Meg Buelow

LDI Intern

Meg is an LDI Year 3 Intern.

Meg is originally from Fargo/Moorhead (dontcha know), where they moved when she was 10 years old from Andover, MN. She always knew that she wanted to end up back in the Twin Cities. She landed at St. Thomas, influenced only slightly by how good she looks in purple (maroon and gold is a bold choice). Through the first friends that she made at St. Thomas, Meg was invited to a bible study by a parachurch ministry who’s staff shared the Gospel with her. Meg started attending Hope in 2013 after coming back from a study abroad where she learned the importance of the local church. After graduating with a degree in Sociology and Women’s Studies, she started to pursue how to take what she learned in school with her faith and love of the local church body, which led her to LDI. Meg hopes to one day work in a church setting teaching others how to feel confident reading the Bible and creating a warm environment for new people to feel welcomed into a church community.

Meg is often found with her nose in a book (she is usually reading three to four books, just for fun, at a time). If you ever want a good book recommendation, she will chat your ear off. She is a huge animal lover, and is quite knowledgable in dog behavior. Meg would love to show you pictures of her dog, Toby, at any time.

Sadie Berg

LDI Intern

Sadie is an LDI Trek 1 intern.

Sadie moved to Minneapolis in 2014 to go to the University of Minnesota, where she managed to graduate with an Art degree! She and a friend heard about Hope through a campus ministry and decided to give it a try, so they hopped on the Hope van during the spring of 2015, and she has been attending ever since. After graduating, Sadie took a course called Perspectives, which led her to join LDI in 2020!

Sadie is most likely to be found at a coffee shop or going for a walk somewhere in South Minneapolis (coffee in hand). She still enjoys art and loves a good documentary or Bollywood film!

Brooke Johnson

Director of Children’s Ministry

Brooke is the Director of Children’s Ministry.

Brooke grew up in Stacy, MN, then moved to Minneapolis to attend the University of Minnesota. She was invited to Hope as a freshman (fall 1998), started volunteering with the kids ministry, and was welcomed in by some great families. While at the U, she also met many dear friends and her amazing husband, Ben! After graduating with a degree in Elementary Education, she worked in a Special Education class until her first child was born. After that, she stayed home to care for her kids, as well as several other precious children.

Ben and Brooke have three kids; Courtney, Phil, and Ian. They attend Hope Academy, where Ben also teaches high school math. Brooke loves playing games with her family, being outside (in or by water is her favorite!), reading juvenile fiction, trying new foods, and watching awesome movies like Marvel, Harry Potter, and Lord of the Rings. She loves getting the chance to know so many amazing young people, and seeing the incredible ways God reveals Himself in and through them!

Email Brooke ›

Drew Zuehlke

Lead Pastor of Columbia Heights

Drew is the Lead Pastor of Hope Community Church – Columbia Heights.

After growing up in OH, TN, and WI, Drew attended the University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee and has worked in youth ministry since 2004. He is married to Kelly, and they have two beautiful girls, Zoe and Zaryah. They moved to Minneapolis in 2010 so that Drew could attend LDI and be trained for pastoral ministry and church planting. Drew has led the youth ministry, visual communications, and is leading the third location of Hope in his home community of Columbia Heights.

He enjoys hanging out with his family, watching movies, having friend over for games, and any creative process.

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Brian Silver

Lead Pastor of Lowertown

Brian came to hope with the desire to be trained and assessed as a church planter. He came on staff in our LDI program in the fall of 2014. Over the next few years he was asked by Acts29 to plant a church and soon after became one of Hope’s Church Planting Residents. In 2017 he helped plant Hope Community Church Lowertown in Lowertown, St. Paul.

When Brian isn’t in St. Paul he enjoys spending as much time as he can with his family and the family Jeep.

Brian is married to his wife, Angela, and they have two boys, Henry and Jack.

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Davis Johnson

Associate Pastor of Outreach & Development

Davis is the Associate Pastor of Outreach & Development and US Midwest Assessment Coordinator for Acts 29.

