At the annual meeting on February 13, 2008, the church unanimously approved the 2008 Ministry & Operations and Missions Budget (combined $4.62 million). This will require additional congregational giving of 5.5% to M&O and 4.5% to Missions. One other motion was also unanimously approved to authorize spending of up to a total of $3.7 million for the installation of a new elevator and the renovation of the interior of the first floor of the historic meetinghouse at Zero Park Street. Funds for these costs will be expended from Bicentennial Campaign pledges already committed.

Information about the elected elders and officials is posted below. (Click on each name to read about the person.) Also, investigate the 2008 Annual Meeting PULSE for bios. Click here to download the annual report of 2007.

I came to Christ at the age of 30 more than 20 years ago. Since that time, our Lord has changed my life, and—more important—He has changed me. As the apostle Paul said, nothing compares to knowing Christ Jesus our Lord.

I came to Boston and Park Street Church in 1989, and met my wife, Joy, in a “Young Adult” small group. We live in Arlington and have one delightful 12 year old son, Joshua. It has been my privilege to serve our Lord and you in a variety of ways since 1989. Over the years I have taught Christian Formation classes for children, served on the leadership team of the Young Adults Ministry, served as a Deacon and as an Elder, and served on the Nominating Committee. I look forward to continuing to serve our Lord and you as Treasurer.
 
The church has one purpose: to be used by God to bring people to salvation and to encourage every member to grow as a disciple of Christ. In this process, we are to keep in mind what our Lord said about how the world will know who we are—“By this all people will know you are my disciples— if you have love for one another” (John 13:35). In whatever ways we as individuals are active, we are to share the love of Christ with newcomers and with each other. As stewards of God’s grace, we are to share ourselves and the financial resources that God has given us to accomplish God’s work, demonstrating God’s love both through what we do and the manner in which we do it.

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Raised in Brookline (MA), I spent most of my childhood and teenage years searching for the Lord. Despite having the advantage of attending Sunday school and, later on, an Episcopal boarding school, I did not have strong faith. During my senior year of college, I felt compelled to join the Peace Corps and teach in Central Africa. Today I would say that I was “called” to this work; however, that word was not yet part of my vocabulary. Once in Gabon, I met an expatriate from Togo who had dedicated his life to Jesus and was eager to share the Word. This friend introduced me to both the local Protestant church and men’s Bible study. After a year of scripture-based discussions and prayer, I surrendered myself to Jesus Christ.

Upon returning to the United States in 1995, I started attending the evening service at Park Street Church on the recommendation of a family friend. Park Street met my initial needs for spiritual growth by offering sound doctrine, great sermons, small groups, and an energetic and diverse congregation. My wife, Alix, and I were married here in 2005. Our reasons for attending and supporting Park Street Church have grown over the years. Along with the strengths that initially attracted me, we are encouraged by how Park Street’s statement of faith translates into community outreach, overseas missions, and congregational support. 

In addition to the privilege of serving on the Missions Committee and Career Missions Subcommittee, I have had the pleasure of assisting Peter Philbrick, the outgoing Missions Treasurer, over the past several years. Looking forward to the year ahead, I am excited for the opportunity to serve as the Missions Treasurer and witness how God continues to use Park Street Church in fulfillment of the Great Commission.

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I was blessed to grow up here at Park Street Church. I commuted to church from Hingham with other South Shore area kids, attending Discoverers (1st through 5th grade), PACERS (Junior High) and finally No Name (Senior High) before heading off to college. After finishing college in Pennsylvania, I spent an additional four years working and living in that area before moving back home to Boston in 1995.

Upon my return, I started attending Park Street Church again. Since then, I have been privileged to serve on the leadership team for CrossWalk, a ministry for people in or near their thirties, as well as the Finance and Administration Committee. I have been able to watch CrossWalk grow from an idea into what God has made it today—a community of 80 to 100 believers that meet weekly for small group Bible studies, Large Group Forums and other social events. CrossWalk, the Finance Committee and the church itself continue to fill my life with fellowship, grace and the accountability of amazing Christian friends. I welcome the opportunity to continue serving the church as Assistant Treasurer as it will allow me to use the gifts God has given me in the financial area.

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My tenure at Park Street Church began 43 years ago when I was just a teenager growing under the ministry of Harold Ockenga. I became a Christian through a Bible club run by Marian and Allan Emery. The Emerys introduced me to Park Street Church during my high school years, so it was natural for me to continue worshipping here while I attended Boston University. In 1969, I joined the church,  and I feel very fortunate to be a part of that small percentage of members who stay more then the 3–5 year average! It has been a very blessed experience.

Bill Ballbach, Ed Reynolds and I developed the PACERS program for junior high students in the late 70s. In 1984, I joined the church’s staff as Director of the PACERS program. Five years later I began working at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary’s Center for Youth Studies where I continued to research and write about adolescent culture. In 1995, I earned a Master’s Degree in Counseling from the seminary, and currently I am in private practice.

