OUR MISSION
Deepening Faith • Inspiring People • Elevating Service
Reaching out in inclusive love and generosity so that all may know the love of Jesus.
Good Shepherd is a Christ-centered community of believers called to reach out and welcome all. Our mission is to spread the God’s Word of love, justice, and mercy to all. We are grateful for the gifts we have been given in this mission: our faith, a willingness to take risks, relationships with each other steeped in grace and care, and the love of music.
OUR HISTORY
In 1901 a group of Lutherans formed a congregation, called a pastor and eventually affiliated with the wider Lutheran Church. In 1903 the first sanctuary was built at our present site and a larger sanctuary was built in 1924. We continue to cherish our beautiful church, which has been renovated over the years to meet the needs of our faith community. In 1960 the education building was constructed, which now is our center for learning and service. Each week, with all the different groups that use our building and our own ministries, over a thousand people use our facilities for nurturing the faith, worshiping God and serving community and our world.
OUR MEMBERS
Our Members come from Orange and Rockland counties in New York and Bergen County in New Jersey and represent many different religious backgrounds. We have found that “variety is the spice of the Christian life” and enjoy sharing the strengths of our various backgrounds while relying on our common foundation, Jesus Christ.
OUR STAFF
pastor
J. LENA warren
Pastor Lena has been at Good Shepherd since 2016. Prior to moving to Pearl River, she served two congregations in Naugatuck, CT. She has also lived in Pennsylvania, Tennessee, South Carolina, two provinces in Canada, and she was born in Nigeria. She brings, quite literally, a world of experiences with her. Lena has a diverse educational background as well, with an undergraduate degree in Environmental Science and a Masters in Plant and Soil Sciences, in addition to the usual theological degrees that you need to be a pastor. Lena is married to Lee Warren and they have two cats, Hildegard and Marcella … and a hedgehog who has earned the name “Sir Hiss-a-lot.” Lena and Lee are avid outdoors people and are creative and crafty, too.
music director
brian burns
organist
elaina burns
communications coordinator
katy wong
Katy Wong is the first Communications Coordinator at Good Shepherd! The Communications position was recently created to act as a liaison between the office and church community. Katy creates and designs all print and digital media for the church, including Cross Connections, By the Way email newsletter, as well as running social media accounts. A fun fact is she attended Creative Play back in 1999 and is now back as an alumni in the same creative field! She looks forward to meeting you as she gets comfortable in her new position. Feel free to say hi! katy@gspr.org
secretary
dale damon
book keeper
lisa filatov
volunteer coordinator
gina danialina