Ben Paroulek, Associate Pastor
Ben joined Valley on January 18, 2002 as Interim Associate Pastor for Congregational Care and Christian Nurture. His last name is pronounced “pa roll eck”. His focus is on three primary areas:
- Steering the worship planning and preaching
- Pastoral care, hospital calling and “special life events” such as funerals and weddings
- Serving alongside other church leaders and staff members in areas of church administration
He describes his current calling as follows...
I am committed to a ministry that serves children, youth, and adults in their quest for spiritual growth, social engagement, and mission to the world. I serve as a recruiter, a catalyst, and a leader. I believe in collaboration - working, learning, and working together. Equipped with specialized skills in the area of Christian Nurture, I approach my ministry as a leader/nurturer, one who walks with others to confront challenges of Christian living, values, and decision making in our modern age. In worship, I employ a variety of worship styles including traditional and comtemporary. Recently, my focus has been on interim ministry. This has been very rewarding and has helped me to understand the challenges that churches face when pastors leave. By the way, I am a guitar playing, folk music enthusiast, and calligrapher.
Ben was born and raised in Azuza, California and is a third generation Presbyterian minister. He and his wife, Suzanne, have two grown children. His formal education includes a B.A. in Linguistics from California State University at Fullerton and post graduate education from Claremont School of Theology, Graduate Theological Union in Berkley, and a M. Div. from San Francisco Theological Seminary in 1977.
He has served as a Director of Education and Associate Pastor at another Valley church, San Ramon Valley Methodist Church in Danville, CA.
Ben moved to Portland in 1980 and has lived since then in southwest Portland. He spent 15 years as an Associate Pastor at St. Andrews Presbyterian Church, four years as the Designated Pastor for Redevelopment at Piedmont Presbyterian Church in Portland, and two years as Interim Pastor and Head of Staff of Southminster Presbyterian Church. He has also served as Director of the Patton Home Residential Care Facility. He has been active in community service, including Boy Scouts, as a coach at Bridlemile Soccer Club, and chairs of several committees for Portland Habitat for Humanity. |
Rebecca Chancellor, Associate Pastor
Rebecca Chancellor was raised in Stillwater, Oklahoma and graduated from Oklahoma State University with a bachelor’s degree in education. She graduated from Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary in 2008 with her Master of Divinity degree, and she has been serving as Director of Youth and Children’s Ministries at University Presbyterian Church in Austin, Texas for the past six years. Rebecca comes to Valley with rich experience of serving the young church and their families while integrating the voice of youth into the life of the whole church. |
