Grace Fellowship is an elder-led, staff-driven church. Team is one of GFC's core values. Our staff and elders strive together to lead our body to fulfill our mission, vision, and core values.
OUR STAFF TEAM
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Joel Owen
Lead pastor
Joel grew up in Morristown, TN, and graduated from Tusculum College with a degree in business management. He then went on to earn a Master of Arts at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. Striving toward godliness together is a major part of how he views his ministry.
Joel loves cheering for the University of Tennessee Volunteers, the Dallas Cowboys, and the Texas Rangers. He’s married to Heather, and they have two sons, Josiah and Grayson. He says yard work is a hobby, so be sure to call him up when you need help with yours.
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Andy Malcolm
Small groups & connections pastor
Andy grew up right here in Kingsport and has a business degree from Furman University. He also has a master’s degree in teaching and counseling from East Tennessee State University. Because God’s very nature is relational, Andy seeks to help believers connect more deeply and genuinely with God, with fellow Christians, and with the unchurched.
Andy is married to Julia, and they have two daughters, Ellie and Analia. He’s a soccer fan who cheers for Barcelona and Liverpool. He also loves to hike and travel.
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kyle thurman
Worship pastor & graphic desginer
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ASHLEY MASTEN
CHILDREN pastor
Ashley grew up in Elkhart, IN, and after receiving her degree in counseling from Grace College, she felt called to full time ministry. She earned a Master of Divinity degree from Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary and developed a passion for disciple making, evangelism, and training others on how to share their faith. She yearns for children and families to meet Jesus and grow in their relationship with them by seeing how fun and exciting it is to follow Jesus.
Ashley enjoys superhero movies, golf, jigsaw puzzles, baking, and Notre Dame football.
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PAUL WINGFIELD
STUDENT PASTOR
Paul grew up here in Kingsport and has been working in student ministry on a local and global scale for the last 7 years. He has a tremendous heart to invest in and equip young leaders to go out and make disciples of all nations, so that all young people near and far can hear the gospel of Christ. He loves utilizing wilderness adventure as a tool to help accomplish this mission locally and abroad.
Paul is married to Erin and they have three children, daughter Everly and sons River and Sawyer. Paul isn’t much for wimpy sports, but if you want to talk extreme adventure sports like rock climbing, white water kayaking and climbing extremely tall mountains, he’s your man.
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ANN TREECE
CONNECTIONS PASTOR
Ann grew up in Charlotte, NC. She went to college at NC State University where she discovered a passion for helping people emotionally and spiritually. She went to Columbia International University and got her Masters in Pastoral Counseling and Spiritual Formation. Ann loves befriending people, giving them safe places to be authentic, and creating an atmosphere of hospitality.
Ann loves watching a good movie, and basically anything that involves getting quality time with her family and friends! She’s married to Mark, and they have have four children, Susanna, Caleb, Makayla, and Samuel. She counts it a true joy to encourage someone and bring a smile to someone.
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Skye Hierwarter
Office manager
Skye was born and raised in Southern California. She has a degree in information technology from National University in San Diego. She desires to honor God in all her tasks, large or small.
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Nelson BUTTERWORTH
worship production coordinator
Nelson was born in Lindsay, CA, and grew up in Illinois, Oregon, California, and New Mexico. He has a degree from the University of Phoenix. His ministry is behind-the-scenes, and he desires to support the morning worship with as little distraction as possible. If you don’t notice he’s there or what he’s doing, it’s going well.
He’s married to Karen, and they have two daughters. He doesn’t follow sports but is a fan of all things technological. Computers, cool gadgets, video games, and home automation systems all ring his geeky bell. Talking about cars will also work.