Barry Morton - Lead Pastor barry@yourmtolive.com
I am a native of Van Buren, Arkansas and graduated from VBHS in 1995. After receiving a BA in Speech/Communications from Arkansas Tech University, my wife, Sarah, and I returned to Van Buren as youth pastors.
Almost 8 years ago, while enjoying ministry with youth, I felt the familiar nudge of the Lord to begin what is now Mt Olive Church. At the time, of course, I had no idea what it would look like. I understood there to be a need for something like Mt Olive church in this area, and in obedience, my wife and I told the Lord ‘yes!’
My heart is to truly see the see the Church come alive and become an unstoppable force that will transform this community with the Good News of Jesus Christ! I hope you will join us.
Almost 8 years ago, while enjoying ministry with youth, I felt the familiar nudge of the Lord to begin what is now Mt Olive Church. At the time, of course, I had no idea what it would look like. I understood there to be a need for something like Mt Olive church in this area, and in obedience, my wife and I told the Lord ‘yes!’
My heart is to truly see the see the Church come alive and become an unstoppable force that will transform this community with the Good News of Jesus Christ! I hope you will join us.
Rebecca Gibbons - Believe Pastor rebecca@yourmtolive.com
I
am honored and grateful to have been married to my wonderful husband
for 17 years. David and I were both raised in Ozark and have lived in
Van Buren for 8 years. David is a full time officer in the National
Guard. Our son, Anthony, is 17 years old and is a Junior at VBHS. He
loves to play football, run track and make movies. We are also grateful
to get to raise our niece, Rebekah Jane. She is also 17 and a Junior
at VBHS and is a most phenomenal cross country runner. David, Anthony
and Bekah are the light of my life and I am grateful the Lord saw fit to
bless me with them! I have been serving in ministry since 2004. My
current position at Mt.Olive is as the Believe Pastor which means I
oversee our discipleship process for all ages, from our Nursery up
through Adult Life Groups. I take this calling on my life very
seriously and wake up everyday grateful to spend my days serving
children, youth, adults and families.
Christie Burdick - KidMO Director christie@yourmtolive.com
"God, I want to serve in this church somewhere. Please lead me where you want me to be....but not in Children's Ministry,ok?" This was my prayer in January 2011. I have always had a passion for teaching children, even as a young teenager, but this time I was kind of looking forward to serving in adult ministry. Just a couple months later, He put me right in the middle of Mt Olive's children ministry and I have absolutely LOVED every minute of it. I am so grateful for a God who knows me better than I know myself. My family and I became members of Mt Olive in the fall of 2010. My husband, Bo, and I have been been married since 2000. I have five boys (Nathan, Kaleb, Gabriel, Drake, and Baby Boy due May 2012), two adult stepsons (Daniel and Lee), and four grandchildren (Emily, Jackson, Lauren, and Owen). Most of my time is spent homeschooling my boys. My life is full and busy, and I am so thankful for it. I am incredibly blessed to have the opportunity to teach my boys and my KidMo children about Jesus.
Rodney Porter - Youth Pastor rodney@yourmtolive.com
I can honestly say I am very humbled for the opportunity God has given me to be apart of the student ministry here at Mt Olive. I was born and raised in Van Buren and have seen the growth and change of the city. My family truly considers it a blessing to be apart of this growing ministry. I have been married for 13 years to my help mate Crystal and we have two children Christian and Bostyn. We consider our children our biggest blessing God has ever given to us and are very proud God entrusted us with their raising. My 6 year old ,Christian, is the most caring and lovable kid you will ever know. Bostyn, my 2 year old, is full of energy and ready for life at all times. He gets his name from his daddy's obsession with the Boston Celtics. My wife is a stay at home mom and does a excellent job of keeping us all together. We truly love youth ministry and love getting to know our students in order to make a positive impression on their lives. I thank God daily for calling us to serve at Mt Olive.
Jamy Cathcart - MiniMO Director jamy@yourmtolive.com
My husband Rhett and I have two amazing Golden Retrievers (Hadley 5 and Harvey 5 months) and are in the process of adopting a child or two, three even to add to our family.
We moved to Arkansas from North Carolina in 2008. From the time we moved here we were on the search for “our” church until we felt the gentle nudge in October of 2010 from God and a few others to get ourselves to Mt Olive. From the time we walked in the doors, it was as if we had been here for years. What a blessing this place has been to both of us!
