Leadership
Elders
Hillary Buckland
I have a degree in Business Administration and an Accounting major. I am currently working with New York City Housing Authority as an Assistant Director in The Department of Budget and Financial Planning.
I am very exited by the change we are experiencing at Park Avenue Christian Church through the messages, singing and scriptures our Pastor brings to us, and really want to be a part of this new beginning; hence I am delighted to serve on the Ministry Council. I am looking forward to work with the members of this team. Most of the work of God is accomplished through people who are honest with one another, committed to serve one another, and willing to receive wise counsel from one another (Prov.27: 6, 17). When we build trust, we will work together smoothly and see God at work in and through us.
I expect the corner of Park Avenue and 85th Street to be the Focus Point of this City’s diversity as we fill the Spiritual needs of this Community. I am looking forward to see a strong spirit fill Christian Community. We will be winning more souls for Christ; our pews will not be empty.
Estella Pate
I am the Manager of Foundation Giving at Big Brothers Big Sisters of New York – that means that I spend about 8 hours a day writing proposals to foundations, encouraging them to give to an extremely worthy cause. I’ve been a member of this church since the late 70’s – I joined shortly before John Payne became our Senior Minister. I’ve seen the members of this church unite to do great things: to pay off a huge debt, to stand up and become an open and affirming congregation, and over the past few years, we’ve united just to survive. Now I am excited to see that we not only united to elect Pastor J. as our minister, but we’ve elected to unite for this change. I look forward to serving in this ministry. I want change, change that reflects and respects who we are as a congregation and what we have come to expect from our worship service, our minister and ourselves. I want us to grow not only as a community, but in community.
Richard Sturm
Richard Sturm grew up in the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) and served as Associate Minister at PACC for over twelve years, while he was studying for the M.Div. and Ph.D. degrees at Union Theological Seminary. Here at PACC he has also been active on the Board of Elders, and in areas of Stewardship, Outreach, and Education. He is currently Professor of Christianity and the Arts at New Brunswick Theological Seminary, teaching courses in biblical interpretation and theology and the arts. Seeing the present as a watershed moment in the history of our community of faith, Richard is excited by the opportunity to serve on the new Ministry Council and looks forward to that ministry as an opportunity to help deepen and expand the vision, witness, and service of our congregation’s mission to be God’s beloved community.
Joe Roberson
Margaret Rice
Wayne Reed
Mona Martin
Ima Jean Kidd
Carl Buckland
Lay Leaders
Hillary Buckland
I have a degree in Business Administration and an Accounting major. I am currently working with New York City Housing Authority as an Assistant Director in The Department of Budget and Financial Planning.
I am very exited by the change we are experiencing at Park Avenue Christian Church through the messages, singing and scriptures our Pastor brings to us, and really want to be a part of this new beginning; hence I am delighted to serve on the Ministry Council. I am looking forward to work with the members of this team. Most of the work of God is accomplished through people who are honest with one another, committed to serve one another, and willing to receive wise counsel from one another (Prov.27: 6, 17). When we build trust, we will work together smoothly and see God at work in and through us.
I expect the corner of Park Avenue and 85th Street to be the Focus Point of this City’s diversity as we fill the Spiritual needs of this Community. I am looking forward to see a strong spirit fill Christian Community. We will be winning more souls for Christ; our pews will not be empty.
Steven Crumb
I am originally from Oklahoma and currently a graduate student in French Literature at New York University. When my fiancée Sarah and I first came to Park Avenue almost two years ago, we were immediately attracted to the church and to the work we saw going on here. We never visited another church, we knew we were home. The opportunity to serve our church in this ministry excites me because I am so indebted to the love all of you have poured over Sarah and me, and because I see a church that is struggling and in need of change in a city that needs a healthy church. I am excited about the new and fresh ideas that have been brought forward, but mostly I am excited about seeing the church come home: home to the faith, home to the justice, home to the community that have drawn all of us here in our nearly 200 years of existence. I am committed to devoting all the talents that my faith, my upbringing, my education and my God have given me to the service of this church.
Nelson Gomez
My profession is in real estate. I work in the account payable department. I have been with my firm for 19 years. I started attending Park Avenue in the summer of 1996. I met, our former pastor, Allan Harris and decided to come. I enjoyed the service. Then, during coffee hour, I met Ima Jean Kidd, who told me to come back; I did, and have been here ever since. I become a member on March 30, 1997. Since then, I have been involved with: Stewardship, Personnel, Gay and Lesbian Affirming Disciples, Search Committee also, Elder, Deacon (chair) and Vice Moderator… I’m looking forward to serving on this Ministry Team because I feel I can contribute to the future grow of this church…I pray that whatever gifts I have, will help in our growth process.I love this church.I want to be involved in its future.
