 EXECUTIVE PASTOR |
Paul Hansen was born and raised on the East Coast, but moved to the Midwest and graduated from Moody Bible Institute in 1993. He has been on staff and a vocational Elder/Pastor at Grace since 2001. He’s passionate about Jesus – but he thinks people are okay, too. His passion is to see people equipped to think, imitate, and follow Jesus more closely with a global perspective. If Paul had to choose between equipping people and drinking coffee…he would still take the people (and that is saying a lot!). He serves the collective Elder/Pastor team as the Pastor of Ministry Development. That means overseeing the Staff, mobilizing the church, and refining the vision. Paul has been married to his soul mate, Amy, since 1993. Together they have five beautiful kids (all like their mother). |
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 PASTOR OF FAMILY MINISTRIES |
Dave Kirk spent the previous 15 years in St. Louis, but he grew up in northwest Indiana. He has been married to his beautiful wife Debbie for 16 years. They have five amazing children, four sons and one daughter. Dave has been in full-time ministry for over 16 years as a Youth & Family Pastor, and has earned two Masters degrees from Liberty University. He joined our staff team in 2009. Dave is a huge sports fan and roots for “the best team” (cringe), the Cardinals. He also enjoys reading and listening to good rock music. He is very passionate about seeing men grow into the spiritual leaders that God has created and called them to be so that their families are prepared to pass that spiritual heritage down to future generations. |
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 TEACHING PASTOR |
Brooks Simpson is our Pastor for Teaching and Preaching. Brooks came to faith in Christ as a college student athlete while attending Grace in 1988 and has been on staff since 1998. Brooks’ heart is to see Christ magnified and exalted in the lives of people. The spiritual battle described in Ephesians 6 is real and Brooks’ passion is to equip people to take up the shield of faith and the sword of the Spirit. He would love for people to see that Christ and His gospel are on every page of the Bible, and to understand the gospel as having power to transform life here and now, not only as a ticket to heaven. When he’s not behind the pulpit or fulfilling his pastoral duties the rest of the week, he enjoys spending time with his family or finding an excuse to be outdoors. Brooks has been married to his bride Stacy since 1989. They have two children, Ryan and Katelyn. |
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 PASTOR OF OUTREACH |
Tom Widmer is a man of many roles. He serves as an Elder/Pastor here at Grace Community, and since his retirement from 30 years as an Iowa City police officer, Pastor of Outreach. He and wife Glenda also teach Missions Club for elementary age youth on Sundays, where he is known for overseeing the distribution of candy. Tom has accomplished two short-term mission trips above the arctic circle (Fort Yukon and Birch Creek, Alaska), and loves to fish! He and Glenda have been members of Grace since 1988. They have two children: Tim, who graduated to be with Christ in 1998, and Tabitha. Tom desires to spread a passion among believers in Christ, to do good works for the sole purpose of bringing glory to Jesus Christ. |
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 DIRECTOR OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION |
Larry Espy has been part of Grace Community since summer 2010 and joined our staff in Fall 2012. Larry makes sure the bills get paid and the lights stay on, and ensures sound stewardship of all God entrusts us with. He also oversees our facility. Larry and his wife of 34 years Teresa appreciate the sound Biblical teaching and the vision for our local church. They have three grown children – Jennie, Kalen and Matt (and daughter-in-law Sarah) – and two grandchildren – Norah (3) and Collin (18 months). In addition to crunching numbers, Larry is passionate about mentoring men in their role as spiritual leaders of their homes, and sharing the Gospel. He facilitates a couple of different Bible studies, sometimes along with Teresa, and also enjoys restoring and detailing old, dirty cars. He credits Teresa with keeping him on track when he gets “rude and crude”. He enjoys the outdoors, reading, and dating his wife. |
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 OFFICE MANAGER |
