Pastoral Staff
Brad Brinson
Senior Pastor
In 1997 Brad and Beth Brinson, at the invitation of Fellowship Church Knoxville, came from southern California to gather people and launch a new church on the west side of the city. That was 13 years ago. He's lost a lot of hair since then, and gained a lot of friends in Knoxville!
Brad grew up in central Indiana, and met Jesus in college at Taylor University located in Upland, IN. His new life led to a new major: Biblical Language and New Testament Studies.
After graduating from Taylor and working as a youth pastor in Florida for a few years, Brad continued his education at Wheaton Graduate School in Chicago while he continued in youth ministry. There he earned an M.A. in New Testament Studies and met his wife Beth who was an undergrad at Wheaton. While in Chicago Brad also studied at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School.
Brad and Beth, after getting married, then moved to Pasadena, CA so Brad could study at Fuller Theological Seminary. There he earned a Masters of Divinity with a focus in church planting and burrito eating.
Brad has worked as a youth pastor in churches in Florida and Illinois, and served as senior pastor at two churches in Southern California before moving to Knoxville to plant Two Rivers Church.
Brad and his wife, Beth now live in Farragut, TN. They have three daughters, Sarah, Hope, and Anna. Sarah and Hope are students at the University of Tennessee. Anna is a junior in High School.
Today Brad speaks weekly at Two Rivers, provides directional leadership for the church, works on his 66 Mustang, and occasionally speaks to leaders and church planters in the states and around the world.
Mike Sommi
Executive Pastor
Mike, his wife Eileen and their four children, Matt, Cole, Kit and Grace began their adventure here at Two Rivers Church in July of 2008. Life long New Yorkers, they said good-bye to family, friends, home and career to heed God's call to join Two Rivers.
Mike is a graduate of Amherst College and Hofstra University School of Law. For most of the prior 18 years, Mike practiced law with the firm Cozen O'Connor. Mike was a member of the firm, sat on its Board of Directors, and managed both of its Manhattan offices. Mike specialized in civil litigation and has tried an array of cases ranging from construction accidents and catastrophic property losses to commercial disputes and product liability claims.
Mike's other experience includes stints as a football coach on the college level and as a player-coach in the American Football League in Finland. He has also managed real estate in Manhattan and helped run a construction company on Long Island.
As Executive Pastor, Mike leads our staff in strategic planning, oversees staff management, leadership development, and budget oversight. He is also an ex-officio member of the Board of Elders.
You can contact Mike at 865-777-2121 ext. 326 or at mike.sommi@tworiverschurch.org.
Dave Benner
Pastor of Mainstreaming & Care
Dave and his wife, Darlene, have been married for over 30 years. Their daughter, Julie, is married to a Student Pastor with a daughter of their own living in the Chicago area. Their oldest son, Daniel, is a UTC graduate and is currently serving at Fellowship EFCA with his wife Laura while operating his own painting company. Their youngest son, Stephen, is a civil engineer at Oak Ridge, plays electric guitar at Two Rivers during The Merge.
Dave and Darlene have been actively involved since the church was planted in 1998. Dave was a part of the original Elder board before joining the staff in 2003. Prior to coming on full time as part of the Pastoral staff, Dave was involved in starting and operating the family painting business which his son now owns. He was also on staff at Fellowship Church, which is the church that planted Two Rivers, as the Church Administrator. His earlier career included work at Christian Academy and several other Christian schools as Administrator, Dean of Students, and Athletic Director as well as teacher and high school basketball coach for over 20 years.
Today Dave is the pastor of Mainstreaming and Care, which means he helps people connect and plug in at Two Rivers, as well as help care for people whenever a need out of the ordinary arises.
Dave believes the local church was the organization God established and He desired to include us as the main players for reaching a lost world. There is nothing like the local church when it is working right. We want to take the love of Christ to all of the neighborhoods, local community and the ends of the earth as we go beyond our own walls at Two Rivers.