While attending the University of Minnesota, Davis was invited by a friend to ride the infamous “Hope bus” in 2011 and kept returning as one-by-one the things he thought he knew about Jesus and Christianity kept getting flipped on their heads. After graduating, Davis worked as an investment banker and a growth strategies consultant but couldn’t shake the desire to step into the world of church planting. He joined staff in 2016 and has since helped steer Hope’s efforts on campus, in prayer, and in planting churches around the Midwest.

He is married to Emma and they have a rescue german shepherd…who wrecks stuff a lot. Davis enjoys most forms of competition, compelling stories (written and on-screen), and watching the Green Bay Packers lose — especially in the presence of his Wisconsinite in-laws!

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Phil Wiese

Youth Ministry Assistant

Phil is the Youth Ministries Assistant.

Phil is a 2007 graduate of the Association Free Lutheran Bible School in Plymouth MN. He has worked in youth ministries since 2003 and has been on staff at Hope since 2016. Phil is married to Molly Wiese and has 2 sons, Calvin and Bennett. In his free time Phil enjoys baseball, cooking, and Disney.

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Chaz Fenske

Custodial Assistant

Chaz Fenske is part-time custodial staff member and a former LDI Trek 1 intern.

Chaz is from Willmar, Minnesota, and started attending Hope in the Fall of 2013 as a freshman at the University of Minnesota (Go Gophs!). After graduation, he began attending Lowertown in its origins in the fall of 2017. Chaz worked for 3M before LDI Trek 1, and after completing the program began pursuing a career in craft spirits. He now works full time at France 44 Wines and Spirits in Southwest Minneapolis.

Outside of work, Chaz enjoys reading old books, drinking good beer, and debating music.

Julia Shaw

Director of Worship Downtown

Julia is the Director of Worship at Hope Community Church Downtown.

She has spent most of her life in northern Virginia and graduated from the University of Virginia in Charlottesville (Go Hoos!). While studying biomedical engineering in college, she was also leading worship at Portico Church and Trinity Presbyterian Church, as well as performing around central Virginia with her band. She relocated to Minneapolis in May 2019 with her husband, Aaron, who is a graduate of the Leadership Development Institute at Hope.

Julia is passionate about songwriting, exercising, and being outdoors with the people she loves.

Email Julia ›

Dan

Missions Coordinator

Dan is the Missions Coordinator.

Born in Roseville, MN, Dan met his wife, Kelly, while working in a movie rental store. They were married in 1997 and have three beautiful children Sam, Zack and Libby, as well as a rescue dog, Champ. God in 2006 brought their family into full-time missions to unreached people groups. This has brought their family to southern Mexico, Houston, and Atlanta—all with the heart of planting churches among people who have never heard of Jesus. Soon after crashing back into MN in 2015, they found Hope and fell in love with the community and staff.

Dan enjoys all sports (especially hockey), being outdoors bow-hunting and fishing, and hanging out with family and friends.

Paul Stiver

LDI Coordinator & Men’s Mentor & Trek 2 Intern

Paul is an LDI Trek 2 Intern as well as the LDI Trek 1 Coordinator and Men’s Coordinator.

Paul grew up in small-town Wisconsin and came to Minnesota to attend the U of M in 2005. He stayed in MN after graduation and began attending Hope in early 2015. After experiencing discipleship through his Small Group, Hope Ed Hours, and Off-Road LDI, he decided to do LDI full-time, becoming an intern in 2017. In 2019, Paul joined the LDI staff. He and his wife Allison live in Saint Paul with their dog Sage. Some of his passions include writing, football (Go Packers!), games, MN breweries, and discipleship.

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Kaia Abrams

Hope on Campus Coordinator & Trek 1 Intern

Kaia is an LDI Trek 1 intern and the Hope on Campus Coordinator.

After growing up in Woodbury, MN, Kaia attended the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul (Roll Toms!) and began attending Hope during her freshman year (Fall 2016). While her initial goal was to pursue medical school, the Lord had different plans in store which led her to apply for LDI! She graduated in May 2019, joined staff in June 2019, got married in July 2019 (to Adam Abrams), and started LDI in August 2019!

