Leadership

Pastors & Staff

Dr. Herschell & Laura Baker

Lead Pastors

Pastor Herschell and Laura have served in various roles in ministry leadership for 29 years. They have been blessed to minister with children and youth and serve as lead pastors, and Laura has also served as worship pastor at several churches in which they have been.
Both are also proud graduates of the Pentecostal Theological Seminary (Cleveland, TN). It is there that Laura earned her M.A. in Counseling. She has since received her Ordination and was endorsed as a vocational chaplain through the Church of God Chaplains Commission. While at PTS, Herschell earned an M.A. in Spiritual Formation and Discipleship and a Doctor of Ministry degree. In addition, He has served as an Instructor and Adjunct Faculty for Lee University (Cleveland, TN) and Pentecostal Theological Seminary (Cleveland, TN), respectively.
Their family is essential to them. Their son, Jeremiah, and his wife, Chelsea, blessed them with a granddaughter, Kacie. Their daughter, Ashley, is wrapping up her MFA degree at the University of Kentucky in Lexington.
They’re honored to be Senior Pastors at Woodward Avenue Church of God. This is their second time living and ministering in McMinn County, and it feels like home to them.

Angel & Ana De hoyos

Pastor, Woodward En Español

As a first-generation Mexican-American, Angel De Hoyos was born and raised in San Antonio, TX. God called him to the ministry at the age of 17, and since then, he has devoted himself to serving God, the church, and preaching God’s Word. He has served as Youth Counsel, District Youth Leader, Youth Pastor, Administrative Pastor, Assistant to the Pastor within the Hispanic Regions in the Church of God. Pastor Angel holds a Masters of Divinity from the Pentecostal Theological Seminary.
Ana has actively served the church in various roles as Youth Leader, Prayer Director, Building a Healthy Temple Coordinator, Adult Sunday School Teacher, and has served for the last seven years alongside her husband in North Georgia and Tennessee. Ana has a passion for organizational development and administration and has worked in corporate America for over six years. She currently serves as the Operations and Resource Manager for the Church of God Chaplains Commission. Ana has an undergraduate degree in Management with a concentration in International Business from the University of Texas in San Antonio and an MBA from Lee University.
Pastor Angel De Hoyos preaches God’s Word in Spanish to our Latino congregation every Sunday. Together with his wife, they review the curriculum for Wednesday discipleship classes, design outreach events, and provide pastoral care to Spanish-speaking members of Woodward.

Pam Duggan

Administrative Pastor

Pastor Pam has served the Lord at Woodward in many ministries from her teenage years to the present, varying from Children’s Pastor, Youth Pastor, District Youth Director, Benevolence Coordinator, Women’s Ministry, Operation Christmas Child Coordinator, Events Coordinator. Since 2008, she has served as Church Coordinator and Keenager (Senior Adult) Pastor.
Pam graduated in 1984 from the University of Alabama in Huntsville with BSBA Degrees in Marketing and Management. While pursuing her degrees, she enjoyed playing four years of collegiate basketball.
Her eyes light up when she speaks of her nieces Jennifer, McKenzie, and Morgan, nephew Andy, and Nephew-in-laws Jonathan and Rothchild, as they are the “light of her life,” and they affectingly know her as “The Master Spoiler”! She also is thankful for the many “spiritual children” she is blessed to call her own.
The Lord gives us privileges and opportunities to serve him and others for a time and season. Everyday matters, and we can’t assume we have tomorrow. Only what we do to build God’s kingdom through our families, church, and community will be what is left when our time and season is over.

Alyssa Gesolgon

Youth Pastor

Alyssa Gesolgon has been a longtime member of Woodward Church and has served in the children’s, music, and media ministries. Alyssa has also faithfully served in our student ministry for 12 years and is now the Youth Pastor.
Alyssa graduated from McMinn Central High School in 2009. She has held positions at the Tennessee Church of God State Office and the Church of God International Offices in the Youth & Discipleship department. Alyssa desires students to have an authentic relationship with God and to know that they have a purpose so long as they have life.

Ashlee Gardner

KIds PAstor

Ashlee Gardner serves as the Children's Pastor at Woodward Church. She is a full-time special education pre-k teacher in McMinn County Schools and has been serving students in the community for eleven years and counting! God has been so faithful. She began her journey serving as Sunday School Teacher at a sister church. Then, the Lord moved her and her daughter, Bentley, to Woodward in January of 2015. Ashlee and her daughter worshipped their way through some tough times while plugging into the choir at Woodward until the Lord opened up the door to Children's Ministry. and she absolutely LOVES IT! Her heart's desire is for every child to not only receive Jesus into their hearts but hunger and thirst to know Him more!
Ashlee earned her bachelor's degree in early childhood education, encompassing regular and special education through 3rd grade. She holds a Master's Degree in curriculum and instruction with an emphasis in special education. She also has a special education licensure endorsement for special education K-12th grade and has taken a few classes through the Pentecostal Theological Seminary in Cleveland, TN.

Dr. Becky & Jason Hill

College & Career Pastors

Jason and Becky Hill serve as the pastors of The Avenue Young Adult Ministry. Jason graduated from Chattanooga State Community College with a Supervisory Development Program Certificate. He has 21 years of professional experience in the banking industry and ten years as an Implementation Coordinator in the healthcare industry. As a lifelong member of the Church of God, Jason has served in various ministries in the church - youth leader, camp counselor, choir, and praise team.
Dr. Becky Hill grew up on the Caribbean island of Trinidad and moved to the United States to continue her education. She is currently a Lecturer in Old Testament Studies and serves as the Director of Student Academics at the Pentecostal Theological Seminary.
Jason and Becky have one daughter, Maddi.

Sara hill

Pre-school director

Sara graduated from Cleveland State with a degree in Early Childhood Education and recently completed a BA in Ministry Leadership with Counseling emphasis at Lee University. Sara has worked in Early Childhood for 24 years, including 20 years with Head Start. She’s currently working as Kids Connection Site Manager at Athens City Middle School.
As the Preschool Coordinator, she supervises Preschool and Nursery classrooms, recruits and schedules the Nursery and Preschool workers, organizes and distributes curriculum, purchases supplies for the nursery and preschool, ensures rooms are kept clean and organized, and administrates the Kid Check system.

Maria Humphreys

PRE-SCHOOL DIRECTOR

Maria graduated from Cleveland State with degrees in Business Administration and Elementary Education, currently pursuing her Bachelors in Elementary Education at Tennessee Wesleyan University. Maria has a great love for people and especially for children.
As Lead Nursery Staff, she administers curriculum and worship time to ensure children develop the love of Christ at a young age. “My goal is to use repetition of lessons to increase these baby’s memory that Jesus loves them.”
“God called me to the nursery ministry; I feel for the reason of loving every child the same and wanting to help all of them to develop into strong followers of Christ. Each child has their own ministry they are taking home. Children are truly a gift from God.”