Staff, Elders, & Deacons

Staff

Aaron Adams

Senior Pastor (Elder)

Aaron Adams received God's call to shepherd Bethel Baptist Church in 2019 after twelve years on the North Shore of Chicagoland. His highest priority is the Gospel of Jesus Christ, applied to every area of life, transforming people, families, churches, and communities for eternity. Aaron was rescued by Jesus at age 12, and continues to be amazed at the LORD's goodness to him. Aaron holds a BA in Religious Studies from Texas Christian University, and an MDiv from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School.

Aaron and Heather have been married since 2004 and have three daughters - Halina, Camille, and Kaila. Aaron and Heather love to cook together, share Christ-centered hospitality, and serve others.

Aaron Pendergrass

Associate Pastor of Youth (Elder)

Aaron Pendergrass grew up in a small town of about 1,000 on the outskirts of Jackson, TN. The Lord saved him in eighth grade and radically transformed his life, freeing him from life-dominating sin and imbuing in him a deep love for Scripture. Shortly thereafter he felt the tug of the Lord calling him to ministry.

Aaron went on to complete a B.S. in Christian Ministry at Bryan College in east Tennessee before moving to the suburbs of Chicago to study Systematic Theology at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School. He completed his M.A. in May 2020. Aaron's passion is seeing Christ bring restoration to broken lives and helping people to discover the depths of Scripture. Aaron's hobbies include disc golf, fishing, playing drums, roasting and brewing specialty coffee, studying theology, and socializing with people.

Aaron and his wife Yasmin have been happily married as of July 2021. Aaron and Yasmin enjoy providing hospitality and partnering together in various youth ministry activities.

Crandell Hemphill

Associate Pastor of Worship and Implementation

Crandell and his wife, Caitlin, moved to Greeley in early 2023 after receiving the call to serve Bethel Baptist church in December 2022. God graciously redeemed him at the age of 5 and He has continued to prove his goodness and mercy over the course of Crandell’s life. Crandell is passionate about seeing Christ’s gospel shape the worship gathering of the local church, transform our lives in our families, relationships, and community, and restore the brokenness caused by sin. Crandell holds a BA in Pre-Seminary Studies and an Mdiv from Trinity Evangelical Divinity school and has been leading and studying worship for 11 years.

Crandell and Caitlin have been married since 2021 and love making music, extending hospitality, creating meals together, and enjoying delicious coffee with others.

Katie Stewart

Office Administrator (part-time)

Katie is a retired teacher helping with office duties part time. She hails from Connecticut but has considered Colorado her home for the past 30+ years. Katie graduated from Bethel University with a BA in mathematics and taught at Dayspring Christian Academy for 28 years. She is married to David and they have 4 married children and 8 grandchilden.

Susan Neeley

Office Assistant (part-time)

Susan has been a long-time member of Bethel as well as residing in Greeley. She is married to Cliff and has 4 grown children and many grandchildren. She has had experience working in a church office and is pleased to join the staff at Bethel.

Lay Elders

Lay Elder

Gary Kessler

Gary is a self-employed contractor in addition to being a member of Bethel for almost 30 years. He has been married to Pamela Kessler for 37 years. They have two grown children who are both members of Bethel and three grandchildren....soon to be four. Gary and Pam have been members of same life group for over twenty years and have served in the nursery, children's ministries, men's ministries, music ministry, and safety team.

Lay Elder

Jeff Casey

Jeff Casey grew up in Greeley and graduated from Platte Valley in Kersey. After graduating from Simpson College and marrying Joy, Jeff spent a couple of years youth pastoring in Redding, CA before moving back to Greeley. He taught middle school in Greeley and Kersey until he transitioned into administration. He is currently the principal at University High School. He loves his blessedly full home with two daughters, a niece, his wife, 2 chickens, a fish, and a (male!) dog. (Granted, the dog is a shih tzu poodle, but Jeff takes backup where he can get it.) He enjoys serving on Bethel's Youth Ministry team. He's also hoping that mid-life will be merciful and allow him to restart his amateur baseball career when his home is no longer quite so full.

Lay Elder

Alan Hunt

Alan Hunt is a native of Colorado and grew up attending Bethel. After attending college at John Brown University, he returned to Greeley to work as a nurse anesthetist at NCMC. He has been married to his wife, Susan, since 2006 and has 3 active boys. Alan has been involved in several church and local ministries, including leading small groups, teaching Sunday school classes, playing on the Worship team, and volunteering for refugee community outreach.