After lots of exciting life transitions, Kaia is looking forward to her next year of growing, learning, and serving at Hope. Alongside of that, she loves getting to spend her mornings in nature (hiking, camping, skiing), belting out musicals in her car, and she’s always game for discovering new coffee shops!

Email Kaia ›

Zak Stelter

Worship Ministry Assistant of Lowertown

Zak is the Worship Ministry Assistant of Lowertown.

Zak and his wife Lauren have been attending hope since 2016. They have recently been blessed with a beautiful boy named Wally (born Dec 2018)! In addition to his role at Hope, Zak teaches biology at Saint Paul College. In his spare time you might find him enjoying a well-adorned array of charcuterie with his family (especially to the sweet serenade of Billie Holiday). Or perhaps grooving through the house—guitar in hand—sorting out metaphysical conundrums and reveling in the mind-boggling intricacy of the created world (to the praise of its glorious creator!). He also likes nature hikes. And building stuff.

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Annie Oakes

Nursery Coordinator at Hope Community Church Downtown

Annie is the Nursery Coordinator at Hope Community Church Downtown.

Annie started attending Hope CC after graduating from Gustavus in 2002 and moving back to the Cities. She started volunteering in the nursery back in the days of Stadium Village Presbyterian with the “cage” cribs in the wall and started coordinating the nurseries when we only had Hope Classic/West. Annie enjoys spending time with the kids, parents, and volunteers that use and serve in this ministry.

Annie plans events for a small non-profit by day and enjoys spending time outdoors, cheering on her nieces and nephew, exploring new places, crafting and volunteering in her free time.

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Samantha Isomura

Children’s Ministry Assistant

Samantha is the Children’s Ministry Assistant at Hope Community Church Downtown.

She started attending Hope in the fall of 2012 and started serving as a Sunday school teacher because of her passion for interacting with little children. After teaching in the preschool classroom for three years, Samantha got the opportunity to serve part-time helping with Sunday School and Hope Kids events, engaging with families, teachers and kids.

Samantha enjoys eating (but not cooking) and is a big fan of Taylor Swift. She works at a product development company using her creative side to lead people and projects. Most cherished is the time that she has with her family. Samantha is married to Toshiya and has two children, Ethan and Avery.

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Kelly Zuehlke

Small Group Writing Coordinator

Kelly is the Small Group Writing Coordinator.

Kelly is the Small Group Writing Coordinator at Hope. She is married to Drew and they have two daughters, Zoe and Zaryah. They have been at Hope since 2010 when they came to Minneapolis for Drew to do LDI. Kelly enjoys spending time with her family, reading, baking and sports – especially watching the Packers/Vikings rivalry unfold in her house each fall and the madness of March.

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Dharma Amundsen

Wedding Coordinator

Dharma is the Wedding Coordinator.

In the Fall of 2007, Dharma was presented with the opportunity to take on this role and has since enjoyed guiding over 200 couples through the Wedding planning process!

After transferring to the U of M her sophomore year of college back in the Fall of 1997, Dharma was introduced to Hope through a friend and encouraged to attend a Sunday morning service. A little hesitant at first (as she had not experienced an engaging church life growing up), she agreed and learned what it meant to walk this life along with Jesus! She has been a member of the Hope family ever since and has also been a part of the Sunday Morning Worship Team, Hospitality greeting and weekly Small Groups.

When she is not working the wedding scene, Dharma is employed full time as an Early Childhood Educator at a Preschool in Saint Paul (with 1-2 year olds). She has a passion for guiding young children and their parents through the challenges and triumphs of the Toddler life (of which there are many!!). She also finds joy in sewing and craft projects, playing basketball, snuggling with her kitty and is learning to appreciate the art of gardening.

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Emily Anderson

Bookkeeper

Emily is the Bookkeeper.

Emily grew up in small-town Minnesota (population sign 510)! During her early adult years, while navigating post-college life, she found Hope in May 2007. She landed in a small group shortly after. Since that time, Emily’s involvement with various ministries at Hope has continued to grow. The S.H.A.P.E. class was a contributing factor to understanding the gifts God has given Emily and helped her to find employment that fit her skills in detail-orientated, support-type roles. After taking a break from full-time employment for five years to stay at home with her two daughters, Emily was presented with the opportunity to accept Hope’s Bookkeeper role in February 2019, and she took it!

