Register for the Difficult Conversations Lunch & Learn
About Sean Nemecek
Sean is the author of The Weary Leader’s Guide to Burnout: A Journey from Exhaustion to Wholeness and co-host of the Hope Renewed podcast. He brings 18 years of pastoral experience to his work in caring for pastors. Sean has written over 100 articles for his blog, “The Pastor’s Soul,” where he’s working to combat pastoral burnout by training churches to care for their pastors and training pastors to care for their own souls.
Sean is married to Amy, an award-winning poet and non-fiction book editor. Together they have one son.
About Roy Yanke
God’s servants need hope! Roy’s personal experience has shaped him in unique ways to come alongside the many pastors and their families who are “exited,” have fallen or are just plain burned out in ministry. He pastored for 17 years in an evangelical denomination. As the result of a major “crash and burn”, Roy experienced both the discipline and the grace of God through years of slow but steady growth, restoration, and renewed hope. Prior to joining PIR Ministries in 2012, Roy spent 16 years working in a variety of manufacturing environments, including most recently as Quality Manager for a growing company.
Roy currently serves as the Director of International Ministries where he oversees and supports our work in Zimbabwe. Prior to that, he served as the Executive Director of PIR Ministries. He continues to interact regularly with pastors who need a fresh dose of the message of restoration and renewal in Christ. Roy has been a workshop presenter for a variety of ministry seminars around the country on the topic of pastoral self-care. He has been the principal speaker for pastor’s retreats, a guest lecturer at Grand Rapids Theological Seminary and is a ministry coach. Roy writes regularly for Biblical Leadership.org and the Institute for Congregational Trauma and Growth.
Roy and his wife, Deb, have been married for 48 years, have one married daughter and two amazing grandchildren. Roy is an ordained ruling elder in the Evangelical Presbyterian Church. He is a graduate of William Tyndale College.
Because there is joy to be found in life… Roy play bass in the worship band, enjoys jazz music and hockey, and his new puppy, Strider.
Follow Roy’s blog at: An Encouraging Word
About Karol Gee
Karol finds great joy in performing administrative tasks. After serving as the Church Administrator at her home church for 22 years, she joined the staff of PIR in July of 2022 as their Administrative Assistant. She has the desire to serve God by organizing, administering, promoting, and helping the team with their various needs.
Karol accepted Christ at the age of 24. Since then, she has served with children, youth, women, and small groups. She has also been a Deacon for multiple terms. She is continually seeking God’s Way and Will for her life, and messes up along the way, which is why she stays in the Word and is thankful that God’s mercies are new every morning!
Karol is married to Jim, has three grown children who have all chosen wonderful spouses, and one grandson – all of whom bring great happiness to her life. When not working, she enjoys taking walks with her two Shelties, Levi & Max, and “organizing” things. She also loves spending weekends at their summer home in western Michigan where she enjoys sitting by the pool, putzing in her flower garden and doing yard work.
About Joe Chambers
Joe Chambers has been an ordained Baptist pastor since 1984. He recently retired from pastoring Mountain Heights Church in Buena Vista, Colorado, after serving in that role for ten years. He served churches in Oklahoma, Colorado, and Washington state.
Currently, he is the spiritual director for Crossroads Counseling of the Rockies. He studied at Oklahoma Baptist University and completed a two-year certification program in Soul Care from the Potter’s Inn Soul Care Institute and Fuller Seminary.
Joe has been greatly influenced by Henri Nouwen, Dallas Willard, Eugene Peterson, Wendell Berry, and many poets, both contemporary and ancient. He founded Sacred Journey Ministries and wrote "Walking Ancient Paths: A Liturgy for the Sacred Journey" and "Field Notes on the Jesus Way."
He lives with his wife, Lynette, at the base of Mt. Princeton. Joe is an avid reader and writer who enjoys telling stories and spending time in the wilderness.
About Jason Eddy
Jason and his wife Stephanie have three children. Jason has served in pastoral ministry for over 20 years, most recently as a Regional Director for PIR since 2014 and as Executive Pastor at Bethel Church, Janesville, Wi since 2014.
Jason’s passion is to encourage healthy leaders to bear fruit for the great commission. He regularly comes alongside pastors and their families as they navigate the challenges of church leadership. Jason prefers to be known as an ordinary guy who loves Jesus.