Melissa Little
I am an Executive Assistant for the Global Head of Corporate Real Estate and Services at Credit Suisse. I can honestly say, "I love my job!" Because we are global, my day starts at 6:30 am and for the most part doesn't end until at least 6:00 or 7:00 pm. We have over 500 properties worldwide that we either own or lease. I live in a global world and find it absolutely fascinating, challenging and exciting. I think the real question is "Why wouldn't I be excited about this ministry?" to which I would have to say...how could I NOT be excited? To be on the edge of the cliff, waiting to take the next step, bonded together with one goal...To Become the Beloved Community! I see this as the next step in the journey to live out what we have proclaimed for many years. The momentum is building, the push is on...can we really "walk the walk" and "talk the talk"? I think we can, I think we want to - we just need to do it together. The opportunities are endless!
David Mitchell
How can you come home to a place you have never been before, and yet never even left in the first place? That is how I felt when I first walked into this church in the summer of 2002. I grew up in the Unitarian Universalist tradition and was always active in the churches I belonged to. However, I came here determined not to get involved, just to sit in the pews and fix my tired soul. But the energy of this congregation revived me, so that I eventually become Vice Moderator and then Moderator. I started working at the Saturday Lunch Program because I felt a way to give thanks for all that I have—now it has become another aspect of life for which I am truly thankful. I am the Business Manager for an independent publisher and have an MBA, both giving vital experience I can bring to the Ministry Council, just as the spiritual changes I have undergone since joining PACC have brought many positive changes in the way I now do my job. We at PACC are in a unique position to reveal God’s love to the world in a wonderful new way, and I am hardly able to contain my excitement when I think of what we can accomplish in the next two years.
Estella Pate
I am the Manager of Foundation Giving at Big Brothers Big Sisters of New York – that means that I spend about 8 hours a day writing proposals to foundations, encouraging them to give to an extremely worthy cause. I’ve been a member of this church since the late 70’s – I joined shortly before John Payne became our Senior Minister. I’ve seen the members of this church unite to do great things: to pay off a huge debt, to stand up and become an open and affirming congregation, and over the past few years, we’ve united just to survive. Now I am excited to see that we not only united to elect Pastor J. as our minister, but we’ve elected to unite for this change. I look forward to serving in this ministry. I want change, change that reflects and respects who we are as a congregation and what we have come to expect from our worship service, our minister and ourselves. I want us to grow not only as a community, but in community.
Richard Sturm
Richard Sturm grew up in the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) and served as Associate Minister at PACC for over twelve years, while he was studying for the M.Div. and Ph.D. degrees at Union Theological Seminary. Here at PACC he has also been active on the Board of Elders, and in areas of Stewardship, Outreach, and Education. He is currently Professor of Christianity and the Arts at New Brunswick Theological Seminary, teaching courses in biblical interpretation and theology and the arts. Seeing the present as a watershed moment in the history of our community of faith, Richard is excited by the opportunity to serve on the new Ministry Council and looks forward to that ministry as an opportunity to help deepen and expand the vision, witness, and service of our congregation’s mission to be God’s beloved community.
Christine Trauben
Christine has been a member of Park Avenue Christian Church for the past three years. She is a native New Yorker and grew up as a child at the Marble Collegiate Church. She is married and the mother of three children, Jack, 5; Alex, 2 and Charlotte, 9 months. She is a graduate of the University of Michigan, the Wharton School of Business where she obtained her MBA. Christine is in the restaurant business with her family and has served as a Trustee and a member of the Day School Parent Advisory Committee.
Deacons
Members of the Diaconate at Park Avenue Christian Church seek to represent the ministry of Christ, and worship God through joyful service to the congregation and community. Deacons find outlets for Christ ministry, while supporting strengthening and encouraging others, as well as developing leadership, and building and demonstrating community.
Steven Crumb
I am originally from Oklahoma and currently a graduate student in French Literature at New York University. When my fiancée Sarah and I first came to Park Avenue almost two years ago, we were immediately attracted to the church and to the work we saw going on here. We never visited another church, we knew we were home. The opportunity to serve our church in this ministry excites me because I am so indebted to the love all of you have poured over Sarah and me, and because I see a church that is struggling and in need of change in a city that needs a healthy church. I am excited about the new and fresh ideas that have been brought forward, but mostly I am excited about seeing the church come home: home to the faith, home to the justice, home to the community that have drawn all of us here in our nearly 200 years of existence. I am committed to devoting all the talents that my faith, my upbringing, my education and my God have given me to the service of this church.
Sarah Armstrong-Crumb, Co-Chair
E. B. Blakne
Brad Bond
David Facer
Carol Griffiths
Alison Gurin
Eric Guy
Esther Jusino
Frank Lapitino
Rev. Mark Leach
Johnson Liu
Miriam Martinez
Mark Moreland
Jana Nordquist
Myrna Payne
Tchandao Ephrem
Mary Trudel
Frank Tyson
Christian Wells
