Hunter Hess
Lead Pastor
hunter@neffmc.org
Born and raised in Lancaster County, Hunter and his wife Grace have 3 children. Hunter graduated from Eastern Mennonite Seminary in 2005 and from Fuller Theological in 2013. Having joined Neffsville as Lead Pastor in 2015, Hunter has been creating a church atmosphere where all ages can participate in meeting God, and is passionate about serving a congregation where all would feel comfortable and safe exploring and growing in their relationship with Jesus.
Rashard Allen
Director of Music and Worship
rashard@neffmc.org
Rashard Allen, originally from Slatington, PA, near Allentown, joined the staff in 2018 He has served in professional worship ministry for many years, serving churches in Dallas, TX, Pittsburgh, PA, and here in Lancaster County, where he has lived since 2004. He has a Bachelor of Music from Oberlin Conservatory of Music, a Master's in Sacred Music from Perkins School of Theology, and a Doctor of Worship Studies from The Robert E. Webber Institute for Worship Studies. Rashard lives in Maytown with his wife, Michele, and his three children: Andrew, Lizzy, and Deborah. He is a professional basketball junkie and enjoys cooking, writing music, and spending quality time with his family.
Alan Miller
Interim Associate Pastor of Administration and Congregational Life
alan@neffmc.org
Alan joined our staff on October 18 as our Interim Pastor of Administration and Congregational Life.
Alan is a graduate of Eastern Mennonite College (BA in Sociology) and Goshen Biblical Seminary (MDiv). He also served for three years in Botswana with the Mennonite Central Committee.
He has enjoyed a long career in ministry, having served as a pastor with the Church of the Brethren for 34 years. His pastoral assignments have included the Hatfield COB, the Shippensburg COB, and the Conestoga COB (Leola PA). This is now his fifth interim and his second at Neffsville Mennonite Church. He has also served as an interim at Souderton Mennonite Church, Franconia Mennonite Church, and Mellinger Mennonite Church.
He lives with his wife, Kathy in Akron, PA. Kathy is also an ordained minister and they served together on staff at both the Hatfield COB and the Conestoga COB. They have one son, Matthew, who is married to Amanda. Matt and Amanda currently live in Denver, CO.
In his spare time, Alan enjoys reading, photography, and doing woodworking. Along with Kathy, he enjoys traveling and visiting Longwood Gardens.
Galatians 6:9-10 have been his guiding verses for many years.
Eszter Bjorkman
Associate Pastor of Youth Ministries
eszter@neffmc.org
Eszter grew up as a missionary kid in Hungary. There she developed her love of great food, historic places, beautiful music, and interesting people! When she was 10 years old, Eszter moved to Princeton, NJ where she attended middle school and high school. In high school, she met Karl, who became her husband in 2019 after she graduated from Wheaton College (high school sweethearts)! Then, she started at Princeton Theological Seminary so she could become a pastor! Eszter grew up singing and playing the violin, both of which she still loves to do! She enjoys gardening, picking and arranging flowers, painting, and drawing. Eszter and Karl also really enjoy watching movies together (especially Marvel movies), and playing with their bunny, Totoro, while hanging out with good friends!
Ally Weaver
Director of Children's Faith Formation
ally@neffmc.org
Ally resides in Lititz with her husband James, and two young children. They have been attending Neffsville for almost 4 years now.
At NMC Ally has served in the nursery, is a Kid’s Club teacher, filled the role of Assistant Director of Created to Praise Jr, and helped start our own MOPs program for mothers of young children. Ally graduated from Bloomsburg University of Pa. with a BA in Communication Studies with a focus in Interpersonal Relationship Management, and a Minor in Psychology. Before coming to Neffsville she spent several years at First Presbyterian Church, Lewisburg, PA., as a Sunday School Teacher and Youth Group Mentor.
Dean Smith
Director of Communication
office@neffmc.org
Dean joined the staff at Neffsville as the Director of Communication in February 2007 after spending many years in the construction industry. His current role provides opportunities ranging from technical support to creating graphics, videos, and printed media for numerous church functions. Dean and his wife Deb live in Lititz and are the parents of two adult children, Jordan and Lauren. When not creating something for the church, Dean may be out looking for images to fill his camera lens.
Julie Smoker
Administrative Assistant
julie@neffmc.org
Julie joined the staff in November 2022. She has experience with both administration and bookkeeping and is certified as a Quickbooks ProAdvisor. Julie brings experience working in churches and non-profit organizations, most recently with Eastern Mennonite Missions. Julie lives and attends church at The Living Room in Ephrata.
