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DENTON – A powerful and influential Methodist preacher and Denton native Bishop Violet Fisher passed away in her hometown Nov. 17, 2025. She was 86.
The United Methodist Council of Bishops called Bishop Fisher, who retired in 2008, a “trailblazer in the life of the denomination.”
United Methodist Bishop LaTrelle Miller Easterling, episcopal leader of the Baltimore-Washington and Peninsula-Delaware Area, issued a statement on Nov. 17. “Bishop Fisher moved among us with the warmth of a mentor, the wisdom of a seasoned teacher, and the fire of a Spirit-filled preacher. People trusted her because she saw them, honored them, and called forth the gifts God had woven into their lives.”
Elected to the episcopacy in 2000, Bishop Fisher was assigned to the New York West Area, encompassing the Western New York and North Central New York conferences. She retired in 2008.
Bishop Fisher made history as the first African-American woman elected to the episcopacy in the Northeastern Jurisdiction of The United Methodist Church.
“Bishop Violet Fisher was a pioneer whose ministry broke barriers and built bridges,” said Council of Bishops President Bishop Tracy Malone. “Her unwavering faith, prophetic voice, and deep compassion left an indelible mark on our church and on all who were blessed to walk alongside her. We give thanks for her life and legacy.”
Born to William and Virginia Fisher August 28, 1939, in Easton, Violet Lucinda Fisher was nurtured in her Methodist family in Denton and began her professional life in education. She earned degrees from Bowie State University (B.S.) and George Washington University (M.Ed.) and taught in public schools in Virginia and Maryland for 22 years.
She became a born-again believer at age 11, felt called to preach at 14 and delivered her first sermon at 16. But she experienced her call at a time when ordained ministry was largely inaccessible to women – especially in what was then the Delaware Conference in the segregated Central Jurisdiction. At 25, she received ordination in what is now the King’s Apostle Church World Ministries. She served the denomination, part of the Pentecostal tradition, as a national evangelist and as a short-term missionary in East Africa, Haiti and Jamaica.
In her late 40s, she felt called to return to what is now The United Methodist Church, where women finally could receive full clergy rights, and the segregation of Black members was no longer church policy.
Bishop Fisher earned her Master of Divinity from Eastern Baptist Seminary in Philadelphia in 1988. She was ordained a deacon that same year and an elder in 1990 in The United Methodist Church. Her pastoral appointments included churches in Chester, Pennsylvania and Philadelphia, as she also served in many leadership roles at the district, jurisdictional and denominational levels through the years.
Retired Bishop Peggy Johnson, who led the Eastern Pennsylvania and Peninsula-Delaware conferences when Fisher was newly retired, counted Fisher as both a friend and mentor.
“She was an amazing preaching ‘machine,’” Johnson said. “She preached everywhere up and down the Peninsula — big churches, small churches, homecoming services, Women’s Day — bringing her powerful presence and Holy Spirit inspiration.”
She also embraced a risk-taking faith, Johnson said. She traveled 26 times to the Holy Land, where she preached and helped guide pilgrimages. She gave generously to anyone who asked. For her 70th birthday, she even did a bungee jump.
“It was how she lived her life,” Johnson said, “(She was) fully abandoned to God and God’s will.”
Bishop Easterling said, “Bishop Violet Fisher opened doors that many of us now walk through. Her election was not only a personal triumph but a communal victory for justice, equity, and the full inclusion of women of color in the life of the church. I stand on her shoulders with deep gratitude.”
Services will take place this weekend. The viewing will be 6 to 8 p.m. Friday, Dec. 12., at St. Mark’s United Methodist Church, 100 Peach Blossom Road, Easton, Maryland.
The funeral service will be 11 a.m. at St. Mark’s with a visitation an hour prior, Saturday, Dec. 13. Interment will follow at Spring Grove Cemetery, 721 Crystal Ave., Denton, Maryland.
For the family obituary, visit William Reese & Sons Mortuary’s website at wmreeseandsons.com.
