Staff and Residents
At Church of the Servant we believe that the gifts of ministry and leadership are the gifts of God given to all of his children. Thus, we have consistently tried to emphasize the authority of the church-council and the importance of our volunteers, limiting the role of staff in the ministry of the congregation. The result is that, given the number of ministries which our members participate in, and considering the size of our congregation, we have a relatively small number of paid staff.
At the same time, whenever we have decided to hire a new minister or staff member, it has been a very intentional process of finding the most gifted and suitable person who will not take over a ministry, but facilitate that ministry from the ground up: providing vision, addressing barriers to it’s continued growth and development, taking the form of a servant leader and administrator, so as to coordinate and equip those within the congregation who are most passionate about and/or involved in that particular area of ministry.
Here follows an introduction to our current staff members. You are invited and encouraged to contact them to see how your passion can be linked with their gifts so that together we can build up this body of Christ and expand God’s kingdom!
Senior Pastor
Rev. Jack Roeda has been the senior pastor of Church of the Servant for the past 25 years and is the author of various articles on preaching and applying the biblical text. He has also written educational and devotional materials for the Christian Reformed Church and other publications from time to time. Jack is married to Carol, an artist, and they have three children and four grandchildren. Jack and Carol enjoy long walks in the woods with their dog.
Phone: 956-7611×21 Email: Rev. Jack Roeda
Minister of Education
Janifer De Vos joined the staff of Church of the Servant in June of 2006. Before settling in Grand Rapids and discovering she loves snow, Jan served as Director of Children’s Ministries in Austin, Texas, and Director of Christian Education in Miami, Florida. Over the last twenty years she has also taught a variety of subjects to children, adolescents and young adults. Jan is passionate about sharing God’s love for us in creative, sustaining, and meaningful ways. Her spare time activities include watching the weather, enjoying time with her Michigan cousins, cutting her grass with her electric lawnmower, writing curriculum for Kingdom use, tending to her pet menagerie, and rearranging the furniture in her house again…and again….and again!
Phone: 956-7611×23 Email: Janifer De Vos
Minister of Congregational Life/Staff Administrator
Janice McWhertor has been the Minister of Congregational Life at Church of the Servant since 1991. She is wife to Tom, and parent to 4 (now adult) children. Her task and her passion is to encourage herself and the congregation to grow spiritually in Christ and to continually build a vibrant sense of community at COS. When not at her desk or leading antiracism/reconciliation workshops, Janice can be found hosting dinners at home, reading (novels and theology are the favorites), gardening or walking the shores of Lake Michigan with her husband.
Phone: 956-7611×22 Email: Janice McWhertor
Minister of Outreach
Rev. Naji Umran has been serving as Minister of Outreach at Church of the Servant since 2005, before which he was in the first group of Lily Grant funded Pastoral Residents COS has had. He is married to Anne Zaki, and they have three boys under the age of five, Jonathan, Sebastian, and Emmanuel. Together they represent a multiplicity of nationalities, Egyptian, Syrian, German, Dutch, Canadian, and American. This past and present multicultural makeup continues to guide their sensitivities and aspirations as they look at how they can help COS care for the foreigner within our gates, and how we may be marked and influenced by the beauties of the worldwide church.
Phone: 956-7611×25 Email: Rev. Naji Umran
Minister to Youth
Judy Ko is the Minister to Youth at Church of the Servant, and joined the staff in June of 2007. Judy received her MA in Educational Ministry from Calvin Theological Seminary and is excited to be able to work with the youth of COS and their families. Judy enjoys working with youth and showing them what it’s like to live out the Christian faith while being surrounded by contemporary youth culture. She looks forward to learning as well as teaching, and drinking more coffee in a month than she has in her entire life. Judy and her husband, Simon Ko, enjoy spending time with friends, old and new, over dishes of Korean food.
Phone: 956-7611×24 Email: Judy Ko
Minister of Worship
Greg Scheer is Minister of Worship at Church of the Servant in Grand Rapids and Music Associate at the Calvin Institute of Christian Worship. His writings include the book, The Art of Worship (Baker Books, 2006) and contributions to Reformed Worship, The Hymn, Call to Worship and Worship Leader and New Songs of Celebration Render (forthcoming, GIA, ed C. Michael Hawn). His music is available from Augsburg Fortress, Abingdon, GIA (forthcoming), WorshipToday, Faith Alive and at www.gregscheer.com. Greg and his wife Amy have two boys: Simon and Theo.
Phone: 956-7611×26 Email: Greg Scheer
Resident Pastor
(financially supported with the help of a grant from the Lilly Foundation)
Jessica Bratt graduated from Calvin College in 2002 and completed her Master of Divinity at Princeton Theological Seminary in 2005, after which she moved to New Haven, Connecticut, where she served as a chaplain at Yale-New Haven Hospital and as a research assistant at the Yale Child Study Center. She is a candidate for ordination in the Reformed Church in America. A Grand Rapids native, she is glad to be at Church of the Servant and to journey with the congregation in worship, friendship, and service.
Jessica Bratt has been a Resident Pastor with Church of the Servant since 2007.
Phone: 956-7611×35 Email: Jessica Bratt
Resident Pastor
(financially supported with the help of a grant from the Lilly Foundation)
Rev. Brion Brooks graduated from Western Seminary in the spring of 2007, marking the beginning of his work in ordained ministry and the end of a 20 year career as an attorney. Brion is married to Elizabeth, his wife of 25 years, and together they have four children: Rachel (21), Hannah (18), Aaron (15), and Isaac (3). Brion is excited to be a pastoral resident here at Church of the Servant and is looking forward to working with its members as they discern and respond to God’s callings in their lives.
Rev. Brion Brooks has been a Resident Pastor with Church of the Servant since 2007.
Phone: 956-7611×34 Email: Rev. Brion Brooks
Resident Pastor
(financially supported with the help of a grant from the Lilly Foundation)
Jana Vander Laan began serving in the church as a church musician. While pursuing a Master a Sacred Music at Luther Seminary, she felt God’s call to become a Minister of the Word. Upon completing that degree, she returned to Grand Rapids and enrolled at Calvin Theological Seminary. She graduated in the May 2007. She had been married to her husband Mike for 3 years, and they have a daughter named Clara. Mike is a student at Calvin Seminary who will graduate in May 2009. Jana and Mike hope to be co-pastors in the Christian Reformed Church. Jana is grateful for God’s guidance in her life and is especially grateful that God has brought her to Church of the Servant.
Jana VanderLaan has been a Resident Pastor with Church of the Servant since 2007.
Phone: 956-7611×33 Email: Jana VanderLaan
Full-Time Secretary
Part-Time Office Assistant
Part-Time Office/Nursery Assistant
Full-Time Custodian
Part-Time Treasurer
Part-Time Assistant Treasurer
