Born and raised in Metro Detroit, Mike has been involved in vocational ministry since 2005 and leading Faith since 2018. He received his undergrad from William Tyndale College in Psychology and a Masters in Theology from Michigan Theological Seminary. Mike has been married to his wife, Laura, since 1992, and they have one son and one daughter. Outside of church, he loves backpacking, bodyboarding, and a good triathlon!
James has been on staff at Faith since February 2020. He and his wife, Meredith, have been married since 2014. Together they enjoy camping, hiking, and taking their dogs, Emit and Merlin, exploring. James earned his B.A. from Michigan State University and his M.Div from Moody Theological Seminary – Michigan. Whenever he gets a little free time, he enjoys reading, writing, and fly-fishing. James is passionate about being the Associate Pastor at Faith because he loves to see people get connected into a church body that helps them grow and serve.
While Eric grew up and went to all of his schools in Illinois (high school, undergrad, and seminary), a fun trivia fact is that he was born in New York. Yet, he and his family have strong ties to Michigan with his mom’s family in the Detroit area and having grown up attending family camp and working on staff at Portage Lake Covenant Bible Camp. After graduating in 2014 from North Park Theological Seminary, Eric has been at Faith since August of that same year. He enjoys most sports (especially hockey) and being active (participating in Crossfit), enjoys both the outdoors (camping adventures) as well as the indoors (hello Netflix/MCU/Star Wars!), enjoys music (playing a number of instruments), and enjoys connecting with students (over those things, some food, or their own passions).
Laura has been on staff at Faith since July 2015. She and her hubby, Tim, have been married since 2003 and love spending time with their teenage daughters, Kate and Kelly. Currently she is a seminary student at North Park Theological Seminary, but in her spare time Laura loves to read, crochet and play with her sweet little dog, Macie (who is THE cutest dog in the world!). She also loves being the Children’s Pastor because she loves helping children become disciples who make disciples. Working alongside families and watching kids grow in their faith with Jesus is one of her favorite things about her role at Faith!
After having spent her early life in Taiwan, Cat grew up in SE Michigan. She has a Bachelor’s degree in Music from Taylor University and a Master’s in Music from Bowling Green State University. Since 2006, Cat has been leading worship and working in church music ministry. She and her husband, John, have been married since 2014 and have two boys. And when she’s not singing and playing music, Cat loves the outdoors, learning about other cultures and languages, dancing, and traveling.
The face you see when you come into the church office, Amanda grew up in Central Illinois but moved to Michigan in 7th grade and has lived here ever since. She graduated with a degree in Hospitality & Tourism from Grand Valley State University and has been in this role since 2011. Married to her high school sweetheart, Phil, since 2011, they have 2 children, a boy and a girl. As a family, they all enjoy spending time with friends & family, watching football (Go Blue!), summers on their lake, and up north at their cottage. And as they are a musical family, you may see Amanda and Phil leading worship up front.
MaryEllen, a Registered Nurse, has served as member of the ministry staff since 2013. Her responsibilities include promoting health and wellness to the congregation through home visits, hospital visits, and follow-up visits as well as leading our Hope and Healing Support Group.
