meet the staff
Lead Pastor
Lars Stromberg
Pastor Lars has been serving Hinsdale Covenant Church since 2006. He graduated from Bethel University (St. Paul) in 2002 and earned his Masters of Divinity from North Park Theological Seminary in Chicago in 2006. Lars was ordained in the Covenant Church in 2008. Lars is passionate about teaching and preaching God's Word with creativity and care. He loves helping the Bible come to life for others, especially his beloved Confirmation class. A Minnesota native, Lars enjoys disc golf, art in its' many forms, and anything that feels like a pilgrimage. He is married to Katie, has two wonderful sons and a delightful daughter and lives in Hinsdale.
Associate Pastor of Spiritual Formation
Joy-Elizabeth Lawrence
Joy has served ECCH since 2016 and focuses on intergenerational spiritual formation. Called to pastoral ministry out of educational theatre, she brings a strong creative and performing arts background to her work. Joy holds a MCS from Regent College (Vancouver), an M.Div. from Calvin Theological Seminary, and was ordained in 2021. She is married to Justin and they have two lively children. She loves to garden, listen to jazz, and read theology. Joy's prayer for you is that the Spirit's work continues to transform your heart, soul, and imagination to reflect Jesus.
Minister of Pastoral Care
Greg Johnson
Greg is a child of Hinsdale Covenant and former youth pastor here. Greg's role involves pastoral care, visitation, and creating community amongst our seniors.
Director of Youth Ministry
Collin Kemp
Collin graduated from Wheaton College in 2023 with a combined degree in Christian Formation and Ministry, Philosophy, and Poverty Studies. Collin joined Hinsdale Covenant in 2023 and is very passionate about building relationships and going deep with his students. His prayer and hope for his students is that they would have positive experiences with Christian community, find a safe space that they can call home and ask all of their hard questions, and walk away knowing that they are deeply loved by an up-close and personal Jesus! Collin played baseball, football, and basketball growing up and now plays club ultimate frisbee. He was born and raised in Colorado and loves all things outdoor adventures. He has spent a lot of time in Latin America working with kids in impoverished areas and hopes to return long-term some day!
Director of Children's Ministry
Trisha Bragg
Trisha and her family joined Hinsdale Covenant Church in 2021, where Trisha was actively involved as a Children's Ministry volunteer, stepping into the Children's Ministry Director role in early 2024. Born and raised in Indiana, she now resides in Hinsdale with her family. She has two teenagers and elementary age twin daughters who are spirited members of Children's Ministry every Sunday morning.
Financial Assistant
Kirsten Bell
Kirsten Bell joined staff in 2015. Her Covenant roots run deep. She's a Covenant pastor's kid, third generation graduate of North Park University, and previously worked at Covenant Offices as CHIC coordinator. Long-time members of the Covenant church, Kirsten, Jim and their two children live in Riverside, IL.
Office Administrator
Cassia Davies
Cássia joined Hinsdale Covenant Church in August as the new Office Administrator. She is Brazilian, married to Jonathan and raising two boys, Luca and Caio. Prior to living in the USA, she lived 11 years in Amsterdam (NL) and 4 years in Frankfurt (GE). Cássia loves to go for long walks in the woods, have friends for dinner or simply enjoy a lazy morning with coffee on our patio.
Preschool Director
Becki Hrubes
Becki has been teaching in the Early Childhood and Special Education field for over 12 years. She received her bachelor’s from Purdue University in Early Childhood and Special Education and her master’s from American College of Education in Curriculum and Instruction and English as a Second Language.
Becki grew up in Oak Brook and attended Hinsdale Central where she met her husband. She now resides in Hinsdale with her family. Her eldest son will be attending Oak School in 1st grade and her daughter will be in the 2s room here at Hinsdale Covenant Preschool!
Organist
Ruth Rottschafer
Ruth joined Hinsdale Covenant Church in 1998 and served as Director of Music until 2014. Ruth now serves as organist and accompanist. A Chicago area native, Ruth received a BA Degree from Calvin College and a Masters of Music Degree from the American Conservatory. Ruth performs as both piano soloist and organist and also accompanies instrumentalists, vocalists, choral groups and ensembles. She teaches piano privately and taught General Music for 28 years. She enjoys walking, biking, reading, and traveling to visit friends and relatives. Ruth spends as much time as possible with her children and 5 grandchildren, who live nearby.
Contemporary Worship
Stephanie Koklys
Stephanie is a regular leader for our 10:30am contemporary worship service.
Contemporary Worship
Steve Klimkowski
Steve is a long time member at Hinsdale Covenant and is regular leader for our 10:30am contemporary worship service.
Worship Coordinator
Jennie Hsieh
Jennie serves as our worship coordinator, organizing our worship teams and overall Sunday morning worship experience
Youth Ministry Intern
Bri Allison
Bri is a student at Wheaton College and began as a youth ministry intern in 2024, working with our Jr. High and High School students.