Outside of work, Emily likes to hike and canoe with her husband, Jordan, and their two daughters. She also enjoys edible gardening and food preservation!

Email Cor ›

Carol Oawster

Director of Restoring Hope

Carol is the Director of Restoring Hope.

Carol graduated from Bethel College with a degree in Social Work. In 1989 she married Stan and they have 3 children and 2 in laws, Erica Oawster, Lindsey and Charlie Schumacher and Matthias and Ciara Oawster. In 1996 Stan charmingly convinced Carol that God was leading them to join Steve and Carole in this fun adventure of planting Hope Community. A few years later Carol started her job at Hope as the Director of Restoring Hope (Hope House was the original name). She has loved having a front row seat in watching God do amazing things in the lives of many people at Hope.

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Andrew Blaufuss

Worship Ministry Assistant of Lowertown

Andrew is the Worship Ministry Assistant of Lowertown.

Andrew grew up in Minnesota, attended the University of Wisconsin-Madison, lived in Davis, California for three years, and has now been back in Minnesota since 2015. He is married to his wife, Katelyn, and they live in Inver Grove Heights. He also works as a personal trainer and track and field coach at the University of Minnesota.

His interests include watching or listening to longform interviews, watching or playing most sports, creating music, weekend getaways with friends, and spending time with his wife.

Andrew has truly enjoyed leading musical worship at Hope and is excited to continue in that journey!

Email Andrew ›

Erica Messerli

Ministry Associate to Operations

Erica is the Ministry Associate to Operations.

While attending the University of Minnesota, Erica got on a bus with friends that took her to Hope in the Fall of 2007, and it quickly became her home. She was married at Hope in 2009 after graduating, and started a small group out in the far-away lands of Eden Prairie with her husband. In Fall 2012 she began the Leadership Development Institute as a Trek 1 intern. After LDI, Erica spent her time as a fitness instructor, learned about the house-buying process, and how to care for a small human. She joined staff in May 2016 and became full-time in August 2019.

Erica is married to Ben and has one kiddo named Arien. She enjoys running, baking, reading, and resisting the universe’s bend towards entropy.

Email Erica ›

Shannon Honken

Ministry Associate to Events and Communication

Shannon is the Ministry Associate to Events and Communications.

After growing up and attending college in Oklahoma, Shannon moved to Minnesota in 2008. She started attending Hope shortly after her move in June 2008. In 2009 she began Trek 1 of LDI then completed the program and joined Hope’s full-time staff team in August of 2012. Shannon enjoys anything outdoors (as long as it’s above freezing), reading/writing, watching movies, traveling, and pretending like she knows how to garden. She’s been married to her husband, Ben, since 2014, and they have one son, and a Newfoundland dog.

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Naty Severson

Director of Small Groups and LDI Associate

Naty is the Director of Small Groups and LDI Associate.

Naty started coming to Hope with her new husband, Jared, in 1999, shortly after graduating from the University of Minnesota. Naty joined staff in 2007 to work with small groups and women. Since then her role has changed and shifted multiple times and she is currently the Director of Small Groups and LDI Associate. Jared and Naty now live in Columbia Heights with their three amazingly funny teenagers. Naty particularly enjoys sports, writing, and anything related to an exciting scheme. Truthfully, if Oceans 11 were a realistic (and legal) lifestyle, Naty would be happy to live it.

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Jon Oliversen

Custodian

Jon is the custodian.

Jon grew up in Anoka, Minnesota, and studied environmental science at the University of Minnesota. During his time at the U of M, Jon became involved in a campus ministry and started attending Hope in 2013. After graduation, Jon worked several jobs in the natural resources field before being hired on at Hope in 2018. Jon and his wife Alyssa are both regular attenders of Hope Lowertown.

In his free time, Jon enjoys camping, paddling, fishing… really anything outdoors.

