Our Cohort Members

United Ghanaian Community Church

Rev. Isaac Baah was born in Ghana and migrated to America in 1999 for graduate school. He is a trained Actuary but is now the Senior Pastor of the United Ghanaian Community Church. He is married with three children. He has served and is still serving on various committees and commissions of the presbytery. Isaac is currently serving as a director of the Board of Pensions. He watches soccer during his leisure hours and likes to read about other cultures.

First Presbyterian Church in Lansdowne

Rev. Jonathan Britt (he/him/his) is a graduate of Furman University and Princeton Theological Seminary. Before becoming pastor of First Presbyterian in Lansdowne, Jonathan served as an associate pastor in Houston, TX. He is a native of Greenville, SC and is married to his spouse, Allison. They have two dogs, Wrigley & Chopper. If he’s not around the church, hopefully he’s off hiking a local trail or discovering more of Philadelphia’s brewery scene.

Oak Lane Presbyterian Church

Rev. Dr. Bernard Downing is a native of Philadelphia, an Army veteran, who currently serves as Supply Pastor of Oak Lane Presbyterian Church. He is married to the former Michelle Spraggins and they are blessed with two teenage girls who happen to be two very gifted young ladies. Bernard is a recent graduate of Lutheran Theological Seminary with a Doctorate in Ministry. He is grateful for the ministry that God has placed in his life and seeks every opportunity to fulfill his calling. Nevertheless, Bernard also enjoys other activities as well such as concerts, music, dancing, martial arts movies, and sports. He also enjoys spending time with his family on trips and vacations. Bernard’s life verse is “He that has begun a good work in me will complete it until the day of the Lord!”

Northampton Presbyterian Church

Judy earned her MA in Pastoral Counseling from LaSalle University and her M. Div. at Princeton Theological Seminary, which she entered after serving Abington Presbyterian Church as the Director of Pastoral Ministries for several years. A board-certified chaplain, Judy has served a continuing care retirement community in Doylestown and in transitional positions at Grace Presbyterian Church in Jenkintown and Calvary Presbyterian, Wyncote. She was recently installed as Senior Pastor of Northampton Presbyterian Church in Holland, PA. Judy counts family time as precious and enjoys reading detective novels; singing, cycling, swimming and traveling. She and husband John are delighted to be the parents of three grown children and five “grands” who grow them younger every day!

Church on the Mall

Rev. Alex Evangelista is pastor at Church on the Mall in Plymouth Meeting, PA. His wife, Andrea, and their dog, Cleopatra, live in Lafayette Hill and enjoy their time in finding the best restaurants and coffee shops in town and salsa/bachata dancing. Though Alex misses California (where he’s from), he has come to enjoy the community he has found in the greater Philly area.

First Presbyterian Church in Springfield (Flourtown)

Rev. Diane Jamison Fitch lives in Maple Glen and is the pastor of the First Presbyterian Church in Springfield, located in Flourtown. A cradle Presbyterian, Diane attended Bucknell University and Princeton Seminary, and has served churches in New York and PA over the past 26 years. She is married to John, and they have 2 adult children, along with a dog and 3 cats. Diane enjoys reading, cooking, music, hiking, art, photography and traveling.

First Presbyterian Church of Levittown

Rev. Dr. Manuela Kauer is a native of Spain. She was brought up in French-speaking Switzerland as her parents immigrated to this country when she was a child. She met there her husband Juan, a native of Argentina, and got married. They came to the USA and soon accepted a missionary call through the PCUSA in Argentina. They have two grown daughters who now live overseas and have given Manuela and Juan great opportunities to travel and visit them. Manuela is serving now as the Pastor of First Presbyterian Church of Levittown after serving in others churches in PA and looks forward to building connections, as she is new to this area and presbytery.

Podowon Presbyterian Church

Rev. Byungil Kim was born in South Korea. His major was electronics, but when he received a calling from God during work as an engineer at a company, he quit his job and entered the Chong-Shin Seminary where he earned his M. Div. Byungil moved to Philadelphia with his wife and two boys and studied Missional Theology at the Missio Seminary. He has served as the pastor of Podowon Church since May of 2013. Byungil considers it a great privilege to serve the Korean church in the U.S.

