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Staff 

Joel Engman

Lead Pastor | email 

Since joining Harmony Springs in December of 2012, Pastor Joel has led the church through physical and organizational change. Joel has overseen the development of Harmony Springs Center, a non-profit community center and newly constructed home of the church. 

 

Joel has led Harmony Springs through a multi-year visioning process that has moved the church to look beyond passivity to proactive welcome and inclusion for spiritual refugees. Pastor Joel is excited to lead a church dedicated to authentic community, meaningful spirituality, and loving action.  

Born and raised a Northeast Ohio Cleveland sports fan, Joel knows the grit and determination found here! He has been married to Emily since 2005 and together parent 3 boys and 1 girl - a big family! They have a bernedoodle named Teddy who is a happy-go-lucky pup with a chill personality. He and his family enjoy camping with their travel trailer and traveling to anywhere warm and beachy.

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Joel enjoys checking out new local breweries, wine tasting in Geneva, and downing a Bario taco at a Cleveland baseball game. 

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Kim Barnett

Associate Pastor​ | email 

Pastor Kim serves Harmony Springs while also working as the Chaplain for Stow-Glen Retirement Center in Stow. 

Kim is the perfect Pastor to have in your corner if you are going through something hard, find yourself in the hospital or need a

listening ear.

After spending time with Pastor Kim you always leave feeling uplifted, encouraged and supported. 

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Kim is the head of the Stow Clergy Association and holds an MDiv from Ashland Theological Seminary. Kim is a certified chaplain who has served for over 20 years in ministry!

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Donna Gower

Operations Manager | email 

For 25+ years Donna has made sure all the details are taken care of at Harmony Springs. Donna is our bookkeeper, administrative guru and all around helpful person! If you need to know something about an event or check up on your financial support to the church Donna is the go-to.

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Donna lives with her husband Bob in Mogadore and stays busy spending time with her growing herd of grandchildren. She and Bob enjoy traveling and visiting family out of state. 

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Donna always has a positive attitude and smile. She's always happy to help answer any questions or coordinate ministry when needs arise.

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Kevin Poe

Youth & Justice | email 

 

Kevin is a philosophy and religious studies double major, with a focus on comparative religious philosophy, at the College of Wooster.

 

Kevin has a passion for multi-faith dialogue, social justice, and education.

 

Kevin is relatable, energetic and loves to encourage students to seek out their own answers while simultaneously promoting the virtues of open-mindedness, love and acceptance of all people, and critical thinking.

 

Kevin is an accomplished violinist who plays in the Wooster College Symphony,

 

In his free time he enjoys video games, cheering on the Cleveland Browns, loves Marvel movies, and enjoys nature. 

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Jennifer Berlyoung

Pastor of Diversity and Inclusion

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As a member of Harmony Springs staff since 2016, as Pastor of Diversity and Inclusion, Jennifer seeks to support equity and inclusion of LGBTQ persons in the church, creating a culture where all members feel seen and heard. Jennifer brings a passion for welcome, belonging, and education. 

 

Jennifer lives in Green, Ohio with her husband; they have two young adult children.

 

Jennifer graduated from United Theological Seminary in 2017 and was ordained a Minister in the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in 2019. 

Walter Franz

Wally-of-All Trades 

email 

 

Everybody loves and counts on Wally at Harmony Springs. Wally is always happy to pitch in by setting up tables or sound equipment. Wally leads our setup and tear down team at Harmony Springs but his responsibilities go far beyond that. 

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You'll find Wally on Sunday mornings buzzing around brewing coffee, setting up our sound system, moving chairs around and enjoying catching up with all of us.

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We joking call him our Wally-of-All-Trades because if you need to know where something is, get something fixed, or a task done - he's the go-to.

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Wally has helped see Harmony Springs through meeting in temporary spaces and enjoys making sure everything runs smoothly. 

Terry Fairfax

Music Director

email 

Terry coordinates and directs all the music at Harmony Springs. Terry's years of musical experience and talent have allowed him to develop an incredible musical vibe. His positive attitude and creative spirit lead to innovatively produced musical collaborations that focus on the juncture of spirituality and love.

 

 Terry began playing piano at age 4, and gave his first public performances not long after that, playing piano and singing at school and church, in recitals and concerts.  From 1982 through 1997, he performed live, wrote, arranged and recorded music throughout the United States, sharing the stage and studio with a broad range of artists, including 70s dance hit masters LaFlavour, the world’s best Beatles tribute 1964, The Tribute, The Phil Palumbo Orchestra, Jonah Koslen and Breathless, Donnie Iris and the Cruisers producer/composer Mark Avsec, smooth jazz artists Hemisphere, Sonny Geraci (the Outsiders and Klimaxx), John Bowman (Sha Na Na’s “Bowser”), stage and screen star Carol Lawrence, Cleveland classic rockers My Old School, and many others. 

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He also served as Music Director for the Cleveland Indians at Jacobs Field for the 1994 through 2001 baseball seasons.  After earning Bachelor of Arts degrees in both Music and Philosophy from the University of Akron, Ohio, he completed his law studies at the University of Akron School of Law and took a few years off from playing music to pursue other interests.

Terry recently completed his first solo recording, LOVE, produced and engineered by Donny Thompson and featuring some of Northeast Ohio's finest musical talent,

 

For more information on his duo, trio and band shows check out terryfairfaxmusic.com

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Kristy Doering

Harmony Grows

Garden Director

email 

 

As our Harmony Grows Garden Director, Kristy brings her education and experience to task. Kristy has has a lifelong love of environmental science since her days as a girl scout and she earned her bachelor’s degree in Environmental Studies from Kent State University in 2018.

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Kristy works to find sustainable solutions to problems which are harming ecosystems and disproportionately impacting people who are struggling. With the Harmony Grows 501(c)3, Kristy manages a donation garden, community garden, CSA, and educational programs.

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Kristy is the proud mother of three amazing, (sometimes truly wild), young men, Andrew, Nicholas, and Sam, who always keep her on her toes and thoroughly entertained.

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She enjoys spending time outdoors with her family camping and going on new adventures. Her hobbies include hiking, gardening, and kayaking at the Nimisila Reservoir. She also loves all kinds of animals and has several different types of pets. Kristy enjoys traveling, exploring our amazing local geology, reading, writing, and learning about anything and everything.

 

 

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Liz Hibbs

Director of Children's Faith Formation

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As the Director of the Children’s Faith Formation, Liz is tasked with empowering our elementary age students through 6 th grade to embrace their potential to be change agents in the community and the world thru servant leadership.

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Liz has been married to her husband, Jesse, since 2004 and they've been together since 2001.  They have two daughters, Sage and Morgan.  Liz's mom, Patricia Wilson, also lives with them.

 

Liz is the Executive Director of a educational nonprofit organization and has been in the field of education more than 20 years. She had experience as a school administrator and Senior Manager/Superintendent of Schools. Liz holds Masters degrees in Educational Administration, Technology and Curriculum and Instruction. She’s currently a Doctoral student at Youngstown State University.

 

In 2020, Liz was selected to participate in the first ever fellowship program for Groundwork Ohio. Through this fellowship, she collaborated with early childhood leaders and Ohio state legislators to address policy while driving change through amplified voices. She continues to do so today in her community and at the state and federal level.

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Liz enjoys spending time with her family and attending festivals/local events.  She loves concerts, reading, and animals.

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We are excited to welcome Liz into our church family and to entrust our younger family to her guidance.

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