Pastor Justin has led us in our mission to reach our community with the gospel of Jesus Christ since accepting the role of senior pastor in September 2008. He began attending Salem Heights in September 1992. Eager to get involved, he started serving part-time in youth ministry in January of the following year and transitioned to full-time ministry in January 1996. In 2005, he began co-leading as associate pastor until making the full transition to senior pastor three years later. He and his wife, Christina, have been married since 1992 and have three children.
Pete began attending Salem Heights in 1999 while in college and joined the staff in 2015. In December 2019, he was called to the role of Executive Pastor. Pete and his wife, Holly, were married at Salem Heights in 2001 and have three children.
Pastor Matt will tell you that the hope found in Jesus Christ can overcome every obstacle that can be faced in this world. After first coming to Salem Heights in 1988, he began serving only two years later. In 2001, Matt joined the staff as full-time pastor and is now the Pastor of Men and Addictions Victory. Matt and his wife, Lori, have been married since 1985 and have three children.
Julie Bernard joined the Salem Heights staff in 2002 as the Director of Women’s Ministries. Julie has a passion for conveying God’s love to women by pointing them to the immeasurable grace offered in Jesus. She has been happily married to her husband, Bryce, since 1981, and they have three children.
Having grown up as a student in the Salem Heights youth ministry, Tim Saffeels knows how relevant the gospel of Christ is for a student’s formative years. Tim first began serving in the Cause youth ministry in 2005, and in 2011 he stepped up to be the full-time Director of Student Ministries, overseeing both middle school and high school students. He and his wife, Michelle, have been married since 2010 and have four children.
A.J. Acker has been faithfully leading worship and serving as Director of Music Ministry since 2008. He first arrived at Salem Heights in 1999, and four years later he married the love of his life, Amanda. Together, they have four children.
Joe Greenwood has been a part of Salem Heights and has served in the music ministry for many years. In June 2017, Joe joined our church staff as the Director of Operations. Joe and his wife, Jessica, have been married since August 2004 and have three children.
Emily Dempster serves as a biblical counselor and oversees counselor training for Salem Heights Church Biblical Counseling Ministry. She has a deep passion for the local church and teaching others in ministry to care well for people. Married since 1998 to Ryan, they have two children.
As a partner in leading the Women's Ministry team and a staff member since 2013, Connie delights in meeting needs and offering support in any way she can. An encourager at heart, she enjoys coming alongside women through counseling, mentoring and taking women to God's Word for hope, direction and encouragement. Connie enjoys reading, sewing, cooking, camping and hiking with her husband and two teenagers.
New to the Salem Heights team in 2021, Justin Knoll has a passion for seeing high school students grow in authentic relationship with Jesus. With prior youth ministry experience Justin followed the prompting of God, stepping into His calling to the youth at Salem Heights. He serves as the Assistant Director of Student Ministries. Justin and his wife, McKinzie, have been married since 2015 and and have two daughters.
Tara has enjoyed learning and growing in the Salem Heights Church community since 1999. Tara began serving in student ministry for a number of years and then transitioned to women's ministry following her marriage to Andrew. The Lord allowed her to oversee Girls’ Night Out before moving her into the counseling ministry, where she gets to use her passion for the Word to care for women. She and her husband enjoy serving on music team and are raising 3 girls.
Dave and his wife Denise began attending SHC thirty-two years ago. They have three married children and ten grandchildren. He has served in a variety of ministries during that time, but now is grateful to get to walk alongside hurting people and encourage lay biblical counselors through the Biblical Counseling Ministry.
Steve Dangaran has served in pastoral ministry since 1985. From 2012 to 2022, he served as the Academic Dean of Reach Training Institute, a fully-accredited ministry training school in Salem preparing pastors and international workers for full-time service. Since joining the staff team at Salem Heights in 2022, Steve has been consulting on the Ancient Wells, New Season capital campaign, giving oversight to Oikos Groups, and serving pastors in the Salem area. Steve and Janet have been married since 1981 and have three grown children, two wonderful daughter-in-laws, and five grandchildren.
Brenden gained a passion for worship while growing up at Salem Heights Church. After attending Moody Bible Institute in Chicago, he felt God calling him back home to the ministry at Salem Heights. He joined the staff as a worship assistant in 2020 and has been married to his wife Juliette since 2021.
Ed has had a lifelong love for the Church, God’s primary organism and tool in our day by which He matures individual saints, builds strong families and weaves harmony into cultures. He and his wife Carol have attended Salem Heights since 2010 and are delighted by a number of opportunities to serve the Lord by serving the saints, especially with the Senior (or ‘Seasoned’) Saints and by assisting with the counseling ministry.
Ben has attended Salem Heights since 2007. His passion for youth ministry stems from his own experience during his middle school years which ultimately led him to start serving in the Middle School Cause in 2009. After continuing to serve here faithfully for years, he took on the role of Director of Middle School Ministry in the summer of 2023. He has been married to his wife Ashley since 2013 and together they have 6 young kids.
Monica began attending Salem Heights in 2012. She enjoyed serving in music ministry for many years with her husband David. In the fall of 2022 God opened the opportunity for her to come alongside many faithful leaders as the preschool coordinator. David and Monica have been married since 2014 and have three children.
Holly serves as a member of the biblical counseling leadership team, focusing on counseling training and community partnerships. She began attending Salem Heights in college and has served in various ministries since then, coming alongside children, young adults and women. Holly and her husband, Pete, have been married since 2001 and have three children.