Deacons &Trustees

2023 Trustee Team

Linda Shelton

Trustee - Chair
Linda grew up in Oklahoma, the oldest of four children. When she was 12, she and her sister were both saved during a youth revival at the local First Baptist Church. Shortly after that, her family began attending church. However, it wasn’t until many years later that Lina truly understood what it means to feel God’s peace in her life.
Willie and Linda met – and started dating – when Linda was 16 and he was 17. Five years later, after he graduated from the Air Force Academy, they got married and have been married for 42 years. She graduated from college a year after they were married. Moving around the country in various military assignments provided her the opportunity to serve in a variety of different churches and work at a variety of jobs. Early in thier marriage, they taught youth classes together, and then later Linda taught children’s classes, as well as acted as preschool director for a church.
In her professional career, most of her jobs have been in accounting for non-profit organizations. She was the accountant for a large non-denominational church, a Christian relief services corporation, and she worked at a small public accounting firm. Linda also worked in human resources for a mission organization. Willie’s professional career also provided her the opportunity to work with and mentor military spouses and families.
Life has been quite the adventure. Willie and Linda have a son, daughter, and 2 grandsons. She feels truly blessed by God; He has never left her side. The Sheltons began attending Fellowship of the Rockies 10 years ago and feel fortunate to have such a great church home. She is honored to be asked to serve as a trustee.
Brian's religious journey began in Portland, Oregon where he attended a Presbyterian Church. He was involved with the youth group & attended church summer camps. He attended West Point where I met his wife, Celeste, in 1974 and will celebrate their 45th Wedding Anniversary in March, 2022. Brian &  Celeste  enjoyed a career in the U.S. Army bringing them to Colorado Springs in 1998. Brian recently retired from his Periodontal Dental Practice.
During their marriage, they attended the Catholic Church, and started attending  Fellowship of the Rockies in 2009. Brian has been a believer since childhood and believes that we must rely on God. Celeste and Brian have served as premarital mentors for couples planning marriage, served as greeters and taught the Love and Respect Class. Engaging in small groups has helped us to grow spiritually at Fellowship. They have 3 daughters, 1 son, 3 sons-in-law, a daughter-in-law and 11 grandchildren. Brian counts it an honor to serve as a Trustee at Fellowship of the Rockies in this amazing community of believers.

Brian Fitzpatrick

Trustee

Joe Dickard

Trustee
Joe was born and raised in Springdale, Arkansas. He had the blessing of being raised in a Christian family, and was baptized at age 5. He moved to Lakewood, CO, when he was 18 to attend gunsmithing school, and through some
God-orchestrated events,  chose to stay in Colorado and get involved in a local church where his faith and love for the Lord grew.
Joe met his wife Ariel in 2015 and they were married in 2016. It was amazing to see how perfect the Lord’s timing was in bringing them together. From their first date they knew that they would get married. They lived in Thornton for the first 3 years of marriage, and had their first son, Luke, in 2018. Elijah was born in 2020.
Working as a purchasing analyst, Joe was excited to transfer down to the Springs. The Dickards bought a house and moved to Colorado Springs in August 2019. A couple weeks after moving in they started attending Fellowship of the Rockies in Fountain. They actually made a wrong turn trying to find a different church and missed their service, but Fellowship was starting in half an hour! So, they went that Sunday, and have been attending ever since! Joe volunteers helping run the sound booth at Fountain on Sundays, and Ariel works in the Children's ministry.

