Senior Pastor | rogert@bereanbaptist.com
Roger Thompson | A preacher’s kid himself, Roger attended
Westmont College in Santa Barbara, California, graduating with a degree in psychology.
He attended Denver Seminary and upongraduating, joined the staff of Bear Valley
Baptist Church in Lakewood, Colorado, where he served for seven years. Roger saw
the church grow from 40 to 1,000 while he was there. In 1981, he answered a call
to become senior pastor at Trinity Baptist Church in another Denver suburb, where
he served for nine years. Roger and his family came to Minnesota in 1991, when he
became senior pastor at Berean. He and his wife, Joanne, have been married since
1971 and have two daughters, Jill and Shelly, and four grandchildren. Roger’s
vision for Berean is to lead the body of Christ to be “The Living Church Out
There.” As the living Lord Jesus Christ transforms his people, the world “out
there” is transformed.
Adult Ministry Assistant | bonniec@bereanbaptist.com
Bonnie Coyer |
Women's Ministry Associate |
vanessae@bereanbaptist.com
Vanessa Edwards | Vanessa moved to Apple Valley from Colorado in
2005 with her husband George and three children, Jarod, Emily, and Daniel. She has
worked as a volunteer in a variety of women’s ministries in three different states
over the past 10 years. Before becoming a stay at home mom, she worked at several
different non-profits with a focus on volunteer management and training. Now that
all her children are in school full time, she is excited with the opportunities
God has given her to serve in Women’s Ministry at Berean.
Worship Pastor | timv@bereanbaptist.com
Tim Vanderveld | Tim grew up in a wonderful Christian home in the
beautiful Pocono Mountains of north eastern Pennsylvania. His father taught at Baptist
Bible College in Clarks Summit, PA, where Tim completed his Bachelor’s degree in
Sacred Music. He met his wife, Debbie, the summer after his junior year of college
while doing a pastoral internship at her home church. They were married a year later
and entered the ministry in the fall of 1981. Tim has served churches throughout
the Midwest, in Indiana, Texas, southern Michigan, Missouri, and now Minnesota.
Tim’s current ministry at Berean includes Worship, Leadership Development, and other
duties of general oversight. His passions include reaching the community for Christ
through authentic worship and helping families get connected to the life flow of
Berean.
Worship Ministry Assistant |
clareb@bereanbaptist.com
Clare Boyer |
Worship Ministry Assistant | kayl@bereanbaptist.com
Kay Larson |
Interim Worship Pastor | kenp@bereanbaptist.com
Ken Parker |
Pastor of Adult Ministries |
brentB@bereanbaptist.com
Brent Birdsall | Coming from a family line of pastors and missionaries,
Pastor Brent and his wife, Sandie, a native Minnesotan, began ministry at Berean
as empty-nesters, with four adult children either in college or serving the Lord
around the country.
Pastor Brent has a B.A. from Moody Bible Institute and a Master of Divinity from
Trinity Evangelical Divinity School. He is working on a Doctor of Ministry from
Bethel Theological Seminary in “Congregational and Family Care.”
Pastor Brent brings over twenty-five years of ministry experience to his service
at Berean, including fourteen years as Senior Pastor of a medium-sized church and
seven years in West Africa at the Evangelical College of Theology. He has pastoral
experience in Indiana and Minnesota and has served on the adjunct faculty at Huntington
College.
Brent and Sandie like to explore Minnesota by hiking, kayaking, cross-country skiing,
as well as visiting museums and small quaint towns.
Adult Ministry Associate |
michaelh@bereanbaptist.com
Michael Herzog | Michael was raised in a Christian home and accepted
Christ at a young age. Renewing his faith in high school he decided to attend a
Christian college to learn and grow in his faith in Christ. In 2000 Michael moved
to the Twin Cities from the suburbs of Chicago to pursue a college education at
Bethel. During his years in college, God brought into his life Melissa whom he married
post college. Michael is currently pursuing a Master of Divinity degree from Bethel
Seminary and also serves in the MN Army National Guard as a Chaplain Candidate.
He enjoys spending time with his wife enjoying the great outdoors and loves working
with his hands to build and create furniture.
Michael loves to work with adults who are excited about Jesus and desire to pursue
a deeper relationship God. He feels blessed to serve adults at Berean in ministry.
Stephen Ministries Coordinator |
karip@bereanbaptist.com
Kari Peterson |
Senior Director of Women’s Ministries |
lindah@bereanbaptist.com
Linda Hilleque | Linda moved to the Twin Cities as a fourth grader
and graduated from Washburn High. She attended St. Olaf College and graduated from
Augsburg with a B.A. in History Education. She married her high school sweetheart,
Bob Hilleque, while attending Augsburg. Linda and Bob were married in June, 1969,
and have attended Berean since June 1995. They have four grown children, one of
whom is a Down syndrome daughter with serious health issues. They also have four
grandchildren – one from India, one from Liberia, and two born here in the Twin
Cities.
