Candidate: Leon Edenfield

A native of Palatka, born in 1960, Leon grew up in the small rural community of Bostwick. In 1977 he moved with his family to South Carolina for employment purposes, where he graduated high school in 1978. Upon high school graduation, he returned to Palatka and was employed by a local masonry construction company. Aspiring to be in Business Management, he joined the U.S. Air Force in 1979 as an Administrative Management Specialist. In 1985, he entered into Recruiting Service as a Military Human Resource Specialist where he returned to Palatka on recruiting duty helping provide employment for young adults until 1992. During the next eight years in Recruiting Service (1992-2000), he was promoted to District Trainer, Advertising & Promotions Supervisor, Officer & Medical Programs Supervisor, and supervised the Military Entrance Processing Station (MEPS) in Jacksonville, Fl, where he retired. Upon retiring from the Air Force in 2000, he was chosen for employment into Civil Service, with the Department of the Navy. He serves as the Advertising Coordinator for Navy Recruiting District Jacksonville, covering N. Florida & South Georgia. He manages advertising budgets, expenditures, develops and initiates Advertising & Promotion strategies using newspapers, electronic & social media, and Direct Mail Marketing campaigns to attract and hire new recruits. He maintains a Federal Government Secret Security Clearance, along with all credentials and certifications required by Purchasing Laws, as a government purchasing agent. Also, he is a Bi-Vocational Pastor and serves as the Senior Pastor at St Johns Baptist Church, located at 938 West River Rd., in the Bostwick Community since 2011. He recently helped establish and start up St Johns Christian School, a private school, located on the campus of St Johns Baptist Church, which he is the Director. He was a Small Business Owner, Eden’s Lawn Care of Middleburg, Fl from 2005 to 2011, serving both residential and commercial customers throughout Orange Park and Middleburg. He closed his business in 2011 to accept the pastoral position at St. Johns Baptist Church, where he remains serving. He is currently Secretary for the Republican Executive Committee (R.E.C.) of Putnam County, a member of Palatka’s American Legion Post 45, Kiwanis Club of Palatka, and the N.R.A. Leon graduated from Liberty University with a B.S. in Religion, and an A.S. in Personnel through the Community College of the Air Force. He is married to his wife Janice (of 36 years), and they have three adult children.