Jason, Stephanie, and their girls love time on the lake, traveling to Florida, and enjoying pizza and a movie together.
About Tim Young
Tim has a heart to walk with people in ministry. He has served the church for almost 25 years in various pastoral roles. He has lived in the joys and challenges of pastoral ministry and understands the pressures pastors and their families face.
Having navigated his own healing journey, he has experienced points of God’s miraculous grace—those moments where God breaks through as only God can. He has also learned to live in God’s sustaining grace—when He gives enough grace for each day as we persevere through hard times.
God has uniquely prepared him to serve with PIR as a Regional Director to offer help, healing, and hope to those serving in pastoral ministry. He believes this work is more important and vital than ever before. Tim is a certified Spiritual Director and enjoys opportunities to coach and mentor pastors.
Tim and Jewel have been married for 30 years and have four children. They currently live in Sandusky, Ohio
About Mike Powell
Mike and his Wife Tracy, who have been married for 40 years, live in Alexandria, Virginia. They have three adult children and two grandkids.
He attended Philadelphia College of Bible, currently known as Carin University, and has held a variety of roles in the local church. He currently serves as a Pastoral Associate at Alexandria Presbyterian Church in discipling, mentoring, teaching, preaching, and leading small groups.
Mike has a shepherd's heart and desires to see those in the body of Christ grow deeper in their understanding of God's amazing grace and the good news of the gospel.
About Bryan Gregory
Bryan has nearly 20 years of pastoral ministry experience, having served in churches in North Carolina, Missouri, and Michigan. Before that, he and his wife, Christy, served in college ministry on a campus in the Pacific Northwest. Pastors and their families have always been on Bryan's heart, especially as they navigate the increasingly difficult challenges of ministry.
In his own healing journey, he has come to a deeper appreciation of God’s grace, and finds daily nourishment through historic Christian practices, such as Lectio Divina, the Daily Examen, and the daily offices of the Book of Common Prayer. Chances are, you'll find him tucked away with a book or listening to music, having a deep conversation over a hot cup of chai, or out with Christy hiking the National Parks.
About Leonard Mukoma
Leonard was raised by parents who were very religious. He tried his best to attend family rituals and to go through most of the church ordinances, but was not saved. He gave his life to Christ on the 27th of November 1995 at a revival that was held near his village.
Currently, Leonard is pastoring a church and working with Inter-denominational programs in his town. He’s also involved in church planting, evangelism and also has a passion for kid’s ministries. He’s serving his 16th year in his local pastor’s fraternal, holding different positions, coordinating programs and he’s learning a lot from working with pastors from different denominations.
By God’s grace, Leonard initiated a bible school in 2019, which is training pastors and church leaders for free.
Leonard has experienced difficult times in ministry that led to burnout, and many times he felt like he was heading for a crash. Most of the challenges shaped him to be the kind of a leader he is today.
About Brian Magwenzi
Brian’s vocational experience includes working in the financial sector for almost twenty years, during which time he also began to serve in the local church - in the youth department, evangelism and administration. It was during this time when he felt the call to pastoral ministry. For the past twenty plus years he has been a pastor in the local church. Brian has also volunteered in various Christian organizations - Operation Christmas Child (Samaritan’s Purse) as National Prayer Coordinator, Scripture Union Zimbabwe as National Chairperson and in leading pastors at both the local and Provincial level within the Evangelical church.
He has also been active in conflict prevention and transformation within organizations and communities that are polarized. His work includes facilitating church leaders and training them how they can help in conflict challenges within their church spheres.
About Taurai Matokwe
Taurai has a deep passion for the wellbeing of pastors in Zimbabwe. He joined our Regional Director, Leonard Mukoma, as a Regional Representative in August of 2023. He has been a support to the work in Zimbabwe, sharing his expertise as a certified financial planner and coach with the pastors there.
He is an Elder at Grace Abounding Baptist Church an affiliate of National Baptist Church of Zimbabwe (NBCZ) and is a former High School Accounting teacher. He also serves as Dean (part-time) of Dei Institute Online University's Dei Entrepreneurship School (Tanzania) and volunteers with the Leadership Church Planting Network (LPCN) as a Christian Personal Financial Management Trainer for pastors and church leaders.
