With a deep passion for helping children, I was called by God in 1998 and began my journey toward the life of an itinerant minister, a disciple of Jesus and an advocate for children throughout the world. I have been fortunate in my educational opportunities, with a Bachelor of Arts degree from Scripps College (1994), Masters of Divinity (2001) and Doctor of Ministry (2007) from Claremont School of Theology. I was ordained as an Elder in the California-Pacific Annual Conference in 2005.
Immediately following my graduation from CST, I began work as an Associate Pastor at Kailua UMC on the island of Oahu. After 3 years, I was appointed to be the pastor at Westchester UMC in Los Angeles. After a formative trip with a Cal-Pac delegation to visit churches in Nigeria, I applied to be a missionary with the General Board of Global Ministries and was appointed in 2007 to be the pastor of an English-Speaking church in Hamburg, Germany. For five years, I served as a missionary in Hamburg, itinerating throughout Southern California and Hawaii and working to encourage churches to connect with GBGM missionaries. During my time in Hamburg, I was invited to visit a mission project in India and began fundraising efforts to support schools in rural India.
In 2012, I returned to the Cal-Pac Annual Conference and spent 4 years serving as the pastor at Kona UMC on the Big Island and working to develop my India Project into a 501(c)3 organization. In 2015, Friends of Padhar Schools was born and currently I am the Executive Director with a Board of Directors who work to support education for children in India.
In January 2017, I took an interim appointment at Walnut UMC and it turned out to be a terrific match. For five years, we worked together to grow the congregation, then we adapted to virtual worship and finally settled into a hybrid worship schedule, with modified in-person worship and an online service.
In December of 2021, I completed my ministry at Walnut UMC and rejoined the ranks of the GBGM missionaries. From January of 2022 to December of 2024 I served as the pastor of La Siesta Evangelical (meaning Protestant) Church in Torrevieja, Alicante, Spain, an international, ecumenical, English-speaking congregation, made of people from various backgrounds: Baptist, Methodist, United Reform, Church of England, Church of Scotland, Presbyterian Church of Scotland, Presbyterian Church in Ireland and many others.
In January 2025, after finishing my 3 years of missionary service, I returned to the California Pacific Annual Conference and was appointed as the pastor of North Hollywood First United Methodist Church. I am currently serving as the pastor to this community-focused, diverse and vibrant congregation! Their love for their neighbors and my passion for mission are well-matched and I look forward to continuing to serve as their pastor into the future.