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Jordan Anderson

Ministry Associate to Small Groups and Facilities

Jordan is the Ministry Associate to Small Groups and Facilities.

Jordan was born and raised in western Wisconsin and still affectionately refers to it as “God’s Country.” After graduating from UW-Madison, he moved to the Twin Cities in early 2007, and started attending Hope through some connections with friends. He joined a small group that same year – in which he would eventually meet, date, and marry his now wife, Emily. Jordan went on to participate and graduate from Hope’s Leadership Development program (LDI) and then officially became full-time staff in early 2014.

In his spare time, he’s a dad of daughters, woodworker, woodsman, and pursuer of the title “Jack of many trades, master of some.”

Email Jordan ›

Kaelyn Larson

Ministry Associate to Connection and Discipleship

Kaelyn is the Ministry Associate to Connection and Discipleship.

Kaelyn is a Minnesota native who grew up in the south suburbs. Despite being from Minnesota, she is a dedicated Packer fan (GO PACK GO!), which worked out well for her when she attended UW- Eau Claire. During her time at UW-Eau Claire she became a follower of Christ and in 2012 she graduated with a degree in Kinesiology. After college, the Lord grew a passion in her for the local church, which led her to pursue LDI in 2015. In the Spring of 2016, she was hired to work with the Small Groups Ministry while continuing with the internship. Upon graduation from LDI, Kaelyn joined the staff team full-time in June 2018.

Along with working at Hope, she is an avid runner and has run several marathons with Team World Vision. When she’s not running, you can find her playing cribbage with her husband Kurt or with a good book in hand.

Email Kaelyn ›

Sarah Fletcher

Ministry Associate to Women and Redemption of the City

Sarah is the Ministry Associate to Women.

Sarah moved to the Minneapolis area in February of 2017 and attended Hope right away; she learned about LDI shortly afterwards and was encouraged to join. She did Trek 1 in August of 2018 and began working on staff full-time in July of 2019.

If you see her outside the walls of Hope, you will most likely see her with her hair in a ponytail and her adventure clothes on. She’s usually ready to play a volleyball game or hike in the woods—most things that take place outside or require a sports ball, she’s down.

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Jon Neal

Executive Pastor

Jon is the Executive Pastor.

Jon grew up on a farm in small town Minnesota. He moved to the Twin Cities to attend college at the University of Minnesota. He started attending Hope back in 2004, as he stumbled upon a multi-colored bus that said it would bring him to church. After a small stint in public accounting, he served as a missionary in the Middle East. Upon returning, he started the LDI program and an opportunity to join staff emerged. It was at Hope where Jon met his beautiful wife Katie, and they live in Maple Grove with their three kiddos.

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Steve Treichler

Senior Pastor and LDI Director

Steve is the Senior Pastor and LDI Director.

Steve is the founding and the Senior Pastor of Hope Community Church. Born in Hibbing, Minnesota he came to the Twin Cities to go to the University of Minnesota. While a student at the U of M, Jesus Christ changed his life! After being involved with campus ministry as a student and then 5 years as a staff person, Steve decided to go into pastoral ministry/church planting and was the founding pastor of Hope Community Church in 1996. He is married to Carole, and has three children, David (and wife Brittany), Jonathan, and Calvin (married to Kennedy). He also is the owner(?) of a mischievous beagle, Dakota, the Wonder Beagle! His most recent role change at Hope has now led him to overseeing our Leadership Development Institute (LDI), something he helped create in 2000. In his free time he enjoys flyfishing, duck hunting, remodeling/woodworking, brewing fantastic beer, and hanging out with friends with a quality cigar.

Email Steve ›

Cor Chmieleski

Senior Associate Pastor

Cor is the Senior Associate Pastor

Cor has been on staff with Hope Community Church for 15 years. He grew up in the Twin Cities, attending Mounds View High School and the University of Minnesota. It’s at the U of M that Cor came to faith in Christ and considered for the first time going into ministry. Toward the end of his master’s program at Bethel Seminary, he started working at Hope. During his tenure he has worked in areas of evangelism, discipleship, leadership development, assimilation, teaching, preaching, governance, and eldership. One of his current roles is to oversee the top notch staff of our church. He is married to Jill and has two high-school-aged boys, Drew and Isaac. When he’s not at HCC, he enjoys bike rides with his wife, coaching his boys sports, home renovations, and cheering on the Twins and Vikings.