Dave is licensed by the EFCA, has a Bachelors degree from The King's College in Briarcliff Manor, NY and a Master's degree from Grace Seminary in Winona Lake, IN.
You can contact Dave at 865-777-2121 ext. 312 or at dave.benner@tworiverschurch.org.
Bart Pederson
Pastor of Discipleship
Bart grew up on the family cattle ranch on the plains of Western, South Dakota. While pursuing a pre-law degree at the University of South Dakota, a fraternity brother led him to the Lord during his sophomore year. Bart enjoyed the ministry, training and opportunities of being involved with Campus Crusade for Christ.
In the summer of 1989, Bart fell in love with his future wife Carol, while they ministered together on a summer project with Campus Crusade at Newport Beach, California. After completing an internship at his home church in South Dakota, Bart married his University of Tennessee bride in the fall of 1990. After the honeymoon, Bart and Carol moved to Deerfield, Illinois to pursue a Master's degree at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School.
Following graduation, Bart and Carol moved to Knoxville in 1997 to volunteer in joining with the growing church plant that would become Two Rivers Church. In January of 1999, Bart welcomed the opportunity to serve in providing leadership for the growth group and children's ministries. Bart now focuses on the various Community Life ministries. Bart and Carol enjoy the blessing of four lively children: Logan, Blake, Jessica and Kylie.
You can contact Bart at 865-777-2121 ext. 304 or at bart.pederson@tworiverschurch.org.
Danny Matthews
Pastor of Prayer & Community Life
Danny and his wife Lora married in 1984 years and have been serving at Two Rivers since the church was planted in 1998. Lora has served on staff as Pastor Brad’s administrative assistant from the beginning. Danny and Lora have 3 beautiful children, Abby, Megan and Bradley; all are active members of Two Rivers Church. From the start of Two Rivers Danny has been active on the worship team as well as giving oversight to both the intercessors and prayer ministry teams. He has also been instrumental in creating our “Quiet Waters” and “Outpouring” events. In 2002, Danny was asked to join the board of Elders and served there until coming on staff in June of 2006.
As you meet and get to know Danny you will understand that his greatest pleasure in life comes from helping people find their place in the body of Christ and to affirm and help develop the gifts they have been given by our Heavenly Father. His passion is to create different events and venues where people find themselves drawn deeper into “His Presence” where they are touched and changed forever. His heart is to develop a thriving community of worshipers and prayer warriors for ministry both inside and outside the walls of Two Rivers Church.
You can contact Danny at 865-777-2121 ext. 303 or at danny.matthews@tworiverschurch.org.
David Gruhn
Pastor of Outreach
David, his wife Kelly and their two girls, Joely and Clare, joined the Two Rivers Church staff in December of 2011. They are excited that God brought their family to Knoxville to be part of what God is doing both in and through the Two Rivers Church family.
David is a graduate of Drake University and Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. After serving more than 10 years as an aviator in the United States Marine Corps, he answered the call to serve full time as a pastor. He has previously served as a staff pastor and senior pastor in churches in Texas and Illinois.
God’s plan for taking the good news of Jesus to the world is the local church. That means every person who is part of the body of Christ is included in God’s plan of reaching those who do not yet know Jesus personally. David defines his personal calling and passion in ministry by Colossians 1:28, "Him we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom, that we may present everyone mature in Christ." As a pastor, he believes his role is to equip people to be used in their unique calling and gifting as part of God’s mission. He brings a deep desire to see people transformed by encountering Jesus personally.
You can contact David at 865-777-2121 ext. 321 or at David.Gruhn@TwoRiversChurch.org
Jon Teague
Middle School Youth Pastor
Jon and Katie came to Two Rivers in 2004. Jon loves building relationships and sharing life with students. There is so much life, love and laughter in student ministry. If you can't find Jon at the office, he's probably playing home-run derby, ultimate frisbee, angle ball, guitar, spoons, spades or just hanging out with Katie trying to impress her with his quick wit and subtle charm. And in case you were wondering, the key to Jon's heart is the great wall of chocolate at PF Changs!