Linda received Christ at age 24 through Bible Study Fellowship and has a deep love
for Scripture. She served in BSF for 25 years (16 years as Teaching Leader), but
was called from this para-church ministry and assumed the position of Director of
Women’s Ministries at Berean in June 2004. Linda feels called to help women grasp
the transforming power of God’s Word and prayer in their lives. He always shows
up, is her life motto.
Women’s Ministry Coordinator |
pats@bereanbaptist.com
Pat Steuernagel |
Pastor of Student Ministries |
daveb@bereanbaptist.com
David Boyd | As the youngest of four boys, David grew up surrounded
by the cornfields of Indiana. He faithfully attended church as a child, but it was
not until high school that he surrendered his life to God and began a real relationship
with Christ. At that time, he become actively involved in ministry and knew that
God had called him to full-time vocational ministry. Confident of that fact, he
went to Cedarville University to prepare for his future ministry. After college
graduation, he received his Master of Divinity from Trinity International University
in Chicago. Before starting his third year at Trinity, he married Rachel whom he
met at his home church. Rachel currently serves on staff in the children’s ministry
department working with fifth and sixth graders. Rachel and David have two sons
- Josiah and Andrew.
During his seminary years, David began to work with junior high students at Chain
of Lakes Community Bible Church in Chicago, Illinois. Dave is now the Director of
Student Ministries at Berean and considers it a privilege to be called to this area
of ministry.
[ Inside the Epic Staff ]
Senior High Director | willw@bereanbaptist.com
Will Wallace | To know Will Wallace you just need to understand
the significance of the letter “W”. Where: Will grew up in Waukesha, Wisconsin and
was born to hippy parents whose lives were changed when they came to Christ around
the time of his birth. Will recalls praying to invite Jesus into his life on a Sunday
afternoon when he was 6 years old and remembers his family life being greatly shaped
by his family’s new and growing relationship with God. Wedding: Heidi and Will met
in orchestra class in high school (Wales, Wisconsin) and were married while in college
at UW-Stevens Point. Work: While in college Will and Heidi developed a heart for
reaching the world for Christ and felt called to youth ministry. Before coming to
Berean, Will and Heidi worked for 8 years at the University of Wisconsin discipling
and sharing their faith with college students. Will’s World: Revolves around his
wife and their three children Evelyn, Ethan, and Reid. During his few free moments
you can find Will reading, writing, creating graphic art, playing and watching sports.
[ Inside the Epic Staff ]
Junior High Director | jessem@bereanbaptist.com
Jesse Manning | Jesse was born in Minnesota and grew up in the
northern suburb of Maple Grove. Growing up, Jesse was very active in church and
youth group, taking on many different leadership roles by the time he graduated
high school. Through the coaching of his youth pastor, and the prompting of the
Holy Spirit, Jesse followed God’s calling to ministry by enrolling at Bethel College.
As part of his training at Bethel, Jesse spent a year with Berean as an intern with
the Junior High. After receiving a degree in Youth Ministry, Jesse returned to Berean
to work as the Director of Student Outreach and now serves as the Director of Junior
High Ministry. "It’s neat to see how God introduced me to Berean through a college
internship, and brought me back to a church that I now call home."
[ Inside the Epic Staff ]
Ben Nordeen | benn@bereanbaptist.com
Student Ministry Wednesday Night Worship Leader | Hello Everyone.
My name is Ben Nordeen and I've been in charge of the Wednesday night music at Berean
since Fall 2006. I grew up in Prior Lake, went to the U of M, played in a band called
Cofield (some of you old timers may remember the chants of TCB...TCB...TCB...).
I have been married to my wife Kristy since 2002 and we now have two little children,
Clara and Oliver. We think they're pretty cute. I absolutely love what I get to
do each week here at Berean. There are so many extremely gifted musicians/vocalists
amongst the youth, and I get to harness their potential and see them grow in their
gifts and in their passions for God. I love the passion and excitement that our
Wednesday night gatherings have. I look forward to it each week. I almost always
have time to chat, so if you see me aimlessly walking around, know that I'd love
to get to know you better.
[ Inside the Epic Staff ]
Children's Pastor | paule@bereanbaptist.com
Paul Emanuelson | Paul Emanuelson has lived nearly all of his life
in the Twin Cities; he started attending Berean back in the 1960’s during the church’s
very first years. Paul spent the first 30 years of his occupational life as an engineer
and then sold his business when he came on staff as Children’s Pastor. Paul married
Linda in 1976 and has enjoyed watching his 3 daughters grow up and move on to wonderful
marriages. Paul’s hobbies lean towards repairing things and "doing chores"; his
passions nearly all of his life have been nurturing children and teaching them about
the Lord.