Norriton Presbyterian Church

Rev. Lori Kosinski is currently serving as part-time pastor of Norriton Presbyterian Church. She has served as the Chaplain of Meadowood Retirement Community, Parish Associate of Deep Run Presbyterian Church and as Associate Pastor of Northminster Presbyterian Church in Endwell, New York. She graduated with a Bachelor’s in public administration management from Keuka College and a M.Div from Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary. Lori is married to Michael, and they have two young adult sons—John and Andrew. Lori enjoys hiking, travel, scrapbooking and reading a good mystery.

Ivyland Presbyterian Church

Rev. Amy Na serves the Ivyland Presbyterian Church as pastor and the Bucks County Department of Corrections as a part-time chaplain. She is married to Rev. Kang Na, pastoral ministries manager at Ann's Choice. Together they have three children, Christian, 25, who lives and works in marketing in Pittsburgh; Laura, 24, a nurse in the US Air Force, soon to be stationed in CA, and Sofia, 22, who works as a teacher and an administrator at the Main Line Classical Academy.

Gladwyne Presbyterian Church

Rev. Todd Stavrakos has served the congregation at Gladwyne Presbyterian Church for the last 16 years. He has served on the board at Heeding God’s Call, HeadStart, and Givat Haviva International School. He serves the presbytery as a member of the Collegium and as the moderator of the Self Development of People Committee. Todd also has a passion for interfaith relations and works with a variety of groups that provide an opportunity to engage other faith traditions.

Memorial Presbyterian Church of Fox Chase

Rev. Timothy Wotring hails from the Appalachian Mountains of Western Maryland and has made his home in Philadelphia. Currently, he serves as the pastor of Memorial Presbyterian Church of Fox Chase. He holds an MDiv from Union Theological Seminary in New York City and a BA in Theology from Eastern University. He is a jack-of-all-trades when it comes to church life and has been a Sunday School teacher, worship leader, sexton, youth pastor, small group leader, and preacher. Timothy enjoys all things pop culture, especially horror related content. He is a member of the Popular Culture Association. He enjoys reading, playing music, and designing creative worship experiences.

First Presbyterian Church of Olney

Rev. Randy Barge has been Pastor at First Pres. Olney for over eleven years. Prior to this call, he was the Pastor of the former Calvin Presbyterian Church. Before coming to Philadelphia, he served as Pastoral Assistant at Oakhurst Presbyterian Church in Decatur, Georgia. Randy holds a Bachelors of Science degree from Missouri State University and a Masters of Divinity from Columbia Theological Seminary near Atlanta, Georgia. What he likes most about ministry is preaching, teaching, and studying.

Old Pine Presbyterian Church

Rev. Rebecca Blake currently serves as the Pastor for Christian Education at Old Pine Presbyterian Church; previously she was the co-founder and pastor of Beacon Church. Trained as a visual artist, writer, theologian, and pastor, she is grateful for the opportunity to incorporate those various skills into ministry. She is passionate about the power of art-making in personal and community transformation and helping others discover, explore, and grow their faith, especially via creative expression. Rebecca’s background includes church planting, coaching, teaching art, and implementing trauma-informed practices when working with children and adults experiencing various hardships. She is a graduate of Eastern University (BA) and Princeton Theological Seminary (M.Div). Rebecca is married to Sean, mama to a lively toddler, stepmom to two creative stepsons, and dog-parent to three American Brittanys.

Gwynedd Square Presbyterian Church

Rev. Wonjae Choi is serving as Supply Pastor for Gwynedd Square Presbyterian Church. She has extensive training and experience in transitional ministry, and has served as Interim Pastor in many of the churches in our presbytery. Wonjae enjoys helping congregational leadership function well so the church can live into its mission to reach out to the world with Christian love. She lives in Bucks County with her husband and two school-aged children.

Beacon Presbyterian Church

Rev. Laura Colee serves as Pastor at Beacon, a Presbyterian congregation in the Fishtown section of Philadelphia. Prior to her call there, she served as the Pastor at Broad Street Ministry in Center City, Philadelphia, where she led a diverse faith community and supported the radical hospitality efforts of her coworkers. She grew up in central Illinois and joined a PCUSA congregation in high school. Laura completed her undergraduate work at Northwestern University and received her Master of Divinity degree from Princeton Theological Seminary. Prior to her positions at Beacon and Broad Street, she served as the Interim Associate Pastor at First Presbyterian Church in Haddonfield, New Jersey. She is a lover of all things Hebrew Bible, social justice, and Philadelphia. Laura and her husband Eric live in the Port Richmond neighborhood of Philadelphia with their beloved dog Frankie.

