After prayerful consideration and due diligence; the elders are excited to recommend Tom Kopp as our next Lead Pastor. This announcement was made on Sunday, August 14th at both the 8am and 10:30am services after Tom had the opportunity to preach in-person. We are now asking for members* of KCC to prayerfully consider Tom for this position as well. A congregational vote will be held on Sunday, August 28th during both the 8am and 10:30am services to hopefully confirm the elders unanimous recommendation. If you are a member* and will not be able to attend services on August 28th , please seek out an elder to obtain an absentee ballot.
*If you are unsure about your membership with KCC please seek out an Elder or talk with Joe Druga.
Tom and Alana Kopp
I am a Pastor with more than 35 years of experience shepherding, leading, and culitivating people to love Jesus. My passion for ministry is best expressed through creating a culture where people are introduced to Jesus, equipped to use their gifts in ministry, and encouraged to continually take steps to grow you their faith. I grew up in a Christ-centered home and as a high school student, I fell in love with Jesus. I knew then I needed to fully surrender my life to Jesus and I have never looked back.
My wife Alana has been a follower of Jesus for her entire life. We met while we were both doing Youth Ministry for our respective churches. Professionaly she is an Elementary School Counselor and teaches online for Ottawa University. Caleb, our older son, works for Apple. And Stephen, our younger son, works for Hope International University. Stephen and Kenzie were recently married on July 16, 2022.
For the past 11 years I have been an Executive Pastor with Central Christian Church in Mesa AZ. There I supervised campus and associate pastors as well as lead community engagement. I also worked on ways to increase church member service in their communities. Prior to this position, I was the lead Pastor of CrossPoint Christian Church, in Glendale AZ. After 11 years as the lead Pastor, CrossPoint and Central decide to merge.
I love creating culture and working with a team. What I have experienced in my visits to KCC is a healthy church that has mature leadership. What excites me is the opportunity to work together to create a vision that cares for and inspires the congregation. I want to work together to create a culture where each person is living a life on mission with God rather than seeking to sin less. (Yes, I want people to sin less, but I am more focused on helping people to fall deeply in love with Jesus – leading them to sin less.)
My top three spiritual gifts are Leadership, Teaching, and Encouragment. I lead through collaboration and engagement. I will work with the elders and staff to set a vision. Then, we will work together to engage people in living out this vision. My teaching style is to help people see how a Biblical truth applies to their life and then inspire and equip them to live out this truth. My pastoral heart is deeply rooted in my desire to encourage people and to care for their needs.
Evangelism is a passionate gift of mine, too. We (the church) should all have a high priority for the gift of evangelism.
The disease that I have in my eyes is called Retinitis Pigmentosa (RP). It affects me in three ways. It diminishes my night vision, slows the transition of my eyes from being in bright light to dark light, and reduces my peeripheral vision to approximatley 12-15% (normal is 150%).
I have learned to overcome these challenges by carrying a flash light at night, or grabbing someone's elbow to be sight guided. I will do a lot of scanning to see the whole room and what is happening around me. Another significant adjustment is not being able to drive, but this gives me an oppotunity to work alongside others who can provide rides. I have learned to build a team of people I can call on who are able to help in this area.