Pastor Allan & Jo-Anne Collister
As students in Berkeley, Allan and Jo-Anne had to cope with tear-gas on the way to class. Even then, the spiritual openness of Berkeley people was a happy surprise. After years away – including 2 in Germany in the Army (think: castle-hunting and 3-day trips to Paris), grad school in Berkeley, seminary at Trinity (Deerfield), and pastorates in Washington, Minnesota and a church-plant in San Diego – they got to come back and “plant” New Church. Their six kids have had a big on-going role in planting the church as well.
Pastor Allan and Jo-Anne see their work as a partnership — not just in their complementary roles, but in the fact that they are constantly talking over and praying over the church together. They find it especially fulfilling that they get to do it together.
Allan and Jo-Anne spend free time sailing on San Francisco Bay. They are collaborating on a book about training young men and women for Christian ministry by a combination of mentorship in the church, and limited coursework in seminary.
Pastor of Children & Family Life – Nancy Svensson
Nancy was born and raised in California’s Gold Country where she learned how to clean fish, make the perfect s’more, and take care of all kinds of critters. Some of her favorite childhood memories include family camping trips, horseback-riding in the American River Canyon, and going out for ice cream with her grandparents.
She attended Cal, graduating in 2005 with BAs in Classical Civilizations and Spanish. As a student, Nancy volunteered at Oakland Tech and Berkeley High Schools, worked in orphanages in the Dominican Republic and Guatemala, and earned the nickname “Mom” for her home-made cookies and lasagna. During her freshman year, she met Elliot, a unicycle-riding, tuba-playing Mechanical Engineering major. They married in 2006 on April Fool’s Day, so as to more conveniently continue their practice of playing practical jokes on each other.
Administrator – Tamela Turner
Tamela joined our team as Administrator in 2006. Born in South Africa, where she lived until she was 17, Tamela emigrated with her family to Western Australia. She began tertiary study at Murdoch University in Perth, where she also became involved as a student leader. While studying for her bachelor of education in primary school teaching, Tamela met Neil, and they married at New Church in 2006. She graduated from UC Berkeley with a B.A. in Linguistics.