I was born and raised in North Carolina, I’m proud of my heritage. My life began in Moore County. We left there just before I started school and spent three years (Grades 1-3) exiled in Petersburg, Virginia. We moved to the Wilmington NC area when I was nine. I would live in the Wilmington area until I was out of college and spent 26 of my first 29 years in the Old North State.
As a Boy Scout I became involved in my local church while working on The God and County award. I was also the first youth deacon ordained at Cape Fear Presbyterian Church. After graduating from J. T. Hoggard High School, I attended the University of North Carolina at Wilmington. During college I worked in a wholesale bakery. A couple years after graduation, I started began working for the Boy Scouts of America. In 1986, when living in Hickory, NC, I finally answered the call to ministry. I enrolled at Pittsburgh Theological Seminary. While in seminary I spent my first summer completing the Appalachian Trail and later summers directing a camp in the Sawtooth Mountains of Idaho. I also took a year off from classes to serve as the student intern pastor for First Presbyterian Church of Virginia City, Nevada. I later earned a Doctorate of Ministry from San Francisco Theological Seminary, writing a dissertation that explored the role and history of the church on the area around Virginia City, Nevada that’s known as “The Comstock Lode.”
Being a pastor is a blessing. It allows me time to study of God’s word as I prepare for preaching and teaching, as well as time to reach out to those around me. Preaching and talking to people about how God is working in their lives are high points in ministry.
Outside of the church I enjoy being in God’s grand creation. You’ll may find me backpacking, canoeing and kayaking, skiing, sailing, camping, fishing, or star gazing. I enjoy sharing such times with others. I have traveled around the world on trains, ships, buses and boats. I have driven across the country on two-lane roads. But when possible, I head into the wilderness on foot or by canoe or kayak. Being in the wilderness helps me have a greater appreciation of the wonders of the world for which we’re God’s stewards. At home you might find me reading, writing, cooking, gardening, walking country roads or sharing a good joke. I’m a firm believer in Sunday afternoon naps as a way to fulfill the fourth commandment. God is good!
In 1990 I was ordained as a minister of Word and Sacrament by the Presbytery of Western New York where I served as a designated pastor for the United Church of Ellicottville, a small ski community located 65 miles southeast of Buffalo. During my tenure in Ellicottville, I devoted time perfecting parallel turns on the ski slope while providing the community with much needed pastoral care, especially during the winter after the Buffalo Bills lost yet another Super Bowl. (The Bills were in the Super Bowl every year I was in Western New York and they lost them all!).
While in Ellicottville, I married Donna. We’d met shortly after I graduated from seminary. Originally from Kennesaw Georgia, she has a degree in English from Buffalo State University and a Masters in Health Communication from Michigan State University. She enjoys reading, baking, biking, sailing, walking, traveling, and watching sports. She often rolls her eyes at my jokes.
Late in 1993, we headed West for the mission field of Southwest Utah, where I was the pastor of Community Presbyterian Church in Cedar City. I served the congregation for ten years during a dramatic period of growth that included relocating and building a new facility.
During this time our family also grew. In 1997, we adopted Thomas, who was twelve years old. In 2010, he married Michelle and they have two sons: Ethan and Jeffrey. They live in Missouri.
In 1998 Caroline was born. She loves tennis and music and has lately taken up the art of quilting and spinning fiber. She also skis, enjoys sailing, traveling and, like her mom, watching sports.
In 2004 I was called to be pastor of the First Presbyterian Church of Hastings, Michigan, where, during my 10 1/2 year tenure, I led yet another relocation and building campaign. It’s probably a sin, but I’m proud that both of my previous congregations paid off their mortgages before I was called to a new ministry. Although we never know what God has in store for us, I pray I’m done with relocating churches.
I accepted the call to Skidaway Island Presbyterian Church (now Skidaway Community Church) in the summer of 2014. During my tenure, the church resumed holding Kirkin’ o’ the Tartans services as we recall our Scottish heritage. We also started holding community Easter Sunrise Services at Landings Harbor Marina that became a major event with 100s in attendance. We hosted Calvin’s January Series, which brought together people in the community to explore ideas and to enjoy lunch together. My writings and photography were often featured in The Skinnie, a local magazine. I’ve served as a volunteer firefighter on the island and taught homiletics (preaching) at South University’s School of Theology. We also instituted a dialogue on civility to help people in the community to engage in a respectful manner despite their differences of opinion. During my free time, I sailed or kayaked on the waters around Skidaway, bicycled around the island, and enjoyed our family dog, Mia.
In October 2020, just in time for the leaves to change, I assumed the pastorate of two small churches (Bluemont and Mayberry) along the Blue Ridge parkway in Southwestern Virginia. Since then, I have been remodeling a house and managing the property around it. Each summer, I have a garden and have enjoyed the produce that. comes from the earth. I have also enjoyed being back in smaller churches and being able to better know members of the church and those in the community.
