About the Elders
Presbyterian churches are led by elders elected by each congregation (“presbyterian” is, in fact, based off the Greek word for “elder”). This group of elders along with a church’s pastors is formally known as the church Session.
It is a big deal to be called to serve as an elder! After being nominated and elected, elders-to-be are trained, ordained, and then officially installed during the course of a special service of worship. They are then entrusted to lead the rest of the church in carrying out its various ministries, staying grounded in the Gospel while adapting to changing times, doing their best to discern the needs of the congregation and the surrounding community while always “voting their conscience.”
Each year at FOPC, our congregation prayerfully elects four new elders to our Session for a three year term (this gives us a Session with 12 elders in total). As a group they discuss, deliberate, pray, and vote on major decisions; as individuals they serve as the moderators of our church’s committees.
Cathryn Steeves is the clerk of Session: all communication to the Session formally goes through the clerk.
Here is a list of our current elders on Session with the committees they lead.
Elders
- Carey Beck (Outreach & Engagement)
- Kathy Fox (Adult Education)
- Derek Inksetter (Stewardship)
- Barb Mayer (Faith in Action)
- Joe McIntyre (Buildings & Grounds)
- Caroline Older (Worship)
- Steve Perkins (Nominating and Congregational Activities)
- Rachel Tesch (Children & Youth)
- Wendy Toan (Logos)
- John Vishneski (Personnel)
- Wendy White (Finance)
- Greg Wolski (Personnel)
About the Deacons
In addition to our church elders, FOPC annually elects deacons to the special tasks of caregiving and hospitality. Those elected to the office of deacon are called to an incredibly important ministry. Alongside our pastors, they are the comforters and caretakers for the rest of our congregation. The deacons do such things as:
- Plan meals for those in times of stress and heartache
- Make special efforts to welcome anyone new to FOPC
- Send care packages to students away at college
- Organize coffee and treats for after services (when we’re not in the middle of a global pandemic)
- Regularly check on other members to help us stay connected (when we are in the middle of a global pandemic)
- Join our pastors for home visitations and communion
- Pray
Deacons
- Lisa Johnson (Moderator)
- Nancy Carr
- Bill Green
- Jim Haglund
- Julia Inksetter
- Lisa Lewis
- Charlie Mayer
- Anette Nam
- Gayle O’Carroll
- Julia Schroeder
- Doug Strubel
- Phyllis Tresselt