fellowship north speaks

a place to talk about what's going on at FN

Get to know: Alicia Emmerling

It’s a good thing Alicia Emmerling and Michelle Miller like each other. They share a small office downstairs at Fellowship North. Also, they share a job. Together, Alicia and Michelle are co-directors of WeeROCK (Alicia being the newest part of that team). WeeROCK is FN’s area for our very youngest people (birth – 4 years). On Sunday mornings, the middle floor of the Rock building is full of infants, toddlers, and preschoolers. More than 30 volunteers staff the classrooms each week, caring for the kids and leading them in crafts and activities planned especially for their ages. Alicia, along with Michelle, leads and coordinates it all.

Alicia and her husband, Sam, have been at FN since 2001, and she says that one of the reasons she wanted to take this job was the impact that WeeROCK had on her own family. There are 4 Emmerling kids: Thomas (21), Evan (13), Chloe (9), and Samantha (4). When the Emmerlings first came to FN, Evan was only 2, meaning he went to WeeROCK. A little later, Thomas began to volunteer there. Now their youngest will graduate out of WeeROCK this spring. “It’s been such a tremendous ministry to all of our kids,” says Alicia.

Previously, Alicia has worked as a nurse, and then has spent the last few years at home with her kids. Now that she’s on staff here, she says she’s really excited about new plans in store for WeeROCK, and the chance to get to know younger families at FN. Oh, and “I’m really glad to be part of the SUPER team!” she adds (and yes, the Student Ministries team really does refer to themselves that way). We’re excited to have her here!

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Get to know: David Holsted

Last week we told you a little more about Bruce Patterson, including the fact that he is no longer serving as our facilities director here at FN so that he can spend more time working in prison ministry. But don’t worry – our facilities will still be well taken care of, thanks to the fact that David Holsted has joined our staff. We are so excited to welcome him as our new facilities director! He’ll be taking care of maintenance issues in and around our buildings, and leading the volunteer teams that clean on Saturdays and care for the grounds.

David has been at Fellowship North for about 15 years; his wife, Jennifer, works with our elementary students. They have a 10 year old son, Jackson. David has a background in construction and worked in facility management while he was in college at Ole Miss. Most recently, he worked in law enforcement. When I asked him what he was enjoying about his new job so far, he said, “well, no one has cussed at me or threatened my family this week…so it’s definitely a better environment!” On a more serious note, he said “I really enjoy working with people who believe in the mission of this church the way that I do. I enjoy seeing people get plugged into things that they are passionate about. I think, for many people growing up, they think that if you can’t sing or preach, you don’t have a role in church. This (having volunteer teams that take care of our facility) is a great way to give people that role.”

- Sarabeth Jones

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Get to know: Jonathan Elder

Jonathan Elder recently joined our staff as part of the facilities team. He helps take care of our building, describing his job as “1/3 maintenance, 1/3 event set-up, and 1/3 cleaning.” When I talked with him, I found out that he has worked in a wide range of different jobs, even instructing aerobics in college! So I asked him what he enjoyed about this particular job and he told me that he has always enjoyed working with his hands, and that he likes being able to fix problems for people in a very practical way.

Jonathan grew up in Texarkana and has ended up here in North Little Rock with his wife of 4 months, Carissa. He came to Fellowship North through Patti Holoway, who is a lifelong friend of his mother. We are excited to have him as a part of our team, and look forward to all the ways his work will help Fellowship North live out our mission in this community. Welcome Jonathan!

Filed under: introducing

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