Currently Senior Pastor at Trinity United Methodist, Las Vegas, Nevada, The Rev. Art Gafke is celebrating 40 years in ordained ministry, including 23 years as pastor in variety of local churches; Director of Supervision and Support Systems, (Division of Ordained Ministry, The General Board of Higher Education and Ministry of The United Methodist Church); District Superintendent; and founding Director, Fresno Metro Ministry (Ecumenical), Fresno California.

 

He has published eighteen books, articles and tools on supervision systems, cross-racial/cross-cultural clergy assignments, pastoral vocation, mentoring, clergy sexual ethics, and ministry evaluation. He has led training sessions on leadership and other subjects internationally and throughout the United States.

 

He is an ordained elder in the California Nevada Annual Conference.  He is husband of Elena De La Peña and father of Adam De La Peña Gafke. 

 

If you ask Matt Neely what kind of music he plays, you'll probably get this response: "It's guitar driven, alternative-folk-rock-pop-type music." As clear as mud, right?! But if you want to know what the music is about, he's much clearer . . . God." All you have to do is tune into the lyrics or listen to his biblical teaching and stories to know that Matt Neely has a passion for communicating the gospel with youth and families around this country. In fact, it is the stated goal of the ministry he started in 1997, StorySong Ministries. StorySong Ministries exists to mobilize an entire generation of churched and unchurched youth and families with the radical gospel of Jesus Christ through biblical teaching, storytelling and song. If he had a resume, it would show that Matt has shared the gospel with more than 50,000 people across the country sharing the stage with worship leaders like Chris Tomlin and disciplers and evangelists like Dawson McCallister and Tony Campolo along the way. This 34-year old barefooted singer/speaker brings his passion, energy and creativity to every speaking engagement, worship event or concert as he tries to make God famous!

Currently pastor at Advent United Methodist Church in North West Las Vegas, Hal Woomer answered his call to ministry while an undergraduate at the University of La Verne in Southern California.  His passion for ministry has taken him to Montana, where he served local churches and the University of Montana as the United Methodist Campus Pastor for six years.  Hal left Montana to serve in Eastern Pennsylvania as the Conference Director of Youth and Young Adult Ministries.  Additionally, Hal is a Battalion Chaplain in the United States Army serving units in the Las Vegas, Phoenix, and Tucson areas.  Hal and his wife, Roberta, are the parents to two children, Hal III, and Sarah.  His second home away from home is a trout stream with his fly rod in his hand.

Bob's family moved to Louisville, KY in 1955 where he lived until graduating from Fern Creek High School in 1969. Raised Southern Baptist, Bob experienced various religious and mystical schools of thought, all the while running form God's call to be in Christian Ministry. Finally, he succumbed to the call in 1995 while attending St. Michaels UMC in Lake Havasu City.  Instrumental in formation of St. Michaels Contemporary Worship service and serving as worship leader and praise band director from 1995 until 2000, Bob finally gave into God's call to full time vocational ministry and was appointed to serve Parker UMC from 2000 to 2005.  He is attending Claremont School of Theology.  Bob and wife Ruth have moved to Nevada to plant a new United Methodist Faith Community in the southwest corner of Las Vegas -- Faith Springs UMF.

As the grandson of a Methodist Elder, David Devereaux felt the call to ministry as a teenager while in the youth program at Epworth UMC in Phoenix, Arizona in the 1960’s when Rev. Bob Stanley was pastor. That call wasn’t answered until years later while finishing his bachelor’s degree at Northern Arizona University in 1986. After receiving a Masters of Divinity from Princeton University Theological Seminary in 1990, he was appointed as an associate pastor to Trinity UMC in Las Vegas, Nevada.  Devereaux served next at Camp Verde UMC from 1991 until his move to First UMC, Tucson, in 1995. From 1998 to 2003, Rev. Devereaux served University UMC in Las Vegas, Nevada as Senior Pastor. In July, 2003 Rev. Devereaux was named by Bishop William Dew to become the North District Superintendent. David and his wife Geri married 26 years ago and now have 9 children.