Nursery Director | kellyk@bereanbaptist.com
Kelly Kurz | Kelly is from Austin, MN, and was active in her small
church while growing up. She attended Minnesota Bible College, and went on to get
her degree in Elementary Education. She married Kyle in 1997, and they have attended
Berean since 2002 when they moved to the southern metro. Since then she has enjoyed
serving in the nursery and other areas of children’s ministry. Kelly was blessed
to be a stay-at-home mom to her children, Caleb and Julia, until they both started
school. She feels that the Nursery is a ministry to the whole family, and desires
that every little one in the Nursery’s care will experience God’s love for them.
Children’s Ministry Elementary Director |
melissah@bereanbaptist.com
Melissa Herzog | Melissa and her husband, Mike are blessed by the
community of Berean. Melissa has attended Berean since 1993, and has been serving
as Children’s Director since 2003. Having accepted Christ as a young girl, she understands
the importance of communicating His love to all children. She loves to see kids
exploring and learning about God’s world. Melissa graduated from Bethel University
in 2003. She is currently studying Biblical Counseling at Trinity Seminary. In their
free time, Melissa and Mike enjoy being outdoors.
Children’s Ministry Prime Time Director |
rachelb@bereanbaptist.com
Rachel Boyd | Rachel Boyd works in Children’s Ministries as the
Prime Time Director. She is from Indianapolis, IN, and is one of four children.
She graduated from Cedarville University with a degree in English Education and
Christian Education Youth Ministries. She recently completed her seminary degree
from Grand Rapids Theological Seminary. She married Pastor David Boyd in 2003, and
they have two sons. She enjoys loving students and teaching them the Word of God.
Student Ministry Assistant |
carolb@bereanbaptist.com
Carol Bolin |
Messages from [ Inside the Epic Staff ]
Global Outreach Pastor | scottc@bereanbaptist.com
Scott Countryman | Scott has served as the Pastor of Global Outreach
since July 2001. Pastor Scott was raised near Philadelphia, PA, and was a high school
teacher and missionary in Germany before joining the staff at Berean. He received
his Master of Divinity from the School of World Mission and Evangelism at Trinity
Evangelical Divinity School in Deerfield, IL. Scott enjoys biking, soccer, music,
reading, history, and interacting with people from various cultures.
Global Outreach Associate |
crissym@bereanbaptist.com
Crissy Krukowski | Crissy grew up in Prior Lake, MN. In high school,
she was very active in her youth group and with Campus Crusade’s ministry Student
Venture. It was through Student Venture that God developed a passion for missions
and students in Crissy’s heart. She has volunteered in Epic Student Ministries at
Berean since 1997. In 2004, Crissy felt God‘s calling to leave her office job and
become a short term missionary in Guatemala for a few months. There she worked and
lived in a girls orphanage with Kids Alive for 5 months. Crissy worked in a residential
hospice home before starting at Berean. She is so excited to be working with Global
Outreach.
Soulstice Administrator | jennyj@bereanbaptist.com
Jen Jorgensen | Having grown up at Berean Baptist Church, Jen feels
blessed to be a team member of the Music & Worship Ministries and the Soulstice
Community. She grew up in Rosemount, MN in a loving Christian home and graduated
from Rosemount High School. In May 2009 Jen graduated with a Vocal Music Education
Major from Northwestern College in St. Paul where she grew a passion for ministering
to people through God’s gift of music. At Berean she feels privileged to be a part
of several ministry areas including the creative and administrative staff for Soulstice
and Venue and being involved in leading worship, the adult choir, and directing
the youth choir.
Soulstice Children’s Ministry Director |
kayleew@bereanbaptist.com
Kaylee Wiens |
Managing Director | artm@bereanbaptist.com
Art Morrow | A Nebraska farm boy, Art surrendered his life to the
Lordship of Jesus Christ during his first year at the University of Nebraska, where
he was later a student leader with Campus Crusade for Christ. Art served Christ
overseas in 1984-85 and upon return launched an international student ministry at
UNL. One of his students was a Canadian named Deanna. Art and Deanna married in
1988, the year he began law school. In 1991, they moved to Rochester, New York,
where Art was admitted to practice law and began ten years in legal publishing with
Thomson West. Thomson relocated his family to the Twin Cities in 2000. Art has done
consulting work for, and served on the boards of, church and missions organizations.
As church administrator since 2004, Art’s vision is for Berean staff, finances and
facilities to enable our volunteers to do fruitful ministry.