Frank was born and raised in New York. His parents are both Albanian descendants from Montenegro. They escaped to Italy from the communist regime of Yugoslavia in 1968. There, they were sponsored by a local Catholic church to get to New York in 1970. They were not raised knowing Jesus, but Frank believes God had a calling on his life. When he and his three sisters were between the ages of 7-10, they went to a celebration at a local Catholic church and Frank remembers winning a Bible because he was able to recite the Lord’s Prayer from memory. That Bible not only had his name on the inside cover, but it became a source of comfort from time to time over the years.
Fast forward almost twenty years later and his younger sister, Lizzy, found and put her faith in Christ. She began to preach salvation through Jesus and that had a huge impact on Frank's life. Over the next several years, he attended Yonkers Christian Assembly and there, Pastor James Williams and the YCA family, helped him to draw closer and closer to God. That prepared him to eventually dedicate his life to Christ in 2003.
In 2006, while Frank was finishing up a degree at New York University, God showed him this beautiful woman, Jessi, who would become his wife less than a year later. Months before their wedding, Jessi and Frank were baptized on the same day. After they were married in 2007, they moved to Colorado Springs to start their life together. They recently celebrated their 14th wedding anniversary and are blessed with three
wonderful kids: Nissi (9), Danny (5) & Timmy (3).
Frank & Jessi's first home church was Restoration Church in Fountain, CO. At Restoration, they were really involved. Frank served on the finance committee and together, he and Jessi served in the youth group, going on two mission trips to Panama and New Mexico prior to having kids. Approximately five years ago, God brought them to Fellowship of the Rockies and they have connected with some great families here. Through those relationships, they have established an amazing small group with whom they really enjoy doing life together. At Fellowship, Jessi and Frank have also enjoyed serving in children’s church. They are thrilled to be a part of the family at Fellowship of the Rockies and Frank is truly honored and looks forward to helping further God’s kingdom by serving as a Trustee.

Frank Djonbalaj 

Trustee

David Hooks

Trustee
David was born in San Antonio, Texas, and graduated from Baylor University with a BBA in Accounting and then from The University of Texas School of Law. He met his wife, Robin, at Baylor during his senior year and they were married in 1993. After working as a corporate attorney for a couple of years in Dallas, Texas, they moved back to San Antonio and became small business owners.
At that time, they also became members of Grace Point Church (Southern Baptist); and although Robin and David had both been baptized as infants in the Presbyterian and Episcopal churches respectively, they were both overjoyed to be immersed in baptism as followers of Christ. Their first responsibility in the early years at Grace Point was leading the Young Married Adult ministry. David also soon began serving as a Deacon and then an Elder before being asked to serve as the Executive Pastor. He served in this capacity for nearly four years and then returned full time to his business efforts. He continued teaching and leading in Sunday morning Bible studies until July 2006, when they decided to move to Colorado Springs.
The Hooks joined another church and then decided it was too far from home for their four boys (Palmer, Steven, Kevin, and Brian) to be involved in the youth group. They came to Fellowship of the Rockies in July 2014 and have been very pleased to serve and worship in this community ever since. Since then, their boys have become regulars with everything offered by the youth department, and David and Robin have enjoyed participating in Sunday morning Bible studies. In 2015, their two oldest boys went on the mission trip to Juarez Mexico with Casas por Cristo, and in 2016, the entire Hooks family served together on the same mission trip. In fact, at least one member of the Hooks family has been on each trip to Juarez since 2015.
Robin and David have each prioritized their life in the church and their relationship with Jesus Christ. They consider the salvation of each of their children among God’s greatest blessings. They believe the church is the hope of the world through which God will deploy us to love people and bring them to faith in Jesus Christ. What an honor it is to join God in this work, and what a privilege to serve as a Trustee at Fellowship of the Rockies! He is thankful that he is being trusted to serve in this role.
David was born and raised in Orange, CA, and grew up in the First Baptist Church there. He gave his heart to Jesus as a junior high student, sitting under the huge Sugar Pine on a hillside at Camp Ponderosa, Thousand Pines Christian Camp, in Crestline, CA. He was soon baptized in his family church, and  remained active in that church until he was in college.
During his college years at Cal State Fullerton, he returned to work several summers in camping ministry at Thousand Pines and joined a church closer to Cal State Fullerton that had a college ministry, that he chose to attend with his then girlfriend, Lori. A few years after that, in 1992, they were married there.
Within a couple years, they moved from Orange, where they'd both been raised, to Colorado Springs and David became a 6th grade teacher at Canon Elementary School in D-12. Soon after that, they became involved in a new CMA church plant here in the SW part of town, which eventually became Harvest Downtown. God taught them many things during this time and showed them His Faithfulness. For about 4 years, David & Lori were active in supporting youth ministry there, until the Lord led them in a new direction. Then their growing family became part of Woodmen Valley Chapel here in town. During that time, they were part of starting small groups connected to the church, down in Security where they lived at the time. Later they became active in a small group fellowship in the Pinon Valley neighborhood. Between 2003-2007 they experienced the tragic sudden and early losses of our parents, as well as several others dear to them, all while raising their two young children. God was with them through some of the darkest days as they learned to walk through the valley, trusting Him.
In 2009, they became part of the Fellowhsip of the Rockies community, right in their own neighborhood. This was a great fit for them and our children. God began to use what they learned during that time as they walked with Him to partner with others from Fellowship to begin a GriefShare ministry here, fulfilling Galatians 6:2, “Carry each other's burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.” They served in that capacity for 9 years.
They've also been involved in the Samz small group Sunday School class since 2010. David is continually learning and growing as a husband and empty nester, while preparing to wrap up his 31-year public education career. One of his greatest desires is for young people to realize their value in God’s eyes and to learn to see themselves as He does, and to learn to trust Him to direct their paths. He is excited to see where God takes, and uses him in the next chapter of life. David is thankful for the honor and privilege of serving God and this church community as a Trustee. He is thankful for the opportunity to grow in new ways, as the Lord leads.

