Introducing TCJ’s Alumnus of the Year 2026
Dennis Riffle graduated from Trinity in 1981 with a B. A. in Church Ministries.
From the very beginning, he was passionate about Biblical Greek. In addition to six semesters of Greek as part of his degree, after graduation he went on to take two additional semesters of Greek Exegesis.
Following graduation, Dennis taught High School Bible for several years at Trinity Christian Academy. He also taught Greek at the College.
In 1993, Dennis was hired as the head of the Personnel Department at Trinity, which included oversight of payroll and the Maintenance Department.
Thanks to several years of previous experience in a similar role, he became a key player in the development of what is now Trinity’s HR department.
While in this role he also instituted retirement programs, expanded employee benefits including the 403b plan, vacation policies, and added long and short-term disability plans. Starting the retirement program with a grand total of $25,000 dollars ministry-wide, that program had grown to over 11 million in our collective retirement accounts by 2003 when he transitioned into the role of Facilities Director.
In this role, he oversaw all Trinity Ministries facilities.
This included the main Trinity campus on Hammond Boulevard, the Trinity Rescue Mission, The Trinity Rescue Farm, Women and Children’s Center, and Trinity Camp and Retreat Center. For some perspective, this translates to approximately 260 acres of land, 36 buildings, and nearly 200 A/C units. He and his team also supported multiple renovations as well as new building projects including The Connections Plaza and some of the college buildings.
In order to accomplish these mammoth tasks, he assembled a team of highly skilled and licensed employees to oversee the maintenance of the buildings, the grounds, and outlying facilities such as the athletic fields and parking lots. This skilled labor was a huge need at a time when we were maintaining old equipment. Under his direction, they maintained our campus with remarkable efficiency. So much so that the lifespan of campus equipment was extended by as much as 10 years in some cases.
Dennis intentionally employed many college students throughout the years, enabling them to continue their studies.
He especially had a heart for training students who planned to pursue ministry, knowing they would likely be serving in small churches or mission fields where maintenance skills would be an asset to their ministry.
He looks back on this team with gratitude for the way God provided employees who were highly competent and highly committed to working for the sake of the Gospel.
He likes to say “Any time we called for outside help with was never because of lack of expertise but rather a need for extra hands. I would put my maintenance department up against any other maintenance crew any day.”
This was important to him because Dennis always viewed his role in maintenance as a ministry. For him, “ministry” has always encompassed more than preaching and teaching roles.
Dennis describes it this way: “I would always tell my team: Our responsibility is what I call ‘secondary ministry’. The behind the scenes. It is to make sure our spaces are as comfortable and conducive as possible for the primary ministry roles – the communication of the Word of God: the teaching and the preaching.”
In addition to his leadership at Trinity, Dennis and his wife, Denise, have volunteered in student ministry since 1979 – this year makes 47 years working with youth!
Since his retirement in 2021, they have served each summer at student camp, volunteering in the kitchen.
Dennis’ love for Greek has remained constant throughout his life. Over the decades he has amassed an 8-foot shelf full of his personal notes and translation work. At the time of this writing, he has translated the majority of the New Testament and is currently halfway through translating the book of Revelation.
While all that translation work was for his personal enrichment, God is once again using Dennis and his knowledge of Greek translation to further His kingdom.
Every Monday, Dennis teaches Biblical Greek to inmates at the RMC prison in Lake Butler.
He says those who have remained consistent in the program are so passionate that they are on track to have the equivalent of two years of Greek course work and translation experience under their belt by the end of one year of study.
One student is reaching the end of his 21-year sentence and has plans to return to Tampa and begin a half-way house program. Another has started a spin-off class to teach fellow inmates under Dennis’ guidance to improve his own understanding and skills. A couple of students have transferred to other prisons that just so happen to have Bible Institutes – these men will have a strong foundation for their continued education in those programs.
This new ministry seems to have been hand-picked for Dennis. Best of all, he says he has been encouraged in ways he didn’t expect.
“I’ve been blown away by how much love for the Lord the inmates display. You see more men get saved in prisons than you do in many churches over the course of a year. He has changed their lives dramatically. They know how to get ahold of God and, wow, can they preach! I never felt a pull to prison ministry, but now that I’m in it, I absolutely love it! I look forward to Mondays in prison almost as much as I look forward to church on Sunday.”
Dennis is married to Denise Riffle (fellow TCJ grad, class of 1982). They have three children, Jonathan, Rebekah (class of 2014), and Sarah (class of 2010) and four grandchildren.
God has seen fit to use Dennis in a variety of roles, each of which he has been careful to view as a means of ministry, year after year. We are honored to count him in the TCJ family, and we believe that his faithfulness and willingness to serve makes him a fitting role model for current and future TCJ alumni.
Having proved to be of high character and a model of our core values, and having exemplified faithful commitment to the Gospel, Trinity College of Jacksonville is proud to present the 2026 Alumnus of the Year Award to Mr. Dennis Riffle.
The award will be presented publicly during the 2026 Commencement service held in the main auditorium of Trinity Baptist Church at 800 Hammond Blvd, Jacksonville, Florida on May 9, 2026.