Who would have ever thought I would be the Director of Mt Olive’s MiniMO program? NOT ME!!! The day before I was asked to consider the position, I told Rhett I couldn’t teach preschool full time yet because “what if Mt Olive needed me”. HA! God was obviously listening. I have worked in Early Childhood Education for 17 years (yikes, I think I just aged myself). Never did I imagine I would be working in Children’s Ministry though. But, how cool that I am!! Now, I have the pleasure of teaching children alongside their parents about Jesus and all he has to offer us. God is SO good!!!
We moved to Arkansas from North Carolina in 2008. From the time we moved here we were on the search for “our” church until we felt the gentle nudge in October of 2010 from God and a few others to get ourselves to Mt Olive. From the time we walked in the doors, it was as if we had been here for years. What a blessing this place has been to both of us!
Who would have ever thought I would be the Director of Mt Olive’s MiniMO program? NOT ME!!! The day before I was asked to consider the position, I told Rhett I couldn’t teach preschool full time yet because “what if Mt Olive needed me”. HA! God was obviously listening. I have worked in Early Childhood Education for 17 years (yikes, I think I just aged myself). Never did I imagine I would be working in Children’s Ministry though. But, how cool that I am!! Now, I have the pleasure of teaching children alongside their parents about Jesus and all he has to offer us. God is SO good!!!
Sarah Morton - Worship Leader sarah@yourmtolive.com
What is worship? Why do we worship? How do we worship? Understanding the answers to these questions is a life-long pursuit. In my role as worship leader, I will continue to help all of us (including myself) answer these questions. And, it’s a funny thing really: the more we begin to understand who we worship, the more we desire to worship He who is worthy! I first began leading worship in college at the Wesley Foundation at Arkansas Tech. When Barry and I moved to Van Buren, I found myself in worship roles at Heritage Church. When Mt. Olive began, I moved into the worship leader position. Besides my role at Mt Olive, I am blessed to be the wife of Barry and blessed to be called mommy by Emma Jane (2004) and Anna Claire (2007).
Nicole Walton - Belong Pastor nicole@yourmtolive.com
My
family and I stepped through the doors of Mt. Olive in 2006 and I have
never felt a more welcoming and comfortable place of worship. My hope as
the Belong Pastor is that everyone who comes through the doors of Mt.
Olive, whether it be for the 1st time or the 100th time feels welcome
and at home! I
am extremely blessed to be married for over 17 years to Patrick, a
wonderful husband and partner in ministry who shares my passion for
hospitality. William, our one and only son, is truly the joy of our life
and keeps us laughing everyday! I was born and raised in Arkansas.
After many years, I finally listened to God's call into full time
ministry and I am so thankful to have the opportunity to serve MO. I get
to devote every day to a loving God, my husband, my son, and this
incredible church family and I love every single minute of it!
Delmar Parks - Custodian
Tabitha Potts - Nursery Director tabitha@yourmtolive.com
I am blessed to be happily married for the last 13 years to my husband Anthony and we have been beyond blessed with four beautiful children. Ayden (2003), Ty (2004), Bella (2006), and Wyatt (2008). I was born and raised in Oklahoma, and we moved to Van Buren in 2005. We first came to Mt Olive in 2006 and immediately felt like it was where God was calling us to be. We both started out working in the children's ministry and Anthony now plays guitar in the worship band. I love being in the nursery and being able to tell all the precious babies that Jesus loves them! At the same time, I get to provide a safe and loving environment so parents feel comfortable to leave their babies and go to service to worship God. Having four children myself, I know how important that can be. I also coordinate childcare for Wednesday and Sunday evenings and any other time we have a special function at Mt Olive. I love knowing that I am in a church where God has called me to be and serving with such an awesome church family!
Shirley Hirano-Dias - Administrator shirley@yourmtolive.com
If you had asked me 10 years ago if I ever considered living in Arkansas, I would have looked at you as if you were crazy. I was born and raised in Hawaii, got my Bachelor’s Degree in Nursing at the University of Hawaii, was in the Air Force for 10 years, have three beautiful kids, and was a stay at home mom for more than 10 years. But, I did not know Jesus Christ.
Our Lord has led me on an awesome journey to Arkansas because He loved me when I rejected Him. And, when I was at my lowest point He lifted me up. I have been pursuing Him for the last 10 years, and He has led me to Mt. Olive Church. Through my job I learn about His grace and mercy daily. I love working with fellow believers who are committed to spreading His love to others. And, by the way, I love Arkansas!
Our Lord has led me on an awesome journey to Arkansas because He loved me when I rejected Him. And, when I was at my lowest point He lifted me up. I have been pursuing Him for the last 10 years, and He has led me to Mt. Olive Church. Through my job I learn about His grace and mercy daily. I love working with fellow believers who are committed to spreading His love to others. And, by the way, I love Arkansas!