Email Cor ›

Emily Mousel

Small Groups Coordinator & Trek 2 Intern

Emily grew up in Rosemount, MN and decided to attend Gustavus Adolphus College (go Gusties!) where she graduated in 2017. Emily had just recently become a Christian during her freshman year of college, and during a weekend home from college a friend attending the University of Minnesota invited Emily to come to Hope. Emily would drive up from Gustavus once a month to attend Hope with her roommates.

After graduation, Emily worked at a tech company for a year, and was encouraged to take a year off to do Hope’s Leadership Development Institute. It was initially only going to be a year, but after enjoying LDI so much, Emily is excited for what is ahead for her working in full-time ministry. Emily enjoys Golden Retrievers, running with her husband Isaac, bananas with peanut butter, and couch naps.

Email Emily ›

Kurt Larson

Custodial Assistant & Trek 2 Intern

After being homeschooled for most of his K-12 experience (self-five anyone?), Kurt attended the University of Minnesota, graduated with a degree in Kinesiology, and actually managed to make friends along the way! He began attending Hope in the fall of 2013 after surrendering his life to Christ through a campus ministry. An avid lover of exercise and personal trainer, Kurt joined Hope’s staff as an LDI Trek 1 intern in the fall of 2018, and has continued into Trek 2 with desires to someday manage a gym where he would minister to the physical, spiritual and emotional needs of the members and staff. Kurt is married to Kaelyn, and together they enjoy being active through running, lifting, and being outdoors. Kurt also enjoys extended time in nature, deep conversations with friends, cooking and eating most any kind of meat (unless he’s allergic), dabbling with woodworking, and traveling to new places or old, nostalgic spots.

Email Kurt ›

Olivia Disselkamp

Director of Operations

Olivia is the Director of Operations at Hope, working primarily in the areas of Human Resources, Facilities oversight, Finances, and Legal compliance.

As a student at Bethel University, Olivia was encouraged to attend Hope to escape the “Bethel bubble” one Sunday morning. She quickly came to love the richness of teaching and community she found, and started regularly attending in 2005. After college, Olivia deepened her commitment to Hope, serving in the small groups writing ministry and mentoring. In 2013, Olivia was asked to consider a transition from her position at a local nonprofit to joining Hope’s staff team, which she eagerly did that fall.

A true Hope love story, Olivia met her now husband, Dan, in a Hope small group, and they enjoy traveling, spending time outdoors, and chasing their two littles (Elsie and Ansel) around their Fridley home.

Email Olivia ›

Nolan Bauer

Website Coordinator & Trek 2 Intern

Nolan is an LDI Trek 2 intern and the Website Coordinator at Hope.

After growing up on a rural cattle ranch in Montana, Nolan moved to Minnesota to attend Saint John’s University in Collegeville (Go Johnnies!). Shortly after becoming a Christian in 2013, he was invited by a friend to be baptized together at Hope in December 2014. Afterwards, he attended Hope irregularly until he graduated college in 2016 and moved to the cities to work for an IT company. Feeling a pull towards international missions, he joined the Leadership Development Institute in fall 2018 and joined staff as the Website Specialist in January 2019.

Nolan enjoys being out in nature, preferably several hours away from any metropolitan area. Fly-Fishing, hiking, and nature photography are all activities he enjoys taking the time to do.

Email Nolan ›

Shane Weisser

Youth Ministry Coordinator

Shane is the Youth Ministry Coordinator at Hope.

Thanks to the Hope bus picking up college students, Shane first started attending the church during his freshman year at the University of Minnesota. After having a great youth group experience himself, he began serving with the Youth Ministry in 2015 as a volunteer. He then joined the staff team in August 2019 to oversee the ministry.

When not at Hope, Shane is a residential framing carpenter. He spends his free time cooking in the kitchen with his wife Alexis, keeping up with Minnesota sports, and trying to think what tools to buy next.