As I have moved through these various life experiences, I realize that they are uniquely integrated and have all been used for and of the Lord. I have grown significantly through my years here at Park Street Church. I am grateful to the Lord for the stability of this strong church home, its dynamic preaching and the genuine fellowship that has allowed me to keep my eyes focused on Him.

It has always been a privilege and a blessing to be involved at Park Street Church. I have especially enjoyed being the Church Clerk for the past three years and feel grateful to have the opportunity to continue serving the Lord in this position for another year.

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I started coming to Park Street in June of 1976 and felt at home immediately. Both the preaching and the music were strong attractions for me, and they continue to be so. My major focus has been serving on the Board of Trustees/Facilities & Administration Committee and, as a result, I have been involved in many aspects of the work that goes on behind the scenes. Most recently, I have had the privilege of leading the CCX-Ukraine/Park Street Church Partnership. We are working with InterVarsity’s sister organization in a country still finding its way after years of Soviet domination. It is one of the most exciting ministry relationships I’ve participated in; we are very grateful for all that God is doing both within the Park Street Church team and our sisters and brothers in Ukraine.

I was raised in a Christian home in New Jersey, graduated from Houghton College and did my graduate work in chemistry at Duke University in the early 70s. Most of my professional life has been spent at Polaroid Corporation, working in product and business development. I’ve continued using my skills in these areas at a small start-up company in Woburn, MA.

We have the opportunity here at Park Street, I believe, to utilize our downtown location in a city known for its outstanding educational institutions to raise up the next generation of leaders to serve God and the church whether here in Boston, in the US or around the world. As difficult as it is to watch people come and go, it is a part of life at Park Street, and we need to maximize its positive aspects.

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Park Street Church became our home within weeks of moving to Cambridge ten years ago last September. We met good friends in a small group that fall, and have since been together nearly continuously in other small groups. Carolee leads the Wednesday Women’s Bible Study, and at various times I’ve served on several church committees (Christian Formation and Small Group leadership teams, Finance and Administration, Missions, CityWorks and Facilities). I love my day job of working with inner city ministries that are aimed at helping minority kids prepare for college who would otherwise have no chance of getting there.

My real passion, though, is talking with people, wherever I meet them, about Jesus Christ. Our job as Christians is to expose people to God’s Word and stand back for the Holy Spirit to convict their hearts. We must be ready, though, to do much more than talk. The Great Commission asks us “to make disciples for Christ, teaching them to obey everything Christ has commanded us” (Matthew 28:19-20, paraphrased). We at Park Street have an extraordinary opportunity to participate because there are so many newcomers in our midst every year—every week—seeking the Lord. It is not just the pastors’ job to inspire these newcomers. We mirror Christ’s life by reaching out to the people around us, transforming our own characters as we find and train disciples to find and train other disciples. It’s intimidating. It’s unnatural. It’s hard. But it’s rewarding, and most of all, it’s the most important thing we can do on earth—the only thing that has eternal consequences. And it’s what God calls each of us to do.

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It’s been almost twenty-five years since I came to know the Lord and almost eight since I came to know he wanted me at Park Street Church.

As I was finishing graduate school in England and preparing to pursue a career in computational linguistics in Boston, a theology student recommended Park Street to me. So just a few hours after my trans-Atlantic flight landed at Logan, I visited for the first time. I committed to membership months later, having been drawn by the biblical preaching and teaching, missions focus, and vibrant community. 

As is too often the case, it took time for this newcomer to truly connect with the church body. The strongest connection eventually formed in Café, where I developed some of the deepest relationships of my life, most notably with my wonderful wife, Amy. 

I was invited to serve through Café—as a small group leader, on the Small Group Ministry Team, and on the Café Leadership Team. God taught me the importance of considering ministry decisions both analytically and relationally. He used subsequent service to teach other lessons. My term on the Nominating Committee showed me how he guides his church through the collective wisdom of believers sensitive to the Holy Spirit.  Experiences helping with Alpha and Barnabas Groups remind of me of the need for the Gospel in Boston and around the world.

The prospect of serving on the Board of Elders is both sobering and energizing. God has entrusted all of us as Park Street Church with an inspiring legacy and has equipped us to build upon it. May he lead each of us to “love each other deeply” and “use whatever gift [we] have received to serve others, faithfully administering [his] grace in its various forms” (1 Peter 4:8,10).

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We moved to Boston almost four years ago for me to take a new job here. We knew we were relocating to a great city, but had no idea what God had in store for us. On our first Sunday visiting Park Street, we had misread the website and showed up ready for Christian Formation classes, only to discover they were to start the following Sunday. Elaine Carol made us feel so welcome and asked us to the Church breakfast… we were scared, not knowing anyone, but decided to jump in with both feet. And we have never looked back.

