I am honored to be join you in ministry at Community UMC. In the hope of helping you get to know me and my family I wanted to give just a little background. 

 

I am a native Wisconsinite who grew up in a little town called East Troy in Walworth County. I am the youngest in my family. My brothers (Jeff, Pat, and Mike) and I are the fifth generation of the O’Brien family to grow up in East Troy.

 

Although I grew up in a small community, I intentionally chose to have a different experience and went to college at UW-Madison. After graduation I went to work for a market research company as an analyst. After being there for almost six years, I realized over time that my heart and passion wasn’t in this job. I began to feel more and more restless and after a lot of soul-searching and prayer, I felt called to professional ministry.

 

I enrolled at Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary in Evanston, IL and also served as a student pastor at Franksville UMC in Racine County. I graduated in 2001 and went to my first appointment at Bristol UMC and Wesley Chapel UMC. While at these churches I met my wife Audra who was the church pianist at Wesley Chapel. We were married in 2004 on Valentines Day. I have three beautiful children, Alyssa who I adopted in 2005 and is 26 years old, Connor who is 19 years old, and Madelyn who is 18 years old. My children are truly a gift from God and my family and faith is the center point of my life.

 

I have also served Mequon UMC and just recently St Paul’s UMC in Stevens Point. All the churches I have served have taught me a lot about the importance of building community where people can connect to each other and God, grow deeper in their faith, and serve as the hands and heart of Jesus.

Our family has grown to include our dog Parker (named after Peter Parker) and our cat, Loki. Yes, they were named after Marvel movie characters which my kids and I love to watch. I love to read all kinds of books and I love music. But most of all I love spending time with my family going on trips, taking walks, and doing fun things together.

 

Audra and I are extremely excited about this new chapter in our life. We know that there is a lot of great ministry already happening at Community UMC and we can’t wait to meet all of you as I begin working with you as your pastor. It is my prayer in this time of transition that we open ourselves to the power of the Holy Spirit in our lives as we move forward together to continue God’s work in this community.

 

May God’s Blessing be with you all.

 

Pastor Tim O’Brien