Jon grew up in Chattanooga where he made the decision in the third grade that he was destined to attend the University of Tennessee. There were several factors: football, football and football! Actually, God changed Jon's life at UT through the ministry of Campus Crusade for Christ. He became very involved in campus ministry leading worship and teaching small groups. It was during these years that Jon felt God calling him to vocational ministry.
In 1998 Jon met his beautiful bride, Katie, and they were married in the summer of 2002. Katie graduated from Farragut High School and then Middle Tennessee State University. After college, she lived in Argentina for fourteen months working with Campus Crusade to set up a college ministry at one of the universities. Katie speaks Spanish and has a heart for the Hispanic culture.
You can contact Jon at 865-777-2121 ext. 323 or at jon.teague@tworiverschurch.org.
Chris Jessen
Senior High Youth Pastor
Chris loves hanging out with students and volunteer leaders and spending time with his wife, Katie. He also enjoys reading, playing guitar and frisbee golf, working in the yard, making random videos, and most of all, watching UT football!
Chris is a Knoxville native and graduate from the University of Tennessee. While at UT, Chris volunteered in the youth ministry department at a local church, then went on staff as a full-time intern following his graduation with a degree in Business and English.
After that year of full-time ministry, Chris felt the call to seminary, so he headed to Charlotte, North Carolina to Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary. It was in Charlotte that Chris met his beautiful wife, Katie.
Katie went to the University of South Carolina where she got a BA in Sociology, then went on to complete a Master's of Social Work.
Upon Chris' completion of his Master's of Divinity at Gordon-Conwell, Chris excitedly accepted the position of High School Pastor at Two Rivers and painted his whole body orange to celebrate. Shortly thereafter, Chris and Katie were wed in Charlotte, then immediately moved to Knoxville where they now serve together at Two Rivers.
You can contact Chris at 865-777-2121 ext. 308 or at chris.jessen@tworiverschurch.org.
Support Staff
Lynnette Payne
Office Manager
Lynnette was born in Nashville, Tennessee. She and her husband, Alvin, married in 1980. They moved to Knoxville with their two sons, Brandon (1981) and Brian (1984), in 1992. Lynnette majored in marketing at Austin Peay State University. She worked in banking until the birth of her children, and then was a stay at home mom. She most recently worked in the Athletic Office at Christian Academy of Knoxville. The Payne family came to Two Rivers in 1999. They are Growth Group Leaders, Offering Team, & First Touch Team.
You can contact Lynnette at 865-777-2121 ext. 302 or at lynnette.payne@tworiverschurch.org.
Lora Matthews
Assistant to Senior Pastor
Lora has lives in Knoxville with her husband Danny and their three children. In college, she majored in the physician's assistant program, and worked in the banking industry for many years. After their first child was born, Lora spent the following 11 years raising Abby, Megan, and Bradley. When their youngest began school, Lora was asked to assist Senior Pastor Brad Brinson as Two Rivers Church was birthed – Lora is thrilled to be a part of the staff and the growing, vibrant church Two Rivers has become.
It is a full time job keeping Brad in line but, where there are those few spare moments, she also provides project management assistance to the pastoral staff. Danny and Lora have served as Growth Group leaders and are active in the worship and intercessory prayer ministries.
You can contact Lora at 865-777-2121 ext. 306 or at lora.matthews@tworiverschurch.org.
Mary Stone
Mary Stone, Women’s Ministry Director & Assistant to Discipleship Pastor
Mary was born in Clarksville, Tennessee and as a P.K. (Preacher’s Kid) moved around quite a bit, living in different parts of Nashville and graduating from high school in McMinnville, Tennessee. She earned her Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Tennessee in Knoxville with a major in Psychology and worked as a Human Resources officer in the banking industry.
After Mary and Bill married, she left her career with the birth of their first daughter Sarah, who is currently a graduate student at the University of Miami. They also have a daughter, Rebecca Dryden, who is a graduate of Belmont University, and a son-in law, Nathan Dryden, who is a graduate student at Vanderbilt Divinity School. Mary began attending Two Rivers Church in the summer of 1999 and joined in December of that year. She is excited to see how the Lord is moving in the hearts of women at Two Rivers and how she can encourage women in their walk with the Lord!
