Introducing the Graham Family
Church Family… Many of you have been joining us in prayer for another full-time pastor to join our team. We’ve sought the Lord, raised capital, and have set out with the highest standards in the search, anticipating it to take a long time. We knew that we were looking for the ‘diamond in the rough’ with someone who felt called to the North Bay, had a strong passion for church planting, and possessed the character, competency, calling, and compatibility we expect from our elders/pastors.
But the Lord, in keeping with his good and gracious character of doing more than we could ask or imagine, has orchestrated something that truly leaves us marveling. We’re so excited to introduce you to the Graham Family. Kelly, Carissa, Hunter, Sage, and Silas have felt the call to relocate their family to Petaluma where Kelly will join our Pastoral staff and partner with Daniel in leading the saints within our church. Our prayer and vision are that the Lord will continue to build up our church family and layout a plan to eventually plant another church here in the North Bay with Kelly and his family.
As they’ve just made the announcement to their home church in Charleston, the next step is for Kelly to begin raising funds to help support him and his family. We’re praying that the Lord will allow them to see abundance in/through that process and get them to a point where they can move to Petaluma in late July/early August. Please be praying for them as they start this adventure. We’re beyond excited to watch what the Lord unfolds and are eager for them to arrive in join us in our mission to be a gospel-centered community practicing the way of Jesus for the renewal of our cities.
Here’s a quick letter of introduction from Kelly to get to know him and his family a bit better.
Parish Church Family,
We are so excited to get to know you! In the process of getting to know Daniel, we have gotten to know much about your church family – about your early days and your present days. We know quite a lot about your city and the community that resides there because my wife, Carissa, was born in Petaluma and attended Meadow Elementary. Yet, there is a lot we do not know about you and your lives which can only be understood by experience. We look forward to getting to know you and sharing our lives with you too.
In the meantime, let me share a bit about my family and I. I’ll start with my bride. As I said, Carissa was born in Petaluma where she received Christ as a child. She moved to the north shore of Lake Tahoe in middle school, and then moved to Charleston, SC in her junior year of high school. She and I met while we were both serving at the same church, she was a student ministry administrator and I was a worship pastor. We got to know each other while we chaperoned a ski trip for the students, and later that year we were married. Last December, we celebrated 15 years of marriage. She owns and operates a wedding and portrait photography business which she plans to reopen in Petaluma. She loves distance running and adores our children as a loving mother. She received her bachelor’s in political science and religion, and has been involved in student ministry, children’s ministry, and refugee ministry.
Now, on to myself. I was born and raised in beautiful Charleston, SC. I’m the youngest of three with two older sisters that I love, but who also tortured me as a child in all the ways sisters do. I received my bachelor’s in religion and psychology and I am almost finished with my master’s degree from Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary. I have served in ministry for 20 years in a range of roles from worship pastor, to family pastor, and most recently as associate pastor. I have helped with plant two church campuses and one church plant. I come to you from King’s Cross Church in Charleston, which is celebrating with me as they send me to serve the Parish Church. My personal hobbies are surf fishing, playing guitar, reading fiction, drinking coffee, and riding my motorcycle.
You should also know that Carissa and I have three lovely children: Hunter (11), Sage (10), and Silas (4). Hunter is a science buff and wants to be an astrophysicist (please let that happen!). He also loves fishing and is just an overall kind soul. Sage is my only daughter, and she loves gymnastics. She’s always pretending. She is quite shy in public, but around the house, she’s probably the funniest person in the family. Silas is our fun-loving little guy, and as long as he’s moving, he’s as happy as can be. He particularly loves fishing and exploring.
My family and I are all so excited to be joining the Parish Church family. We are excited about all the ministry that will come from this big step, and we do not take this step lightly as we understand the weight the word “family” entails. It’s not just “community” because community can sometimes include acquaintances. “Family,” on the other hand entails some direct cost of relationship – both shared tears and shared joys, shared giving and shared receiving. We are not just ready; we are excited to share with you in all of these ways and more.
The Lord has prepared the way before us and has led us to this place. We are grateful for Daniel’s heart for the kingdom and his openness toward accepting us into the Parish Church’s life and mission. Philippians 1:6 says that God will complete the work that He started in us. I believe that He has started something beautiful here and I look forward to seeing the completed work that will be revealed in the future. Let the gospel go forward and the glory of God be known as we work together to see redemption in the city of Petaluma.
Grace & Peace,
The Graham Family