Get to know our amazing staff.
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The Rev. Dr. Laura Barbins
BISHOP
330-929-9022 X 29
lbarbins@neos-elca.org |
Laura Barbins was elected bishop on September 11, 2020 and took office December 1, 2020. Prior to her call to the Office of Bishop, she was the pastor of Celebration Lutheran, Chardon, Ohio for 19 years, Interim Pastor at Messiah Lutheran, Fairview Park, Ohio for 1 year, and Associate Pastor for Youth at Holy Trinity, Nashville, Tennessee for 2 years.
Holding a PhD in New Testament and Homiletics, Bishop Barbins has also been Adjunct Professor for Preaching at Trinity Seminary at Capital University since 2018. Bishop Barbins lives in Mentor, Ohio with her husband and four daughters. When able, she enjoys gardening and travel. Please click here to visit the Bishop's page and to subscribe to her 'Thursday Thoughts' newsletter.
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The Rev. Mitch Phillips
ASSISTANT TO THE BISHOP FOR LEADERSHIP
330-929-9022 X 28
mphillips@neos-elca.org You can also schedule an appointment with Pastor Phillips via his page on Calendly: https://calendly.com/neos-phillips |
Pastor Phillips grew up in Columbus, Ohio – but his family and faith roots are in the territory of the Northeastern Ohio Synod. He studied Chemistry and Computer Science at Purdue University and was active in the Purdue Lutheran campus ministry, which is where he met his future spouse, Charisse, and began to discern the call to ministry. Pastor Mitch received his M.Div. from Trinity Lutheran Seminary in 1990 and has served three congregations of very different sizes and staff configurations: Third, Louisville, KY; St. Mark’s, Evansville, IN; and Resurrection, Indianapolis, IN.
Charisse is retired after teaching high school mathematics for 33 years. They have one child, Hayley, who just graduated from the University of Dayton in Music Therapy. Pastor Mitch’s hobbies include photography, woodworking, and geocaching.
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The Rev. Julianne Smith
ASSISTANT TO THE BISHOP FOR CONGREGATIONAL VITALITY & DEM330-929-9022 X 31
jsmith@neos-elca.org |
After serving 31 years as a parish pastor, the Rev. Julianne D. Smith accepted the call to serve as deployed church-wide staff in Northeastern Ohio Synod. Ohio “born and bred,” she grew up in Greenville, Ohio, and studied biology at Wittenberg University, graduating in 1980. She received her M. Div. from Trinity Lutheran Seminary in 1985. Pastor Smith’s congregational calls include St. Mark Lutheran in Ada, Ohio, First Lutheran and the LIFE cooperative in Upper “nowhere near Cedar Point” Sandusky, Ohio, and Prince of Peace Lutheran in Poland, Ohio. She also served as interim with First Lutheran in Plymouth, Ohio, contracted with Christ Lutheran in Struthers, and served as Dean of the Eastern Conference in Northeastern Ohio Synod.
Pastor Smith is married to Stuart Smith, a hydrogeologist specializing in groundwater wells, and they have two adult daughters, one son-in-law, and one granddaughter. They currently reside in Poland, Ohio, where they are members of Martin Luther Lutheran Church, Youngstown. Please click here to subscribe to Pr. Julianne's blog, 'Random Thoughts from a Random Mind.'
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Sony Richardson-GilroyOFFICE MANAGER & EVENTS COORDINATOR
330-929-9022 X 24
sgilroy@neos-elca.org |
Sony joined the Bishop’s support staff in 2005 as a part-time secretary with the directive to make the synod office more electronic in its communications. After serving part-time as both the synod office’s electronic communications person and office manager at St. Mark, Tallmadge, she is now the full-time Office Manager and Event Coordinator for the Synod office. Among other things, Sony oversees facilities management and scheduling, coordinates the Synod Assembly, and other Synod-wide events.