Email Shane ›

Amber Schmidt

Children’s Ministry Coordinator of Lowertown

Email Amber ›

Ed Hoefs

Bus Driver

Email Ed ›

Brian Didier

Bus Driver & Trek 1 Intern

Email Brian ›

Kim Nelson

Restoring Hope Coordinator

Kim is the coordinator for Restoring Hope, the volunteer counseling ministry at Hope.

After cramming a four year history degree into five years at the University of Minnesota, Kim and her new husband Graham began attending a Young Marrieds class at Bethlehem Baptist Church. Their leader was Steve Treichler and when he made the pitch to recruit people to help start Hope Community Church, they made the leap. Kim was the first administrative assistant to Steve (unpaid, 10 hours/week!) in 1998 and made the circle back to Hope in her current role in 2014.

Kim and her husband Graham have four sons who have provided years of entertainment — she also enjoys keeping things organized, roller skating and her yearly election judge gig.

Email Kim ›

Brendan Wickstrom

Ministry Associate to AVL

Brendan started attending Hope in 2009 when he and his then girlfriend – now wife, Amanda, were looking for a home church. Brendan was quickly thrown into the mix running sound. Only a couple of short years later he was added to the team as Hope’s Technical Director. Brendan has a laundry list of sound experience from festivals, venues, touring bands, freelancing, and churches spanning back to the age of 13. He graduated from Ridgewater College in 2007 with an Associates Degree in Liberal Arts (emphasis on the art) and currently resides with his lovely wife and family in New Brighton.

Email Brendan ›

7 tips on how to get connected at Hope

You will need to be intentional and put yourself out there.

At a large church, it’s easy to be anonymous. We love that Hope is designed as a place for people to check things out. However, it’s not our desire for people to stay there. We want people to get plugged into community here at Hope. We’ve tried to make that as easy as possible with lots of different options, but it will still take being intentional, taking risks, and putting yourself out there. Take advantage of the opportunities put before you. Introduce yourself to leaders. Make yourself known.

You may need help navigating different options.

Though we love our Sunday services together, we don’t want them to be your end goal. It’s impossible to actually build authentic community by just attending on a Sunday. That’s why we have so many different onramps into community here at Hope. Some love that, while others get overwhelmed by it. We’d love to help you navigate all those different options. If you’d like, simply send Davis an e-mail at coffee@hopecc.com and he’ll direct you to the right person. We’d love to take you out for coffee and help you figure out where to start and answer any questions about opportunities you may have!

You may need to try multiple things.

Just like in all arenas of life, sometimes you have to try lots of different things before you find the right fit. Don’t let one experience stop you. Try again. Whether it’s small groups, serving, attending specific events, interest groups… you may need to explore lots of different options.

Even when you find your place, relationships take time.

Trust and relationships are built over time. When trying to build community and get involved, we all need to check our expectations. It will take time for people to get to know you before you become gospel friends. It will take time for people to get to know you before you’re put into leadership positions. It will take time for people to get to know you before trust is extended. It takes time.

In order to find community, you need to Be community.

If we’re honest with ourselves, many of us come with a consumerism mentality. Our focus is honed in on what we get. We believe the gospel calls us to live beyond ourselves, and at times focus more on what we can do for others versus what they can do for us. This means we may have to die to our own preferences sometimes. This means we may need to be the first person to take efforts to be intentional, communicate, ask good questions, and so forth. In many ways, in order to get a good friend you need to be a good friend.

Be mindful of and evaluate your expectations.

As mentioned before, some people have unrealistic expectations when trying to build community and get involved. At Hope, we repeatedly say that we’re all sinners saved by grace. When you’re in community with people, it takes emotional risk – you will get hurt and you will be let down. There are times when it will be difficult. Culture tends to skew some of our expectations, so we always need to ask ourselves “Are these expectations accurate or realistic?”.

If you haven’t noticed the thread…it takes Time.

Time, time, time. Relationships take time. We live in such an instant gratification and impatient culture that it’s hard to remind ourselves of this. Don’t be led to believe the lie that because it’s taking time that therefore it’s not working. In fact, it’s often quite the opposite!