Taurai is married and has three children.
About Tom Jameson
Tom Jameson serves as a Regional Director with PIR Ministries, bringing over 35 years of ministry experience to his role. Having served in a variety of church settings and positions, he brings a unique understanding and perspective to navigating life in ministry.
Tom is passionate about serving others, particularly in ways that bring new insight to God’s grace and mercy, and renewed hope in seasons of pain, discouragement, or uncertainty. His own story is one of profound redemption and restoration. He loves to have genuine conversations that explore God’s possibilities.
Tom grew up in Woodstock, New York and with his wife Cindy and three girls migrated westward to Indiana after attending Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary. If he can’t be playing with his grandson, then you’ll find him building something out of wood or cheering on the Red Sox!
About Beth Laury
Beth is an ordained pastor, spiritual director, retreat leader, mentor, and consultant to churches. She has a Master of Arts in Spiritual Formation and Direction from Richmont Graduate University; is a graduate of the Renovaré Institute, and holds a certificate of training to provide the Ignatian Spiritual Exercises from Westmont College/Martin Institute in conjunction with the Jesuit Institute of South Africa. Beth is a Level 1 Certified Christian Trauma Care Provider and Level II ©iEnneagram Motions of the Soul Harmony Triads Practitioner. As a pastor who was wounded and rejected while loving and serving the body of Christ, she has travelled the road of forgivenness and reconciliation. Beth cares deeply for pastors who are doubting, broken, burned-out, suffering, or seeking more of God. She and her husband have two young adult children.
About Rosemary Lukens
For the past 19 years, Rosemary has provided coaching and consulting services to a diverse array of people and organizations – including ministry leaders, physicians, executive leaders, managers, staff, and non-profit organizations – helping them with their relationships, strategy, and goal-setting. Rosemary has strong relationship skills; assisting hospitals, physician groups, city governments, universities and churches adopt practices and build cultures that appreciate and embrace change, improve performance and optimize talent.
Rosemary is a Registered Nurse who graduated with an MA in Applied Behavioral Science, with a specialty in Coaching and Consulting in Organizations, from the Leadership Institute of Seattle at Bastyr University. She is a certified Spiritual Director, Lay Counselor, and Ruling Elder in the Evangelical Presbyterian Church.
About Anne Horton
Anne was ordained as a Presbyterian pastor in 2001 and has pastored three churches—two as a solo pastor and one as an associate pastor. She has served on a variety of Presbytery committees that focus on caring for pastors in crisis. She has training in conflict management from the Lombard Mennonite Peace Center, has a Spiritual Direction Certificate from NewWay Ministries, is a Certified Christian Leadership Coach, and has her Executive Coaching certificate.
After experiencing burnout in her second church, she spent a year at International House of Prayer in Kansas City, MO, taking time to slow down and confront her tendency to overwork. A clergy couple began mentoring her and she experienced the benefit of coaching for the first time.
Now residing in Cedarville, OH, she has been the pastor of Cedarville United Presbyterian Church since 2011 and currently serves as the President of the CedarCliff Ministerial Association.
About Jason Yum
Jason has been an ordained minister in the Evangelical Presbyterian Church since 2013, however his ministry experience spans across two decades as he has been heavily involved in church ministry since 2001. He has served on the pastoral staff of three churches: two separate EPC churches in Berkeley, CA, near Seattle, WA plus a predominantly Asian church based in Atlanta. Each of his church staff experiences was unique and Jason intimately knows the struggles involved with exiting churches for a variety of reasons.
Joining PIR Ministries as a Volunteer Regional Representative is in many ways a providential opportunity for Jason as he has personally benefited from the wisdom and guidance of PIR leaders at key moments in his ministry career through what may have seemed like chance encounters, but in hindsight were God-ordained. Also, in his years since being involved in full-time ministry, Jason has met and engaged with a number of pastors and ministry workers who have exited churches, and so he is looking forward to continuing these types of conversations with the added empowerment and backing of PIR Ministries.