Cedar Park Presbyterian Church

Rev. Dr. T. Janel Dixon is currently serving at Pastor of Cedar Park Presbyterian Church. Prior to returning to Philadelphia in 2013, Janel served as Pastor to Calvary Presbyterian Church in Wilson, North Carolina for about 15 years. In preparation for ordained ministry, she attended Eastern Theological Seminary (currently Palmer Theological Seminary) having earned both an M. Div. and M.A.T.S. degree. Janel earned her Doctor of Ministry degree in Leadership Development from Princeton Theological Seminary. The most fulfilling aspect of ministry for Janel is preaching and mentoring others who are exploring a call to ministry. She and her husband recently celebrated 30 years of marriage, and are blessed with two beautiful children: Samira and Tai-durell. For fun Janel enjoys going to Movie Tavern, walking along the beach, and visiting the Philadelphia Zoo.

Valley Forge Presbyterian Church

Rev. Tim Dooner has served as the Pastor of Valley Forge Presbyterian Church in King of Prussia, PA since 2016, bringing an emphasis on missional and incarnational engagement of the community. Valley Forge is Tim's third call since graduating from Princeton Theological Seminary in 2008, having previously served as Associate Pastor at Covenant United in Frazer, PA and Pastor of Faith Presbyterian of Emmaus, PA. Tim is the husband to his high-school sweetheart, Blair, and together they are the parents of three daughters and one terrier named Dobby. For fun, the Dooner family enjoys exploring national parks and waterfalls, the Harry Potter series, adventure and fantasy series on Netflix, music, art, and occasionally Tim is allowed to use the TV to watch the Phillies' game or a Pearl Jam concert.

Arch Street Presbyterian Church

Rev. Carla Jones Brown is the Senior Pastor at Arch Street Presbyterian church. She is a graduate of Princeton Theological Seminary and Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey. Carla is a Jersey girl who married a Philly guy in Las Vegas! She loves cooking, eating, reading and rocking fussy babies to sleep.

Connectional Pastor for Korean Churches

Rev. Jieun Lee is a graduate of Princeton Theological Seminary who was ordained as an Educational Evangelist to the Korean Church network in 2018. She also serves as an associate director of savings group program at HOPE International, a Christian nonprofit that provides microfinancing to families living in poverty around the world. When she is not serving in the church, she enjoys reading, hiking, and gathering with friends over a good meal. She lives in Lancaster with her husband, Paul, and they are proud new parents of their first baby, Ezra

East Falls Presbyterian Church

Born and raised in Seattle, Washington, Rev. Kari Olson began moving east when she attended Whitworth University in Spokane, Washington and then Princeton Seminary. After serving as a solo pastor in Lehigh Presbytery, Kari was called to serve the people of East Falls Presbyterian Church in 2018. Kari also enjoys playing guitar, singing, tending her many houseplants, playing games, and running. If you ask her about her TikTok account, she'll tell you covid made her do it.

The Welcome Church

Rev. Schaunel Steinnagel is the Associate Pastor of The Welcome Church, a congregation in Center City, Philadelphia, made up predominantly by people who are experiencing chronic street homelessness. Schaunel graduated from Middlebury College in 1993, having majored in linguistics, and she received her MDiv from Union Theological Seminary in New York in 1996. She is long-distance runner. She is married to Matthew Taylor, and they have three children and a dog and a cat.

Director of Congregational Resourcing for the Presbytery of Philadelphia

Prior to coming on staff at the presbytery, Rev. Brenton Thompson joined the pilot cohort while serving as Pastor at Crossroads Presbyterian Church. Brenton lives in Phoenixville, Pennsylvania with his wife, Sudie, who is also a pastor, along with their two young daughters. He is an alumni of the Young Adult Volunteer program and a graduate of McCormick Theological Seminary Brenton is an avid reader, guitar player, world traveler and master of the “one-liners” who continues to love the randomness of ministry and is sustained by the glimpses of God’s grace in the lives of those whom he serves with.