Our lives have truly been enriched through Park Street. This church has been a catalyst in our family for a closer walk with God. We are continually impressed with how the Word of God is proclaimed without reservation.

My parents were music missionaries with the Southern Baptist Convention, and I grew up in the West Indies. Our home was filled with the love of Christ and I accepted Him as my Savior when I was nine years old. Even though I have been a Christian for a long time, God never ceases to surprise me. In my life, Park Street fosters that child-like wonder of Him.

Married now for over 20 years, Stephanie and I are part of the teaching team for the Honeymooners class. We consider it a privilege to help young married couples avoid some of the early hurdles in their lives together. Additionally at Park Street, I have had the pleasure of helping prepare Family Fellowship meals with a great team of cooks. I have made rocks out of Styrofoam and boats out of cardboard for several Kid’s Weeks and Cantatas and helped Doug May make a giant slip and slide at Family Camp. These new friendships we have made here at Park Street are some of our strongest bonds, and we are happy to consider ourselves ambassadors for Park Street, our home.  

Through God’s grace, we look to how we may continue to serve Him.

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I was born in New York City, raised in a Christian home and grew up in an Evangelical church founded by a Norwegian immigrant community. Our church life growing up was much like having an extended family, and life revolved around the activities of the church. I became a Christian in my pre-teen years as soon as I understood the Gospel message and my need for salvation.

I was blessed to have many Christian friends and role models growing up and knew there were many people praying for me, especially in my years at City College in the late 60’s when the campus was in turmoil and every form of dogma was being questioned. It was during graduate school and my early professional life in Boston in the early 70’s that the ministry of Park Street Church was particularly important to me and carried me through some challenging times, along with books by Schaeffer, Lewis and Stott and the prayers of many back home.

My wife, Lois, spent her childhood years in NYC, and we became acquainted working together on the staff of a summer camp in New Hampshire. We became better acquainted by correspondence as she traveled through Europe as a painter and I worked in the Marshall Islands as an engineer. God brought us together in 1975: two very different people who share a common faith and common heritage. We had the privilege of attending Park Street Church as newlyweds living in Boston.

As a family, we’ve been blessed in belonging to many fine churches, enjoying fellowship with believers from many different backgrounds, and having opportunities for service wherever we’ve lived, in the US and abroad. After returning to the Boston area, we eventually returned to Park Street Church, where we thoroughly enjoy the preaching and focus on missions. Lois and I joined the church in 2005 and enjoy facilitating a small group in the Concord area and being involved in a Barnabas group supporting the Fosters’ translation ministry in Mozambique.

We’re particularly thankful that our daughters, Laura and Becca, also living in the Boston area, have each chosen to make Park Street their church home and are actively involved in the life of the church. We thank God for his faithfulness to us and the legacy of faith of which we’re privileged to be a part. We look forward to growing as Christians, making many new friends and consider it a privilege to serve the Lord as members of this congregation.

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I was raised in a wonderful but very secular home in NY. I started going to church and Sunday School when I was in middle school and I came to Christ in high school through my youth pastor. I arrived in Boston after college and immediately started attending Park Street. Initially, I chose PSC out of sheer convenience: I lived in the city and did not own a car. I quickly found, however, that I enjoyed the solid biblical teaching and was impressed with the vision for outreach both in Boston and throughout the world.

Since coming to the church over ten years ago, I have not only enjoyed the teaching but have been blessed with many solid friendships. When my mother passed away in 2000, I was comforted and upheld by the community I have here. This same community celebrated with me when I finished my Master’s in Divinity and Master’s in Counseling at Gordon-Conwell.

While pursuing my M.Div., I was able to work as an intern with Elizabeth Shively, a former PSC minister who left to pursue her PhD, and Associate Minister Daniel Harrell. I taught a Christian Formation class and helped organize a study of community at PSC. I have been involved in several other ministries as well. I was part of the CrossWalk leadership team, led Bible studies, and went on short-term mission trips to the Czech Republic and Central Asia. It has been a privilege to serve the church in these ways, and I look forward to seeing what else God has in store for me.

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When I was in the College Ministry of Park Street many years ago, we occasionally used an ice-breaker in small groups to introduce ourselves. In the exercise, we had to write down 10 ways to fill in the sentence: “I am _____” and then share these with one another. Here are some ways I might respond now as it relates to my testimony and Park Street.

First, I am a Christian. I have been a Christian since I was a child, but it was while I was at MIT and attending Park Street that I learned what that really meant, and truly understood my own sin and the grace to be found in Jesus. And now that is the foundation of my identity, of how I define myself, and it flows in and through the rest of my life.

I am a Christian Formation Teacher. For a number of years, I have been part of a wonderful teaching team at Park Street, and it has been a privilege to study God’s word with that team and learn from them as well as those who attend our classes.

