At Chatham Church we believe in an all y'all approach to leadership. Our church family is led by a group of men and women who subscribe to Jesus' model of servant leadership as they serve our congregation. They provide strategic and organizational leadership, shepherding, and guidance for Chatham Church. They pray a lot, they meet a lot, they wade through a lot of details, and they care for people in hard times. Through all this, they help to work out God's purposes for our church and for our community. Keep these leaders in your prayers as they seek to love and lead our church family.
James Allen - Elder
James is a senior sales engineer, marketing director, and project manager for a Boston-based software company. He is an Army veteran and graduate of Regent University in Virginia Beach, VA. He and his wife Lisa have two sons and live in Chapel Hill.
"Chatham Community Church is the first "Big Tent" Church I've ever had the privilege of attending. The all-are-welcome, open-air-tent mentality is refreshing, enjoyable and aptly suited for connecting with each other and with God so with one heart we can reach Chatham county for good."
Holly Anderson - Deacon
Holly is married to her high school sweetheart Jay ( who plays bass in the worship band). They enjoy traveling to visit kids and grandchildren in Switzerland and Oregon. She serves on the welcome and mission teams and is a member of Harbor Women’s Bible study.
"What I enjoy the most about being Deacon of Connection is being the friendly face to newcomers. Connecting them to a small group or ministry and being a contact person for questions they may have has been very rewarding."
Betty Davis - Deacon
Betty leads the Congregational Care ministry, finding volunteers to help those in need. She has retired from a 30-year career in health care and is a graduate of Forsyth Memorial Hospital School of Nursing. Gardening and cooking are her hobbies. She and her husband Wade have two children and two grandchildren.
"We found Chatham Community Church while looking for a contemporary church close to home. Sunday services were held at Woods Charter School at the time. It was a perfect fit and we never looked elsewhere!"
Chris Dekaney - Elder
Chris and his wife Cynthia have been attending Chatham Community Church since 2007 after moving to Pittsboro with their 5 children from Houston, Texas. Chris works as a medical science liaison in the pharmaceutical industry and formerly worked in academia as a researcher. Chris and Cynthia met while attending Texas A&M University.
"I enjoy being a part of the vision we have at Chatham Community Church of connecting people to God and each other."
Karen Foust - Deacon
Karen leads the Focus Ministries providing support and guidance to the leaders of those ministries including Women’s and Men’s Ministry, Cancer Compassion, Financial Peace University, GriefShare, and DivorceCare. She also led our Frontline Worker support ministry at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. Karen worked in IT providing software solutions to Research and Development at a large pharmaceutical company for 25 years. Since leaving the corporate work life in 2016, Karen has been serving the Chatham County community through her work on the Advisory Board of the Chatham YMCA, as an Extension Master Gardener Volunteer, and as a board member and officer of her HOA. She is a graduate of Virginia Tech and enjoys gardening, hiking, photography, and competing with her dogs.
"From the moment I walked into Woods Charter in January 2011 I knew Chatham Community Church was special. I am blessed and honored to work with and be loved by a staff and church community that has a heart for Jesus, each other and connecting with our neighbors."
Michael Gaffigan - Elder
Michael is a project manager for an educational testing company based in Durham. He and his wife Cooley have lived in Carrboro for over 29 years, and lead a small group that meets at Weaver Street Market. They have been attending Chatham Church for nine years. They have two adult children, Ian and Charlene, and are blessed with a kind, generous daughter-in-law, Dominique, and two grandchildren, 10-year-old twins, Autumn and Corey.
"I love the commitment of Chatham Church to connect the people of Chatham County to God, and to help us all thrive in a Jesus–centered community. The genuine warmth, caring, and grace that is manifest in the Chatham Church community, and its focus on helping all of us thrive in our life in Jesus, make Chatham Church the spiritual home we had longed for and are glad we found! ."
Mark Hall - Elder
Mark is a North Carolina native and has lived in several places across the state, from the coast to the mountains. He grew up attending Lutheran churches, but he committed fully to God in his mid twenties. Before moving to Chatham County, he and his wife served in several capacities at a Baptist church in Sanford. He and his family mostly attend our Church's Chatham Mills campus, where he often helps with parking, ushering, announcements, and other needs as they arise and his family serves on the worship team and for Chatham kids.