About Jim Amanda's
For 30 years, Jim has served as the lead pastor of Highlands Community Church, which has grown from a neighborhood congregation of 700 to a regional ministry with over 2,000 people attending, 35 staff members, and more than 800 volunteer leaders. Jim was the very first “Pastor-in-Residence” when Dr. Wickman began the program. During his tenure at Highlands Community Church, Jim initiated the Pastor-in-Residence program as a regular ministry of the church and dozens of pastors returned to active ministry with new hope.
Jim has trained executive leaders in Eastern Europe, Africa and Asia. He holds a doctorate in organizational leadership in churches/nonprofit organizations from Fuller Theological Seminary, a Master of Theology from Dallas Theological Seminary and a Master's in Counseling from The Seattle School. He serves as a Licensed Mental Health Counselor at the CoHear/BCS clinics in Bellevue and Tukwila, and has served as an adjunct professor of conflict resolution at Northwest Seminary.
"I have been married for over 45 years to my best friend, Lauri. We're blessed with four children. We love to hike, travel and anything involving water. You'll find me wakeboarding, scuba diving, boating and enjoying Starbucks coffee."
About Robin Schmidt
Following Jesus since she heard about his offer of forgiveness through Young Life in high school, Robin has had a variety of work experience, but finds she is happiest when she can work on behalf of something she is passionate about.
Passionate about reading and education, she worked as a Title 1 teacher’s aide helping kids learn to read and served on her local school board. Passionate about writing and God’s kingdom she published a book of essays Choosing Comedy, Scenes from God’s Sitcom. In her book Robin shares her understanding of comedy and tragedy as analogy for the gospel. Using stories from her own life, she relates what she has learned about life’s major conflict and what it means to choose comedy.
Robin has always had a heart for those who serve God and his Church as pastors. She served as PIR’s administrative assistant for four years and is now enrolled as a distance learner at Western Theological Seminary in Holland, Michigan. While studying for a Graduate Certificate in Pastoral Ministry, Robin actively shares the resources and renewal that PIR Ministries offers to those who shepherd God’s sheep.
Robin is an elder at Mercy Road Church in Redford, Michigan, where she and Larry, her husband of forty plus years, both serve and occasionally preach. Robin and Larry have three grown children, and three rapidly growing grandchildren in whom they delight.
About Ed Lochmoeller
Ed began serving the Lord in 1972 as a volunteer youth director for a small church in rural Southern California. In 1978 he graduated from Point Loma Nazarene College and began working fulltime as an associate pastor in Fallbrook, CA.
He joined InFaith (an American Mission) in 1982, and has served in several ministry capacities with InFaith over the subsequent years: Church Missionary (pastor), Area Missionary in Southern California, Southern Regional Director and, ultimately, Chief Development Officer, Director of Ministry Resources, and Manager of Recruiting, Training, and Deputation. In these roles, Ed was involved in camping, VBS, church planting/growth, ministry development, and recruiting and caring for missionaries in fourteen states. Along the way, Ed earned a MBA from Azusa Pacific University.
In 2009, he became the National Director of PIR Ministries. Ed passed the leadership baton in 2016 and is enjoying his new role with PIR Ministries as he transitions into a new season of life.
Ed has both personal and ministry experience that qualifies him to work with those who have been exited from the pastorate or a ministry responsibility. He knows firsthand the pain and emotional trauma that goes with such a life-changing event.
Ed and his wife, Penni, are avid hikers, kayakers and enjoy their children and grandchildren.
About Kip Slawter
No stranger to difficulties, and with extensive experience as a pastor in the local church, Kip is able to identify and empathize with both pastors and churches who are struggling and hurting. Over the years, Kip has been involved in various types of vocational ministries beyond the local church; at a denominational level, in church planting (both nationally and internationally) as well as theological training and education.
In 2010 Kip was paralyzed as a result of a fall while riding a bicycle on a country road. Now a quadriplegic Kip conducts ministry from a power chair with the assistance of some great technology and a great deal of support from his wife and others. He believes his injury was not an accident, but another aspect of the ministry to which God has called him. Kip and Judy both welcome the opportunity to minister to other pastors and their families, especially in times of turmoil and uncertainty.
Kip and his wife, Judy, bring over 30 years of ministry experience to their work with PIR Ministries. They are currently residing in Newport News, VA. and have four grown children and seven grandchildren. Kip earned his D Min degree in 1979 from Covenant Theological Seminary and is a teaching elder in the Presbyterian Church in America.