I am from California, I am single, and most of my family is located out West. However, this congregation has become my family and this church is my spiritual home. I think it is the main reason I have stayed in Boston for so many years! I love the teaching I have received, the music and worship and the lifelong friendships I have made.  Even as I have been so blessed by this church, I hope that I might be a blessing to Park Street and serve however God sees fit.

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I was born into a Christian family, although I don’t believe that issues me any ‘right of passage.’ I would say it gave me an exposure to the opportunity to Christ from a young age. So, I “chose” at a young age to become a believer. I remember several uninteresting facts about that day; what I don’t remember though is ‘why.’

My adolescent years were always filled with doubt and some sort of fear. Of course, I prayed consistently for continual redemption to ease the fear and doubt, but it always proved temporary. I started college and a new life of what I thought was complete liberty and freedom. With this new life of freedom came a lot of opportunity, and opportunity brought success, and success brought confidence, and confidence brought arrogance, and of course arrogance brought fear.

This fear brought hardship, the first I had known as ‘independent.’ I prayed, but had no sense of faith or belief behind it. I’m pretty sure I prayed only because “this is what I should do.” The key question that emerged was, ‘Do I actually believe in Christ?’

A few years passed as I kept this conversation going with God, and for the first time I felt I was actually communicating with Him even though it was a tone as to test Him. While in this conversation, I chose deliberately against what I had known God as in my life. This led to a lot of unknowns. I wasn’t quite the prodigal son, but I felt distance and ‘eventually’ didn’t like it.
 
As our conversation progressed, I saw that I had compartmentalized my life. This didn’t at all sound like the “give your life to God” speak I had heard for so long. I had, for the most part, eliminated God out of my life. For the first time, it occurred to me that in order to be a Christian I had to make a choice; continue as I was with a compartmentalized life (did I need God?), or have my life defined by Him. Of course this wasn’t a snap decision, but as a sucker for change, I chose to no longer define my life. I chose rather to have it be defined by Christ, and whatever that meant I would accept.

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I may be an unusual “Park Streeter” since I have lived my whole life in Massachusetts. I was the youngest of three girls in a loving, church-going family. I believed in God, in Jesus, the Holy Spirit and the teachings of my faith. But as I got into the high school years, I felt that something was lacking. When I attended church, I heard the Bible teachings, but they did not seem to have any connection to my life.

After high school I attended Northeastern University to study Pharmacy. There I became friends with two girls; they were fun to be with and I thought they were like me, but I came to find out they were different, they were Christians. They invited me to Bible study and I went, thinking at first that these were familiar passages I already knew, but then I began to realize they not only believed these words, they tried to live by them. I continued to go, and after a period of time I realized I had to make a decision. Was I going to run my life, or was I going to trust God to call the shots?

The knowledge that God loved me and that he created me and therefore knew me better than I knew myself convinced me to trust God and accept Christ.

I began to attend the college group at Park Street, “ Seekers,” and continued to grow through the excellent teaching times and fellowship. I met my husband Bob here, and we were married in 1981. God has blessed us with three sons: David (23), Kevin (21), and Jonathan (17).

Over the years at Park Street, I have participated in small groups as a member, as a leader with my husband and as a member and leader of the woman’s bible study in Newton. I have had the privilege to teach Sunday school in the children’s program for most of the past 18 years. I have served on the Children’s Committee and the Committee for the Woman’s Ministry.

My family and I are thankful for Park Street Church: for the teaching and fellowship we have received and the friendships and support we have had in our walks with the Lord.

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I grew up in a Christian home in Chicago, IL, and attended an Assemblies of God church. I received Christ as my Lord and Savior in children’s church at five years old, and God has blessed me richly to grow up with the knowledge of Him. In my teen years, I experienced many traumatic events that contributed to a confusion in my walk with God. However, God led me to move to Boston in the winter of 1998 to continue college. Later, after I  rededicated my life to Him, He led me to Park Street Church. God has used Park Street Church to bless me more than words can describe. Initially, I served in the F.O.C.U.S. ministry. As a result,  I  have been blessed with  relationships that continue today, transcending distance and time zones. I knew during my time in F.O.C.U.S. that I  needed to make PSC my official church home.

I enjoy reading Scripture for the evening service and  participating  in the Café’ ministry. However, my most treasured experience at Park street was meeting my husband, Scott Ryan, in the Fellowship Hall during a pizza and ice cream social after a Sunday evening service. Over a year later, he began a courtship during our service in Pastor Harrell’s outreach ministry on the Boston Common. We were married at Park street church this past December 1st. Once again, the Lord blessed us through the Park Street members, causing it to be a most memorable celebration. I am thankful to the Lord for the blessing that PSC is to myself and many others. I  look forward to how He will bless us to serve at PSC in the future.

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