You can contact Mary at 865-777-2121 ext. 320 or at mary.stone@tworiverschurch.org.
Laura Owens
Director of Early Childhood
Laura was born in Knoxville, and grew up in the Farragut community. She met her husband Ed, while attending Liberty University.
She graduated in 1985 with a Bachelors degree in Social Applied Psychology and a minor in Sociology. After college, she worked for the state of Tennessee in Child Protective Services and then for Peninsula Hospital, working with teenagers in the in-patient facility and then in the business office of the out-patient facility.
She and Ed have been married since 1987 and have 2 boys, Blake (1996) and Chase (1999). Ed is an Electrical Contractor. The Owens family has been at Two Rivers Church since 2000. They have served in various capacities, including missions and Children’s ministry and have led several Growth Groups through the years. Laura served as Director of Early Childhood at Two Rivers Church in 2001. She returned as Director in 2008 and is enjoying the opportunity to again minister to the many young families in our program.
You can contact Laura at 865-777-2121 ext. 329 or laura.owens@tworiverschurch.org.
Susan Corkern
Children's Ministry Director for K-3
Susan grew up in Killeen TX, where she met her husband Glynn. Glynn's military career took them to Germany, Hawaii, Alabama and Tennessee. Along the way they had three beautiful daughters, Alex, Nikki and Maddie. Alex and Nikki are currently attending college at Lee University and Maddie is a Junior at Christian Academy of Knoxville.
After spending 13 years homeschooling her daughters, God led Susan to the next chapter of her life - 100 elementary school kids! She loves their smiles, energy and innocence, and most importantly, their eagerness to learn more about Jesus. Susan has been at Two Rivers since December of 2005, and served as Dive-In Director since August of 09.
You can contact Susan at 865-777-2121 ext. 327 or susan.corkern@tworiverschurch.org.
Tae Cho
Director of Worship
Tae's birthplace is obvious to the casual observer's eye — Essen, Germany. Seriously, it really is. Shortly afterward, Tae moved to the foreign country of South Korea. He wandered aimlessly around this unfamiliar territory for five long years, when in May of 1991, he made yet another inter-country move: to the United States of America; specifically to St. Louis, Missouri.
Tae grew up through his elementary, middle and high school years living in St. Louis with his mother and younger brother. He grew up with music and sports all around him. He is an avid St. Louis Cardinals and St. Louis Rams fan and a loyal alumni of his alma mater, University of Missouri-Columbia, aka Mizzou. This also makes him a loyal fan of the Mizzou Tigers, especially their football and basketball programs. At the time of this writing, the Tigers football team is undefeated while UT is, well, no need to talk about that.
Tae spent his college years leading worship for both Campus Crusade for Christ and his local church. After graduating, Tae decided to pursue further training in his passion and calling: worship leading and worship pastoring. From September of 2009 through June of 2010, Tae attended and finished his education at Ocean's Edge School of Worship located in Ft. Lauderdale, FL. Towards the latter months of his time there Tae was connected to Pastor Brad Brinson through one of the worship pastors on staff at the school and officially came on board with Two Rivers Church in July of 2010.
Tae has really enjoyed the massive amounts of allergy-inducing substances in the air, the weight-gain directly correlated to an increase in exposure to southern hospitality and most importantly the sense of freedom he gets while roaming down the plethora of empty aisles and check-out lines at Wal-Mart on UT game days.
You can contact Tae at 865-777-2121 ext. 113 or tae.cho@tworiverschurch.org.
Paula Howell
Student Ministries Assistant/Receptionist Coordinator
Paula is a native of East Tennessee. She was born and raised here; a graduate of Bearden High School, a Phys Ed major at UT of Knoxville. Paula comes to us most recently from Bechtel Jacobs in Oak Ridge in the engineering dept for almost three years.