Hope Youth (6th Grade – 12th Grade)

Hope Youth Ministry exists to make fully devoted followers of 6th-12th graders. We build relationships in order to help each other take a step closer to Christ.

Sundays

During the school year we meet at 9am for a Jr. and Sr. High class that consists of studying the word, prayer, and connecting to each other.
Jr. and Sr. High meet from 9am – 10:30am at Hope West.

Wednesdays

We have Youth Group for both Sr. and Jr. High on Weds. Nights. We spend our time playing games, studying scripture, meeting in small groups, and serving together.
Youth Group – Weds. Nights 6:30-8:30pm

Hope Kids (Birth-5th Grade)

Downtown

Nursery Care

Nursery Care for infants and toddlers is offered during the 9:00am & 11:00am worship services. All nurseries are located on 2nd floor of Hope East.

Sunday School

Sunday School for preschoolers – 5th graders takes place from 9:00am-10:30am Sunday mornings. Age specific classes meet in various classrooms throughout Hope West. Locate a Hospitality team member (wearing an orange shirt) and they will point you in the right direction!

Lowertown

Come to the door nearest the parking lot and you will see a sign instructing you on where to go.
Thanks for your patience and help as we settle into our new location!

What To Expect On Sunday

A typical service consists of worship through song, the reading of Scripture, a message, and communion. It lasts about an hour and a half. We welcome people to participate in whatever way they feel comfortable. In other words, you are perfectly fine just sitting and observing.

We invite you to simply come as you are. The culture here is very laid-back, so people wear their casual clothes.

We have a team established solely to help make your visit as comfortable and hassle-free as possible. We call them our Hospitality Team, and they wear orange t-shirts. If you ever have a question, feel free to ask them at any time!

We’re not about making up something new, but are simply trying to communicate the age-old truths of Scripture in a way that makes sense to today’s audience. We’re not slick, and you won’t get polished performances. What you will get is real people trying to authentically live out the gospel in their lives.

A phrase we use a lot here is “we take God seriously, but don’t take ourselves very seriously.” We love good jokes, and laughter is a big component of who we are.

We really value community. Even though we are a large church, we often joke that “community is our middle name.” Every Sunday we open up our community room and supply drinks and Panera bread in hopes to give people a place to meet one another.

As great as a worship experience can be, we feel it is only the appetizer for the week. We believe worship is a continuous action, and so we are meant to be “the church” 24-7, not just for an hour a week. So, as great as a service can be to help you get to know us, it’s only a portion of what we’re about.

If you’re looking to get to know Hope more, or are interested in learning about how to get involved, go to our Connect page for more information!

Church Leadership

Staff Members

Steve Treichler

Cor Chmieleski

Jon Neal

Brian Silver

Drew Zuehlke

Davis Johnson

Naty Severson

Kelly Zuehlke

Olivia Disselkamp

Erica Messerli

Kaelyn Larson

Dharma Amundsen

Dan

Shane Weisser

Nolan Bauer

Sarah Fletcher

Emily Anderson

Andrew Blaufuss

Brendan Wickstrom

Kaia Abrams

Jon Oliversen

Jordan Anderson

Ed Hoefs

Brian Didier

Annie Oakes

Samantha Isomura

Brooke Johnson

Amber Schmidt

Paul Stiver

Carol Oawster

Kim Nelson

Overseer Team

Steve Treichler

Cor Chmieleski

Jon Neal

Brian Silver

Drew Zuehlke

Andy Karsky

Bart Carey

Ben Johnson

Ben Wacek

Bryan Freeman

Graham Nelson

Jamie Anderson

Mark Hintz

Sean Jergens

Stan Oawster

Benji Matthews

Ken Freire

Davis Johnson

Paul Stiver

Josh Daramola

Governance Team

Steve Treichler

Cor Chmieleski

Jon Neal

Olivia Disselkamp

Jamie Anderson

Mark Hintz

Elise Brock

Katie Aman

Leah Lindstrom

Hope Offices

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