Robert Hill - Elder
Robert’s family has been in NC for generations. Having grown up Methodist, in his early twenties he found God’s calling to serve in various church positions and ministries. He and Tamsey met while living at the coast and moved inland where they continued to serve in ministry together. Robert has continued a career with Duke Energy while he and Tamsey enjoy their Pittsboro homestead and hosting an incredible small group. They started attending Chatham Community Church in 2016.
"Through knowing Christ, we have the foundation to accomplish anything without fear. Philippians 2:10 helps me make this stand .....'that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth'. What an awesome approach to taking on each day!"
Paul Kamen - Elder
Paul works in IT leadership at a non-profit technology organization in RTP. He and his wife Sonia are graduates of UNC, lead a small group in Briar Chapel, and have two children. Paul was born in Minnesota and spent most of his teen years in Charlotte before moving to the Chapel Hill area for college where he's lived ever since. He and his family were attending a church in Cary in 2013, struggling to get more involved due to the distance, when they received CCC's Christmas flyer in the mail and decided to check out the new sermon series Alex was starting in January. After the first service they decided to come back for the rest of the series. By the end of the second service, they knew CCC was their new church home!
"Our initial impression that everyone at Chatham Community Church is so welcoming and authentic has only been reinforced over the years, and the church-wide, Jesus-like heart for serving remains evident through the extraordinarily high rate of volunteerism, programs like DAART and Chatham Serves as well as generous benevolence giving to those in need within our surrounding community."
Ernie Lane - Elder
Ernie was born and raised in Wilmington, North Carolina. He went to East Carolina University for a degree in Athletic Training. Ernie has experienced jobs in athletics, financial institutions and teaching. Ernie and his wife Katie moved to Pittsboro in 2010 and have been a part of CCC since 2011. They have two wonderful daughters Riley and Kylee. Ernie has enjoyed his walk with the Lord and has seen it grow in recent years. He will work with both campuses in their day-to-day, and special event operations for CCC, nonprofits, and church partners. Ernie enjoys spending time with Katie and the girls, friends, listening to music, and pursuing a pastoral calling.
"There is something special about Chatham Community Church, the relationships that grow here. I started serving the church and it changed me, but that is just one way of connection here. There are small groups, Chatham Serves projects, Chatham Kids, Mosaic Youth Ministry, and so much more that connect us to each other and God!"
Rachel Matthews - Deacon
Rachel leads CCC's Special Events Team. She leads church wide events throughout the year including Chatham Serves and Volunteer Appreciation. Rachel also coordinates holiday decorations, enjoys the youngest Chatham Kids, and serving on the AV team, and the Lead team. Rachel is a native North Carolinian, became a Christian at 12, graduated from UNC, where she met her husband, Mark, and they have two grown children.
"CCC is a place of joy to serve the Lord, and to walk the journey of faith that is committed to serving our neighbors as an expression of God’s great love for them. It is one of the many joys of my Christian journey and I am grateful to have been a part of CCC since 2006."
Linda Sands - Deacon
Linda serves as the Treasurer and is the liaison between the Leadership Team and the Finance Team. She often plays the keyboard on the Worship Team as well. She is newly retired from being a veterinarian and owner of Dogwood Veterinary Hospital. She and her husband, Steve, enjoy playing games, especially with their children and six grandchildren.
"I especially love seeing how God has moved and grown CCC over the past 10 years. It may surprise you to know that He even shows up very specifically in the numbers!"
Steve Sands - Deacon
Steve and his wife Linda have been members of Chatham Community Church since 2012. He is retired from pharmaceutical and compounding pharmacy sales and marketing management. He enjoys supporting and counseling people in need in our community and leads the benevolence efforts within the church.
"I am honored and challenged to support people in our community who are going through difficult seasons of life. Many who we assist are experiencing loss, insufficiency, heartache, physical pain and inability to cope. We are able as a church, to help support, guide and comfort these children of God into His light of hope, solutions and resolve."