Paula and her husband Brent were married in 1991 and settled in Lenoir City. They have two beautiful children, Chelsea (1985), who lives in Knoxville and Corey (1993), a student Lenoir City High School. Paula has been involved and passionate in the youth ministry for over fourteen years. When they came to Two Rivers…they did not just want to Wade In — they wanted to jump in! Paula is the High School Freshman Girl’s Leader at FUEL and plans to walk with them through their senior year. She also has helped build C3 Youth Leadership Team this past year consisting of 12 core students.
Paula now serves on the staff at Two Rivers as Student Ministries Administrative Assistant, helping to develop the Student Ministries program. She is pursuing and has started building education in Christian Counseling as part of her role in Student Ministries. She believes that God pursued, He prepared and He placed her right in the heart of Two Rivers and she looks forward to expanding His Kingdom!
You can contact Paula at 865-777-2121 ext. 325 or paula.howell@tworiverschurch.org.
Debra Sparks
Worship Arts/Programming & Danny Matthews' Assistant
Debra was born in England and was raised in British Columbia, Canada. She moved to Tennessee in spring of 2009 and married her husband Randy, a Knoxville native. Their blended family now consists of two sons and four daughters: Jason, Amber, Kelsey, Twins (Hayley & Courtney) and Jakeb.
Debra left her career in Canada as a Finance & Business Administrator with a law firm for 5 years; she also has 20 years experience in the banking industry. Prior to joining Two Rivers Church, she supported her husband, a Senior Pastor in ministry. Debra was the volunteer coordinator and assisted in event planning.
Since such major life changes, Debra is embracing her favorite promise from God, Jeremiah 29:11. She is excited to join Two Rivers and is honored to have this opportunity to serve.
You can contact Debra at 865-777-2121 ext. 319 or at debra.sparks@tworiverschurch.org.
Kelley Hart
Bookkeeper
Kelley was raised in Loudon, graduating Loudon High in 1996. After spending two years at Carson-Newman College majoring in church recreation and youth ministry, she switched gears to focus on raising her family. She and her husband David have four children Alex (1999), Sophie (2001), Brett (2004), and Gracie (2005). Kelley also has a background in finance, which has allowed her to assist David in his Landscaping business.
Kelley and her family came to Two Rivers in the spring of 2008. She began serving in the Children’s Ministry later that year, and continues to enjoy serving as the first service coordinator for Sonseekers. Her husband David serves as a member of the tech team, as well as ACTS II, and The Crew.
Kelley joined the staff part-time in August 2009 as the Children’s Ministry Assistant. She was hired on full-time a year later and became bookkeeper at the end of 2010. She is excited... and humbled at the same time, to be part of the ministry here at Two Rivers. She is enthusiastic about being part of a church family dedicated to loving the world as Christ loves us!
You can contact Kelley at 865-777-2121 ext. 349 or at kelley.hart@tworiverschurch.org.
NaCole Monger
Mainstreaming & Care Asst & Children’s Ministry Asst.
NaCole is a native of Loudon as is her husband Gregg. They have been married for 17 years and have 2 children Lexi (16) and Evan (12). They joined Two Rivers in 2009. She and Gregg serve as Appalachian leaders with Feeding God’s Children and volunteer with Lost Sheep Ministries. She is excited to be part of such a serving church body and can’t wait to see what else God has planned.
You can contact NaCole at 865-777-2121 ext. 349 or at nacole.monger@tworiverschurch.org
Rod Harper
Director of Facilities
Rod was born in Detroit but spent most of his life in the Bradenton, Florida area. He and his wife, Kerry Jo, have one child, Lindsay(1987) who will be attending graduate school at UT’s College of Social Work.
After serving in the Navy as a Radioman, Rod had various businesses such as auto restoration, home improvement, boat design and video editing. He was actively involved in volunteer work at his church in Florida; buildings & grounds, stewardship, new building construction, and youth director.