Sony lives in Cuyahoga Falls with her husband Tim; their son, Kevin who is a student at Thiel College. They are members of St. Luke’s, Cuyahoga Falls and involved in their community with Relay For Life and Scout BSA.
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Deacon Jenny FrantzDIRECTOR OF COMMUNICATION & FORMATION330-929-9022 X 26
jfrantz@neos-elca.org |
Jenny joined the Synod staff in 2023 as Director of Communication and Formation. While the communication part of the job may be more obvious, the formation part includes youth & young adult ministry and coordination of the Lay Leadership School "Growing in Faith." Prior to joining the synod staff, Jenny served in outdoor ministries for almost ten years and in congregational youth ministry for an additional eight years. She has a passion for education, leadership formation, and vocational discernment (especially with young adults) which led her to serve as an Adjunct Professor of Religion at Capital University for a few terms.
Jenny's hobbies include hiking, camping, visiting National Parks, and photography. She's also an avid supporter of The Ohio State Buckeyes and the Cleveland Guardians, a trivia enthusiast, and possesses a deep love for music. Jenny currently lives in Avon Lake, Ohio.
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Pr. Angel Jackson
CANDIDACY COORDINATOR
330-929-9022 X 22
ajackson@neos-elca.org |
Pastor Angel Jackson has served as the Coordinator of Candidacy and First Call Theological Education since July 2019. She really enjoys conversations with God’s children who are discerning their call to ministry of all kinds.
Pastor Jackson grew up in Louisville, Ohio. She is a graduate of Capital University and got her MDiv at the Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago and her Masters of Social Work at the University of Chicago.
In addition to her candidacy responsibilities, she serves as pastor with the people of St. Jacob’s, North Canton. She shares her house with her kids, Sophie and Asher and her yard with her chickens, Sugar and Cocoa and lots of flowers and butterflies!
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Rebekah Wissler
RESOURCE SPECIALIST & ARCHIVIST
330-929-9022 X 30
rwissler@neos-elca.org |
Rebekah joined the Synod’s staff in 2021 as the Resource Specialist & Archivist. Rebekah curates, catalogs, and manages the various resources of the Synod, including the Resource Center assets. As the Synod’s archivist, she tracks congregational demographics. Rebekah earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in History from the University of Mount Union in 2016 and a Master of Library and Information Science focusing on Museum Studies and Special Collections from Kent State University in 2018. She also obtained a post-graduate certificate in Genealogical Research from Boston University in 2019.
She currently resides in Akron, Ohio, with her husband, Jesse, her son, Dimitri, daughter, Phoebe, and stepson, Kyle.
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Sue Tully
ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT
stully@neos-elca.org
330-929-9022 |
Sue joined our staff in 2023 as the Administrative Assistant. She earned her Bachelors Degree in Organization Supervision from The University of Akron, and has worked in customer service her entire career. She lives in Munroe Falls with her husband of 44 years, Mike, and their dog Grady. In her spare time, she enjoys spending time with her 2 grown children, 4 grandchildren and 2 grand fur babies, going to the gym, ballroom dancing, and being in warm weather close to the ocean.
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Deacon Mary Ann SchwabeCONGREGATIONAL SYSTEMS TEAM COORDINATOR
maryann.schwabe@elca.org
708-227-5989 |
Mary Ann Schwabe is the Executive for Synod Relations and the ELCA Systems Academy Coordinator at the churchwide office in Chicago. She also coordinates the work of our synod Congregational Systems Team as it promotes well-being in its leaders and congregations through the use of natural systems theory. Prior to her calls to the synod and churchwide staff, she served congregations as a rostered ELCA Associate in Ministry with a focus in church music, religious education, and family ministry. Mary Ann and her husband Rick are parents of 5 adult children, corresponding spouses, and 9 grandchildren.
Our Partners
Affiliated Organizations |
Lutheran Colleges & Seminaries
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Lutheran Disaster Response of Ohio
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Capital University
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