david Eick

Trustee

Philip Crow

Trustee
Philip grew up as the son of a Southern Baptist Minister in Charlotte, NC but his family had the opportunity to minister to great communities in Albuquerque, Fort Worth, and Nashville, as well. He became a believer when he was a 3rd grader at a Monday night revival in Charlotte. As a teenager and college student, Philip was very involved in the children’s and youth ministries at their church. After his junior year of high school, h was introduced to Summit Ministries in Manitou Springs, which is an intensive 2-week program grounding young adults in worldview and apologetics as they prepare to enter adulthood.
His family vacationed to Colorado often and his introduction to the Pikes Peak region via Summit Ministries ignited a passion for the West within him. Philip first moved to Colorado Springs in 2006, after completing his undergraduate and graduate studies at Campbell University in Trust & Investment Management and earning his MBA. He was living his dream as a young sales professional, traveling throughout Colorado and Wyoming for work. However, in 2009 God moved him to Nashville, TN.
Philip lived in Nashville for 8 years, working in property management. The most important life change that occurred in Nashville was meeting his wife, Jenna. In the fall of 2017, they felt a calling to leave our families in Nashville and Georgia and head west to Colorado Springs. Jenna is a commercial interior designer, and Philip is now a commercial real estate broker focused in Southern Colorado. They were introduced to Fellowship of the Rockies by wonderful family friends in the winter of 2018. They immediately fell in love with the Fellowship Family and Biblical teaching and promptly joined, knowing this is where they belonged!
Just before the pandemic in 2020, the Crows welcomed their first child, Norah Grace, into their family. Norah is so full of life and energy- she keeps them on thier toes and serves as a constant reminder that God is good! They were fortunate to have Philip's parents move to Colorado Springs in the summer of 2020. Since moving to COS, they have joined Fellowship of the Rockies and continue to plug into the church and community when they are not chasing Norah around! As a family, they enjoy camping, hiking, traveling and exploring God’s creation. Philip has been involved with a local non-profit, COSILoveYou, since 2018. He is thankful and honored to have the opportunity to serve the church that means so much to his family and our community.

Carri was born and raised in a Christian home in Phoenix, Arizona. She accepted Jesus into her heart as a very small child, and  was very involved in church activities, choirs, and Sunday School. She had a lot of “head” knowledge about God and the Bible, but as she entered college, drifted away from God, stopped attending church, and tried to live on her own terms.
Several years later, she had made a big mess of my life and everything was crumbling around her when she finally surrendered to Jesus and rededicated her life. She moved to Orange County, California for a fresh start and that is where she met her husband, Paul. They were both active in a church singles' ministry and served together as friends before starting to date and getting married- they will be celebrating their 25th anniversary in May of 2022.
In 1999 they moved to Oceanside, CA and became active in a great church where Carri served on the worship & drama team. She and Paul were involved in many ministries including as small group leaders, in couples' ministry and in church growth campaigns.
During their time in Oceanside, Carri also joined the staff of Outreach Inc. a faith-based company that provides communication tools to churches and ministries across the United States. She is currently the Senior Marketing Communications Manager, helping develop tools churches can use to reach unbelievers in their communities. Carri has worked for Outreach for 21 years.
In 2012, Outreach moved their headquarters to Colorado Springs, bringing Paul and Carri to Colorado, where they found Fellowship of the Rockies. At Fellowhship, they participate in a small group and Carri serves on the worship team. She is excited for this new opportunity to serve as a Trustee and help the church move forward and make a bigger impact on our community.