While visiting their best friends for several years, they fell in love with east Tennessee and it’s 4 seasons compared to Florida’s 1 season. In March 2010 they moved into their new home in Louisville which was designed and built by Rod. They both are very excited about their new life in Tennessee. Rod now serves on the staff of Two Rivers Church as the Facility Director. He is excited and humbled to be a part of God's church family once again.
You can contact Rod at 865-777-2121 or at rod.harper@tworiverschurch.org
Interns
Jonathan Carone
High School Pastor Intern
Jonathan comes to Two Rivers from the small, semi-redneckian town of King, North Carolina and he will argue with you that North Carolina is the greatest state on the planet. After transferring colleges twice, he graduated from Liberty University in May 2008 with a Bachelor’s Degree in Sport Management with a minor in Coach (yes, that's a real minor). After graduation, Jonathan immediately enrolled in graduate school at Liberty to work on a Master of Arts in Teaching.
After fighting with God for a while and trying to change His mind, he reluctantly switched over to the Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary. Even after enrolling in seminary he was still trying to change God’s mind about what he was supposed to do with his life. Finally he gave up and said, “Alright God, I’m in. I’ll do this.” In May of 2010, Jonathan graduated from LBTS with a Master of Arts in Student Ministry. He is currently four classes away from a Master of Arts in Evangelism and Church Planning and plans to finish that within the next two years.
While in college, Jonathan interned and worked for the Liberty Football program for a total of 2.5 years. During this time he started a club on campus, known as The LUnatics, to help increase school spirit and enhance the atmosphere at home and away games. After his first year of graduate school, he was offered a full-time graduate assistant position with Liberty Athletics as their video content coordinator and worked that job for a year before coming to Two Rivers.
Jonathan is obsessed with the idea of growing up, Liberty athletics, and the restaurant Cook Out. In his free time he enjoys playing music very badly, writing, and being awesome.
You can contact Jonathan at 865-777-2121 or jonathan.carone@tworiverschurch.org.
Lara Lazenby
High School Pastor Intern
Lara grew up in a bustling suburb of Birmingham, Alabama. On a mission trip during fall break, while sleeping on a hard gym floor surrounded by middle schoolers, she felt the Lord calling her to youth ministry.
From there, her journey took her to the steps of Baylor University where she spent the next four years deep in the heart of Central Texas. While at Baylor she became plugged in with her local church’s youth group, where she volunteered as a youth leader. When she wasn’t at church, she was giving tours of campus in big buses with her fancy commercial truck driving license or planning events around campus. In May she graduated with a B.A. in Public Relations and a minor in Religion.
After graduation Lara was determined to get out of Texas and back to the real south, which led her to Two Rivers.
Lara loves social media, loves planning events, and is a self-proclaimed Master of photography, able to boost anyone’s Facebook photo count in a matter of minutes. She has been known to throw some of the best surprise parties and has a fatal attraction to funfetti cupcakes and cake balls.
You can contact Lara at 865-777-2121 or lara.lazenby@tworiverschurch.org.
Alex Lehmicke
Middle School Pastor Intern
Alex Lehmicke was born and raised in the icy tundra of Oakdale Minnesota, where he spent most of his time shoveling snow and grooming his sled dogs. Having grown weary of Minnesota, he packed up his stuff and moved one state over to the land of cheese and cows, where he studied and graduated from the University of Wisconsin: Stout, with degree in Psychology and a minor in Cognitive Neuroscience.
While attending Stout, he was involved with Campus Crusade for Christ and his church’s middle school youth group. Putting his psychology degree to good use after graduation, he moved back to Minnesota and picked up work with a catering company that he had worked for in the summers past. Knowing all along that God had called him to ministry, and being the great listener he is, ignored Gods call for about a year. Finally he decided to start listening to God, and was shortly after hired as an intern here at two rivers church.
Alex enjoys many activities such as ultimate Frisbee, disc golf, rock climbing, pretty much anything outdoors for that matter, and anything that has the word extreme in front of it. He also enjoys hanging out and being crazy with the middle school students and teaching them about God!
