Staff & Elders

Dave is one of the founders of the church and serves as its lead pastor.  He was born to missionary parents in Nigeria and grew up in Wheaton, Illinois.  He is a graduate of Bryan College in Tennessee and Dallas Theological Seminary.  David was Pastor of Discipleship at Grace Countryside Church in White Lake, Michigan, for 10 years.  Dave and his wife, Kathy, have 3 children.

Gabe grew up in a rural mountain town in northern California and graduated from Simpson University with a degree in Biblical Studies. He moved to Michigan after meeting his wife Sarah, and then spent 4 years on the mission field in Ukraine working with orphans. After that, they returned to Michigan where Gabe worked at a Christian school, teaching Bible and History. His life verse is John 3:30, “Jesus must increase and I must decrease.” Gabe and Sarah have 3 children.

Daniel grew up here in Hartland where he lived with his mother, step-father, and two sisters, but actually has five sisters in total… Along the way, Daniel always yearned for something more and had an awareness of something “bigger” but didn’t comprehend the fullness of the Gospel until 2010 after he met his wife Suzy. Since that time, the Holy Spirit has been at work in Daniel, humbling him, teaching, and growing him in the Fullness of Christ and what it means to be a follower of Jesus. Looking back at his life, he sees that God had always intended him to be a Pastor and has been molding him (and continues to mold him) throughout life’s challenges and struggles, throughout the highs and the lows. “The more I learn about God, the more I get to know Him in his fullness, the more I realize the futility of trying to live without him…. And that can be the most liberating realization of your life.” 

Alan became our worship director January of 2005 after serving as worship leader for several years previously.  Alan met his wife, Cheryl, when they were both just 15 years old. That’s when they began singing together.  Besides music, woodworking, and a newfound love for photography, Alan is up for pretty much anything that’s creative. Alan and his wife, Cheryl, have 4 children and one grandchild.

Sally was born and raised in Waterford, Michigan. She started attending Ore Creek in the spring of 1999 with her husband Kevin and then 8 year old son Andrew. Sally retired from the Special Education Department of Waterford Schools after 35 years of service. When Sally is not keeping the church finances in order, she enjoys reading, walking with her dog, spending time with friends and family, and baking.

Erin hails from New Hampshire and has been attending Ore Creek since 2003. She led children's ministry for several years before becoming our administrative assistant in 2014. Erin and her husband, Tom, have 3 children. She enjoys swimming, baking, and reading.

Kevin is a resident of Highland, Michigan. He was born and raised in the heart of the Copper Country on Michigan’s Keweenaw Peninsula. He moved to the Gulf Coast of Florida at the age of 15 and lived there for ten years. His wife Sally is from Waterford, Michigan. God brought them together in a college algebra class in Florida and they married in 1988. Kevin is employed by Huron Valley Schools. He serves on the Board of Directors at Huron Valley Youth Assistance.   His daughter and son are both married, and he has two grandchildren.

Kevin attended church and Sunday school classes through his elementary and middle school years, but fell away during high school. As a teenager of the 70’s, he became entrenched in the rebellious ways of the times and turned his back on God when life became difficult. Several years into his marriage, Kevin began to examine his life and realized that he couldn’t make life work on his own. He began searching for meaning and purpose through research and counseling. He and his family began visiting area churches in the late 90’s and immediately found comfort in the way people related with them at Ore Creek. Through faith in Jesus Christ and acceptance of God’s redeeming grace, Kevin has been on a transformational journey that has made it clear how God uses our experiences for good and how His Spirit guides us along the often difficult path of life.

Kevin dreams of seeing the body of believers at Ore Creek continue to grow closer to God and each other in a way that entices newcomers, neighbors, co-workers, friends, and relatives to join in fellowship and worship of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. He hopes to see a church that naturally lives as they were designed to live, not out of duty or obligation, but out of love and thankfulness to our God who gives us grace and peace beyond all understanding.

Don is a resident of Brighton MI. Don has lived in Michigan since 1997 with his wife Jeanne, and two daughters Suzannah, and Lisa. Don and his family came to Ore Creek from Grace Countryside Church in the summer of 2001.
 
Don placed his faith in Christ after the death of his first born daughter. "I was moved on a path to consider my own life, purpose, and finally eternal destiny, personally, through this trial." From the example of the Christian love and hope of his father-in-law, and God's call on his life, Don trusted in Christ's life, death, burial, and resurrection for his own new life and rebirth. "I could finally have hope that this was not all there was to life, I could now live in anticipation that the best is yet to come. This was a whole new way of looking at life for me."
 
My dream for Ore Creek is that we would be a congregation that lives as an example of Christ's love and hope in our personal relationships and profess that he is our our light, our hope and our joy. We will boldly proclaim we are nothing, and have nothing of any lasting value except him.

David is a resident of Howell Michigan. He has lived in Michigan since 1997 with his wife Marie and three daughters Joy, Hope and Grace.
 
David was raised in a Christian home, making the decision to follow Christ at the early age of eight. He attended Liberty Baptist College (now Liberty University) and Grand Rapids Baptist College (now Cornerstone University) to prepare for a future career in church ministry. He is currently the Executive Director of Wildwood Ranch, a summer camp and youth development ministry owned and operated by the Detroit Rescue Mission Ministries.
 
“My dream for Ore Creek is that we create an environment that is a launching pad enabling, equipping and empowering people to meet the needs in the lives of those around us. We should be Christ’s hands and feet (and all the other many instruments of healing) in our families, our communities, our work places and finally our times of worship."

Julie grew up in Michigan and has lived in the Hartland area for the last 15 years. She graduated from Spring Arbor University with a degree in Christian Ministry Leadership. Julie worked at a Christian school where she focused on teaching history and Bible. She has experience teaching all grade levels Pre-K through 12th grade. Julie grew up in the church and has been serving on and off in children’s ministry since she was 10. She loves kids and is passionate about teaching them about God and His Word. Julie and her husband Jonathan have one child. She likes to read, spend time with family and friends, and talk about (or go to) Disney.

Elaine grew up on the lake in eastern Tennessee. She grew up going to church, reading, swimming and enjoying the outdoors.  After a move to suburban Michigan as a high school freshman, she struggled with her faith and fitting in with a much more experienced high school crowd. As a 19 year old she fell in love with God again and recommitted to follow Him and his Word in her daily life.  She is married to her high school sweetheart, Chris, and has 3 children. Elaine has a Master's degree in Curriculum and Instruction with a secondary education certificate in mathematics and English. She has been a high school teacher at Hartland High for 15 years. 

Elaine’s heart for women comes from her own struggles as a wife and mother and from the life-changing relationships she has had with women who have mentored her over the years.  She longs to comfort others out of the love and comfort she has received from God and to teach women about the freedom, peace, and help that can be found in God’s truths. One of her favorite verses is from 2 Corinthians 1:3-5 “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God. For just as we share abundantly in the sufferings of Christ, so also our comfort abounds through Christ.”