by the friendliness and generosity of the church members and people in our community. We look forward to getting to know our extended 'family' here in Arlington."