Human Resources & Planning Administrator |
michaeller@bereanbaptist.com
Michaelle Racz |
Senior Director of Advancement & Benevolent Ministries |
pauls@bereanbaptist.com
Paul Siewert | Paul grew up in Manitoba, Canada. Paul is currently
Director of Advancement. He has pastored churches in Canada as well as the U.S.
He received his college, seminary and Doctor of Ministry degrees in Sioux Falls,
SD. Dr. Siewert and his wife Helen have two grown children and five grandchildren.
Paul enjoys being outside working in the yard.
Finance Associate | hollyc@bereanbaptist.com
Holly Calvillo |
Children’s Ministry Preschool Director |
beckyh@bereanbaptist.com
Becky Hay | Becky Hay is the newest member of the Children’s Ministry
team, joining in August as the CM Director of Preschool and Kindergarten. Originally
from Sioux Falls, SD, she moved to the Twin Cities area in 1997 and has been attending
Berean with her husband Dan since then. They have three boys: Matthew, Trent and
Toby, and are waiting to adopt their daughter from China. Since attending Berean,
Becky has been an active volunteer in several areas of Children’s Ministry. She
really enjoys the enthusiasm, honesty, and excitement for learning that preschoolers
and kindergarteners possess, and is blessed by the opportunity to serve the kids,
the Berean community, and ultimately the Lord Jesus in her position.
Contributions Associate | sues@bereanbaptist.com
Sue Schintz |
Director of Berean Neighborhood Care |
tracip@bereanbaptist.com
Traci Parkinson |
Communications and Creative Arts Associate |
danaw@bereanbaptist.com
Dana ward | Dana loves creatively utilizing the arts to engage
people in worship and joined the Berean staff January 2008. From graphics and video
to live arts experiences and more, if you want to be involved in the creative side
of any of Berean’s four worship experiences, contact Dana.
Office Assitant | kathyk@bereanbaptist.com
Kathy Klemz |
Adult Ministry Assistant | bonniec@bereanbaptist.com
Bonnie Coyer |
Catering Kitchen | andreaf@bereanbaptist.com
Andrea Flodin |
Facility Director | mikej@bereanbaptist.com
Mike Jones |
Lead Facilities Associate | yuriyl@bereanbaptist.com
Yuriy Lopin | Phone 952.210.9710
Communications / Outlook |
michellew@bereanbaptist.com
Michelle Will |
Receptionist | phylliss@bereanbaptist.com
Phyllis Smidt | Phone 952.210.9710
Receptionist | kayleew@bereanbaptist.com
Kaylee Wiens |
Click on a name to view contact information
Senior Pastor
Roger Thompson
– Senior Pastor
Bonnie Coyer
–Executive Assistant
Music & Worship
Tim Vanderveld
– Worship Pastor
Clare Boyer
– Worship Ministry Assistant
Kay Larson
– Worship Ministry Assistant
Jen Jorgensen
– Assistant Worship Leader
Ken Parker
– Interim Worship Pastor
Adult Ministries
Brent Birdsall
– Pastor of Adult Ministries
Michael Herzog
– Adult Ministry Associate
Linda Hilleque
– Senior Director of Women’s Ministries
Kari Peterson
–Executive Assistant & Stephen Ministries Coordinator
Pat Steuernagel
– Women’s Ministry Coordinator
Vanessa Edwards
– Women’s Ministry Associate
Student Ministries
David Boyd
–Pastor of Student Ministries
Bonnie Coyer
–Student Ministries Assistant
Jesse Manning
– Junior High Director
Will Wallace
– Senior High Director
Ben Nordeen
– Student Ministry Wednesday Night Worship Leader
Kim Vettrus
– Student Ministries Associate
Children’s Ministries
Paul Emanuelson
– Children’s Ministry Pastor
Rachel Boyd
– Children’s Ministry Prime Time Director
Becky Hay
–Children’s Ministry Preschool Director
Melissa Herzog
– Children’s Ministry Elementary Director
Kelly Kurz
– Nursery Director
Global Outreach
Scott Countryman
– Global Outreach Pastor
Crissy Krukowski
– Global Outreach Associate
Community Care
Paul Siewert
– Senior Director of Advancement & Benevolent Ministries
Traci Parkinson
– Director of Berean Neighborhood Care
Operations & Administration
Art Morrow
– Managing Director
Yuriy Lopin
–Lead Facilities Associate
Holly Calvillo
– Finance Associate
Andrea Flodin
– Catering Kitchen
Mike Jones
– Facility Director
Kathy Klemz
– Office Assistant
Michaelle Racz
– Human Resources & Planning Administrator
Sue Schintz
–Contributions Associate
Phyllis Smidt
–Receptionist
Dana Ward
– Communications & Creative Arts Associate
Michelle Will
– Editor-In-Chief
Kaylee Wiens
– Connecting Coordinator
