Greetings my name is Tim Navis and I am the Deacon for Christian Formation. I am excited to join the wonderful ministry of First Church. Here is a little about me:
I grew up in a rural farming community in Sheboygan County, a village named Hingham. As a child I took a great interest in church music, specifically piano and organ. Following graduating from Oostburg High School, I attended Silver Lake College in Manitowoc Wisconsin, double majoring in music with an organ emphasis, and theology. During my time at Silver Lake I also married my wife Leslie.
Following graduation from Silver Lake, Leslie and I wanted to move south so we headed to Virginia. I served Mount Vernon United Methodist Church in Virginia. While serving this church I would come back to Wisconsin every June to work on my Masters in Church Music from Concordia in Mequon, with an emphasis in organ performance. I graduated from this program in 2013. In 2016, I began to feel a call to ordained ministry and entered the candidacy process of the United Methodist Church. I discerned a call to a specialized ministry as a Deacon. I received my seminary degree from Duke Divinity School, graduating in 2019. I finished my last step towards ordination in May.
My wife and I have four kids, two of which we adopted out of foster care. We have been foster parents for many years, fostering over ten kids. This has been one of the ministries we are passionate about.