Jean Keeley oversees our office team and office-based ministry which provides administrative support to staff and volunteer leaders. Jean is a native Iowa Citian and has been part of Grace Community since 1993. She joined the staff in 2007. From 2003-2005, Jean was privileged to spend two years as a “non-traditional” (i.e. old!) student at Emmaus Bible College in Dubuque. She likes to hike, travel, cheer on the Iowa football team, and be involved in some good Bible study. A little known fact about Jean is that she invented a word now published on urbandictionary.com (look up heatness) She also likes listening to music really loud in her car. |
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 SECRETARY OF OFFICE ADMINISTRATION |
Judy Bieker is the first point of contact for those who call, email, or walk in to our church office. Judy and her husband-best friend Bart have been part of Grace Community since April 2012. They have been married for 25 years and have three grown children – Aaron, Angelica, and Sarah. Judy has a servant’s heart that is passionate to be found faithful by our Lord. Just as she appreciates the solid Biblical teaching and community that we emphasize at Grace, we appreciate the life testimony, maturity, and integrity she brings to our office-based ministry. Next time you’re out, be sure to stop into the office to meet Judy and say hello! Both Bart and Judy are from southwestern Nebraska. (You may give them a hard time about being Huskers fans!) She enjoys spending her free time with family and friends, and “hula’s a mean hoop” for exercise. |
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 ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT |
Amy Taylor grew up in Webster City, IA and moved to Iowa City in 2005 to attend the University of Iowa. She has been a part of Grace Community since 2006 and started getting involved shortly after by volunteering in the nursery. During college, Amy spent a summer in South Carolina being trained and developed in evangelism and discipleship. She received her Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration and joined our staff in January 2009. Amy served as our Financial Secretary until 2012 when she transitioned to part time Administrative Assistant to be at home with her son. Amy assists Executive Pastor, Paul Hansen, and serves our staff as needed. She and her husband Tony are parents to Jacob, born December 2012. They love being parents and watching Hawkeye football. |
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 DIRECTOR OF YOUNG ADULT MINISTRIES |
Jason Blackley oversees our young adult ministries and loves to eat his favorite junk food – donuts. He was born and raised in Kansas City, MO where he received ten years of ministry training. He has attended Grace since 2006 and has been on the Grace staff team for most of that time. Jason is passionate about providing quality discipleship and classes to supplement the God-given call parents have to disciple their family. He has the privilege of being a shepherd in his own home to wife, Dollie, and sons, Micah, Jude, and Elijah. Jason enjoys reading and playing sports that involve a ball or a puck. |
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 DIRECTOR OF CHILDREN’S MINISTRIES |
Cindy Sulwer has been a part of the Children’s Ministry Team for many years as a volunteer and came on staff in 2010. Cindy, her husband, Kevin, and their kids, Kyle, Megan, and Carly, have been part of Grace Community since 2004. “I loved Grace from the beginning because the preaching was right out of the Bible and I felt as if I was always being challenged to live out my faith day to day. I got myself plugged into AWANA the first week I was here.” Cindy is passionate about the next generation and loves to help kids in their journey with Jesus. She also loves to come alongside moms and encourage them to enjoy the awesome and honoring role that parenting is with God as their guide. In her spare time, Cindy loves to go on outdoor adventures with her family, like hiking, biking and trying new things. She is also an avid reader and currently recommends Missional Mom. |
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 NURSERY COORDINATOR |
Natasha Miller and her husband Ryan have been part of Grace since 2002. Natasha’s passion to train her own children, Aubrey, Cameron, and Lauren, to love and follow hard after Jesus is an asset as she leads the team of Nursery volunteers to love and pray for ALL of our children in Jesus’ name. Natasha and Ryan are active members of the Rotzoll Faith Family, and value being surrounded by godly people who walk beside them, serving God with them. In her spare time, Natasha enjoys reading, being outside and loves ice cream and birthdays! |
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PRESCHOOL COORDINATOR |