Carri Gambill

Trustee
I grew up in Southeast Missouri attending Catron Baptist Church - where I trusted Christ as my Savior at 7 years old – and some Sundays, I would also attend the Church of Christ with my grandmother. My sister and I often attended church without our parents, and I’ll forever be thankful for the Bible teachers who greatly impacted my faith and who made church a place I wanted to go.
I met my husband, David, on our very first day of college where we both studied engineering. We were married right after we graduated in 2007. Although I had accepted a job and we had plans to move to New York, David was offered a job with Colorado Springs Utilities that he really wanted. We shifted plans, packed up a U-Haul trailer and moved out with no idea where we would live or what I would do!
Looking back, it’s been clear that God brought us here and He put finding a church on my heart right away. We visited Fellowship of the Rockies that summer and found our Colorado family. During our 15 years here, I was a secondary math teacher, then became a stay-at-home mom for our three boys - Ben, Jonathan and Andrew. David and I led and were a part of adult Bible study groups, MOPS, and kids’ ministry groups. David also served in missions and as a trustee.
While home with my kids, I always wondered where God would take me next. My youngest, Andrew, was 18 months old, when I was given the opportunity to serve as the Kid’s Ministry Director at FOR. I’m grateful for my time on staff and serving our church community in that role!
Today, I love studying the Word to be able to teach it to my Club 56 Sunday School students, in leading Women’s studies, and for personal spiritual growth! (2 Peter 1:3-4) I now also work with our friends, the McCallisters, who David and I met in a young married couple’s class many years ago here at Fellowship of the Rockies, as the company office manager.
We’re so thankful for our church, and I’m honored to be asked to serve as a Trustee. 

lindsey
Longrie

Trustee

Sammy
Payne

Trustee
I was raised in a small town (527 people) in the Missouri Ozarks.  I grew up attending a succession of Southern Baptist churches, was saved during a church camp, and baptized in the freezing waters of a local spring.  I attended college for two years as a budding Chemical Engineer but, due to poor grades and a watchful Draft Board, elected to join the Air Force where I remained for 25 years.  I met and married my wife Kathy on my first assignment, and she has shepherded me, three kids, and a multitude of dogs through, as of 2023, 50 years of adventures.   After retirement, I worked as a master facilitator for Hewlett Packard for 17 years delivering soft skill workshops around the world.  Along the journey, I have served as a deacon, taught an adult small group, and been an AWANA leader.  We’ve been members of Fellowship of the Rockies for some 17 years and we have been active in small groups and mission work – two trips to the Dominican Republic – and I currently serve on the Mission Board.  God has been a guiding force in our lives over the years and I’m looking forward to supporting FOR’s mission in Colorado Springs.

2023 Deacon team

May Stevens

Deacon - Chair
May was born to Chinese immigrants in Portland, Oregon, and remained in that area for her entire childhood. Her parents were not active in church early on, but God placed aunts, a neighbor and others in May's life to invest in her spiritually, and she is so grateful for them. They each took the time and energy to tell her about Jesus, and she eventually prayed and asked Him to be her Savior. During her later elementary years, May's parents became true Christians and raised she and her three younger siblings to know and love God. She was baptized in a local river before she graduated from high school.
She attended Wheaton College in Illinois, studied biology and psychology, and met her husband Nathan. They married a couple months after graduation, and God took them on a transient season for fifteen years. Because of Nathan’s medical education and his commitment to the Army, they lived in Washington, Missouri, Arizona, Hawaii, Alaska, and Texas. During that time, they were also blessed with three children: Hannah, Abi and Zach. May is honored to be their stay-at-home mother. Each time they moved, God blessed them with a church family that prioritized His truth and its application. May has served in church choir and nursery, MOPS, AWANA, Vacation Bible School, hosting small groups,  and has met so many wonderful brothers and sisters in Christ over the years.
The biggest and most positive influence on her relationship with Jesus began when she turned 30, and started attending the nearest Bible Study Fellowship class. It is an international, interdenominational Bible study that’s been in existence for almost 60 years. Now there are about 400,000 class members on 6 continents, in more than 40 countries. Even though she had a fairly solid foundation, God used this ministry to dramatically change May's life, mature her as a Christian, and stretch her beyond what she could ever think or imagine by calling her to serve in a variety of roles for thirteen years.
After their days in the Army came to a close, they moved to Nathan’s home state of Montana and lived near family for the first time. They thought it would be their “forever” earthly home, but after seven years, God made it clear that His plan was different but better. He moved the Stevens to Colorado Springs in 2017, and has abundantly provided for their every need—including their new church family, Fellowship of the Rockies. They appreciate being a part of a church that has a high view of God and His Word, prioritizes the Gospel message, draws people of all generations and values children, and is located in their school district so that their kids can meet peers who go to the same church and school. May and Nathan have been married for 25 years now, and are thankful for God’s grace and work in their lives. It is an honor, privilege, and a high responsibility to serve as a deacon. May prays that God will use Fellowship's deacon ministry to support our pastors and staff, and for His glory and kingdom.