Nancy Swenson was welcomed to our team in 2012. Her passion for teaching the next generation about Jesus and encouraging others to do the same is evident to the teachers, parents and children she serves. Nancy, her husband Casey, and their kids, Noah, Luke, and Ellie, have been part of Grace since 2010. “What I like most about Grace is that we have solid Biblical teaching and we are missionally minded!” Nancy also has a heart for orphans and serves on our Grace For Orphans ministry team and Look Development Ethiopia. She hopes to someday go on an international mission trip. Nancy grew up on a dairy farm in South Dakota and enjoys spending time outdoors with her family hiking, fishing, running and playing basketball. |
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 DIRECTOR OF WOMEN’S MINISTRIES |
Eva Anderson oversees women’s ministry here at Grace. She is passionate about meeting people, helping others get connected and seeing women grow closer to Christ. Eva married her best friend Steve in 1991 and they have two precious gifts from God, Teddy and Grace who both joined their family through the miracle of adoption. Eva and Steve grew up in Minnesota and moved to Iowa – and to Grace Community – in 2002. They enjoy frequent visits to Minnesota to visit family and take in great traditions like the Minnesota State Fair. Before becoming a mom in 2000, Eva enjoyed her career as an elementary school teacher for seven years. Next to her family and ministry, Eva loves gardening, watching movies, and eating Ghirardelli chocolate. |
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 HOUSE CHURCH DIRECTOR |
Dan Bovenmyer is glad to help you find a place to belong at Grace Community. He is responsible for overseeing our House Churches (aka Faith Families) and coaching the leaders. Dan is an active member of the Iowa City community and a former IT business owner. Dan and Wendy have been part of Grace since Fall 2010. They have four kids - Jakob, Evie, Annie, and Isabella. He admits he is “20% lion, 10% otter, and 70% geek.” While he spends his free time rough-housing with his kids and following sports, he is also a voracious reader and finds great joy in making people laugh. He lists his passions as his wife, the Hawkeyes (despite his own alma mater being Iowa State), and pie. Dan consistently finds himself passionate about Jesus and says, “I am moved as I think about how he lived and died, and am trying to absorb His gospel into every part of my life.” |
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 DIRECTOR OF TECHNOLOGY |
Gabe Isbell is our Geek Squad at Grace Community. You can spot him by his long, curly locks and might be surprised to know that as a child, he had straight blonde hair. He and wife, Missy, have been a part of Grace Community since 2003. Together, they are parents-disciplers to their kids, Forest, Willow, and Asher. Gabe volunteered with technology for several years and has been on the staff team since 2008. He also works in IT outside of his role at Grace Community. Gabe likes watching football, playing Wii and a Bible-based card game called Redemption. His favorite junk foods are ice cream and dark chocolate. |
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Rodney Gehman understands that worship is something we do 24/7. It’s not a clever grouping of songs but rather a response to Jesus that takes shape in many ways. As our Director of Worship, Rodney looks forward to helping develop our worship arts with, he says with a grin, a primary focus on discontinuing the use of Papyrus font (ha ha). Rodney and his wife Jodi have been part of Grace since May 2011. They have four kids – Jackson, Alana, Stella, and Scarlett. Rodney also worships through community involvement and youth leadership in the Kalona area, and photography. He and Jodi are both accomplished professional photographers. Besides his wife, Rodney says he is also attracted to golfing, caramel lattes, skiing, and Apple products. |
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Dallas Schrock not only helps us with our facility “fixtures”, he and his family practically are fixtures at Grace Community! Dallas and Rose and their adult daughters, Elizabeth and Meredith, have been serving the body of Christ at Grace since 1988. Dallas works full time at the U of I but on weekends lends his eye for detail and high quality standards to help keep our facility looking nice and in great condition. He also has served in the biblical office of Deacon for many years. In his spare time, Dallas says he is “continually refurbishing” their brick 1914 Arts & Crafts style home. He is also one of two sets of twins born 2½ years apart! |
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