Deb LImoge

Deacon
Deb cannot remember a time in her life when she did not know about God. She was born into a Christian family and spent her childhood attending a Baptist church in a small town in the Florida Panhandle. Deb accepted the Lord Jesus Christ as her Savior and was baptized at age nine. Ongoing participation in church activities was just part of the fabric of her life. After she left home and approached adulthood, she drifted. She was not attentive, or even listening, to God’s voice. She became aware of the void in her life that only Christ could fill. God continues to call us back to Him no matter how far we wander. Deb heard His call to come back into Christian fellowship while she was in graduate school.
After Deb married her husband Jerry (almost 40 years ago!), he completed medical school and then began a career in the Air Force. It was early on in this time that she discovered women's Bible study through PWOC (Protestant Women of the Chapel) on one of the military bases where they were stationed. This fostered a love of studying God’s word with other women as they did life together. Deb has continued this practice for many years and recognizes its significant contribution to her spiritual walk. God has also placed on her heart the desire to walk alongside other women in their life journey and to share God’s love with them. This has allowed her the privilege to spend time with women from all walks of life to include teen moms. Deb loves her Fellowship family and the way we care and serve each other as well as those in our local community.
Jerry and Deb are now “empty nesters” of two adult children. She is learning to embrace each chapter of her life with joy and anticipation, expectant of where God will lead her!

Lori  was born &  raised in Southern California. Both of her parents were Christians with a strong Christian heritage. At five years old, she asked Jesus into her heart and at the age of eight,  was baptized. When she was in the ninth grade, she wanted to grow closer to God and know for sure what she believed. She challenged herself to read the Bible cover to cover, and started reading the Bible & praying every morning. That started her on a journey with God.
She met David when I was almost sixteen, and after several years of dating, they married. After they were married, they felt God calling them to Colorado. In faith, they left their jobs, friends & family and moved to Colorado.
Later, God blessed them with a daughter and a son.
Lori's  faith grows steadily as she journeys with God. God has taught her and keeps reminding her that He is with her no matter the circumstance. Her world and faith were shaken when her father was killed by a drunk driver in 2003. She watched her mother struggle with multiple sclerosis all of her life and helped care for her until Jesus called her home in 2005. God used these hardships and many others to draw Lori close to him, to depend on him, and to forgive others no matter how difficult it is. The verse Psalm 27:14, “Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord.” has been Lori's anchor throughout her life.
The Eick family started attending Fellowship of the Rockies in July 2009, and it has become their “home” where they can serve others and worship the Lord, Jesus Christ. It has been an incredible blessing to be part of Fellowship of the Rockies and to see God changing people’s lives for the glory of His Kingdom.
 

Lori Eick

Deacon
Michelle was born in California and moved to Colorado Springs when she was 10 years old, with her mom, dad, and older brother. As an infant she was baptized Catholic but was not regularly taken to church. As a teenager, Michelle began attending a local nondenominational church. When she met her husband, Mike, in 1993, they attended the same church together. After having their oldest two children, Corey (24), and Connor (23) they stumbled across Fellowship of the Rockies, as they lived close by in Cheyenne Canyon. They found their church home at Fellowship of the Rockies the first-ever Sunday service, over 22 years ago, and never left! They have since added their third son, Forrest (12). She has served over the years as an usher, greeter, Sunday School teacher, Trustee, on the building committee, hiring committee, funeral ministry, and most recently, as Deacon. Michelle, and all of their boys, were baptized at Fellowship, and committed to their relationships with our Lord. She loves our church and feels blessed  beyond measure for its ministry!
 

Michelle Craddock

Deacon