Our Team
Jason Fritz
Lead Pastor
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Jason Fritz
Jason’s passion is pointing people to Jesus by graciously sharing the gospel. Jason is also the primary vision caster and believes the church is called to engage culture with the life of Jesus. He has been doing pastoral ministry in the Valley for over 30 years and is a native Phoenician. He is married to Jill and they have three grown kids. Jason likes all things outdoors and can be found watching UFC on Saturday nights with friends.
Chris Herrington
Worship Pastor
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Chris Herrington
Chris has served in local church ministry in a variety of roles, but brings his talents of worship leadership to Illuminate. Here he leads our gifted, creative, and humble ministry team. A native of Nebraska and Kansas, Chris found his way to Arizona while serving as program director in camp ministry at UCYC in Prescott. He and his wife, Carrie have three children. Chris is passionate to see worship embraced in all aspects of life.
Steve Johnson
Pastor for Discipleship and Global Outreach
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Steve Johnson
Steve’s responsibilities include overseeing all of the ministries along our Discipleship Pathway, as well as our global partnership efforts. Steve has spent over 45 years as a church planter and teaching pastor of Anglo and Latino churches in Arizona, California, Florida, and Argentina. He spent five years as President of Latin America Mission (an interdenominational ministry with two hundred Anglo and Hispanic missionaries and partners in over 20 countries) and most recently served for six years as the Executive Vice President of Phoenix Seminary before coming on staff at Illuminate. His greatest passion is to see people mobilized to serve effectively for the sake of God’s Kingdom.
Steve and his wife Shellie find incredible joy in loving their four adult children and spoiling their grandchildren. Steve is a crazy fanatic of real futból: soccer.
Nate Harper
Minister in Residence
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Nate Harper
Nate assists with facilitating Global Partnerships and Discipleship Pathways. Nate desires that followers of Jesus would grow in spiritual maturity and disciple-making. He is also passionate about cross-cultural ministry. Nate is originally from South Carolina, graduated from The Citadel, and moved to Arizona after spending time in the Marine Corps as an Infantry Officer. In his free time, he enjoys eating good food, reading, and exercising.
Scott Martin
Local Outreach Pastor
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Scott Martin
Scott enjoys the responsibility of leading our church body to have deep roots in Christ that outpour as service within greater Phoenix. Scott has been involved in ministry for years, including serving inner city LA in a state-side missionary capacity, leading youth in Northern California and Chicago, then settling back in Phoenix as a young adult and outreach pastor. Scott loves cultivating creative partnerships, serving diverse populations, and walking alongside people as they navigate the use of their gifts to serve others. Scott is married to Jenna. They have three children, Avery, Ellison, and Bode. They love the beach, surfing, being outside, and making memories as a family.
Todd Robertson
Family Life Pastor
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Todd Robertson
Todd is a Southern California native. He was heavily involved in student ministry and at the age of 21, became a pastor. Todd and his wife Sonja moved from Orange County to Gilbert in 2001 to plant a church. Over the years, he has held many positions in the church but still has a huge heart for young people. Todd is passionate about the gospel and loves discipling young men who are considering the ministry.
Todd and his wife, Sonja have two sons, Caleb and Noah. The Robertson’s are a very active family. They love being outdoors, hiking, their dogs, days at the lake, and baseball.
Hudson Garcia
Youth & young adults Pastor
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Hudson Garcia
Hudson has the privilege of overseeing all of the 5th-12th grade ministries. He has been in ministry for six years and has worked in worship, college, and youth ministries. Hudson has a passion for seeing those who are far from God come to know his amazing love and experience forgiveness. Hudson is married to his wife, Brooklyn, and they love serving in the local church together. He enjoys spending time with family and friends, as well as being overly competitive with board games and pick-up basketball.
Charlie Courtney
Director of Kids Ministry
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Charlie Courtney
Charlie’s responsibilities include leading the ministry’s staff and operations. Charlie has her degree in elementary education and has served in children’s ministry since 2017. Her passion is found in sharing the love of Jesus with both children and their parents, supporting and encouraging them through this beautiful season of life. Charlie is married to her high school sweetheart, Ryan. They have three children, Cheney, Ryder and Lilly. Charlie loves spending time adventuring with her family and exploring all of God’s creation.
Lisa Robbins
Director of Women’s Ministry
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Lisa Robbins
Lisa oversees all facets of Bible studies, events, discipleship, and leadership training for the women of Illuminate. She is passionate about women being in authentic community and discovering their identity in Christ through their knowledge of the Word of God. Through discipleship and leadership development, Lisa champions women to walk in their God-given potential and calling. Lisa is married to her husband, Zach, and they have three girls, Zoe, Ellie, and Laney. Zach and Lisa spend a lot of time on the sports field cheering on their daughters and escape to the beach to rest and recharge.
Andrew Kirby
Pastor of Care and Support
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Andrew Kirby
Andrew’s role is coordinating both Illuminate’s Care Ministry and its Recovery Ministry. Kirby’s heart is to love people right where they are, helping walk them toward a better future through a relationship with Christ. Kirby struggled with addiction for nearly a decade before a life changing encounter with God while in the Teen Challenge of Arizona program in 2016. Kirby’s passion is to see the church walking alongside individuals through some of their most difficult times.
Kirby’s favorite things are God, his wife Madison, Legos, and a good science fiction or epic fantasy book. He also enjoys playing his guitar and leading worship.
Brooklyn Garcia
Weekend experience director
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Brooklyn Garcia
Brooklyn oversees the first impressions team and assists in leading worship for the Sunday services. She graduated from Grand Canyon University with a Vocal Performance degree and enjoys using her gifts in this role. Brooklyn enjoys being a mom to her son, Judah, teaching piano lessons, and serving the students and young adults of Illuminate with her husband, Hudson.
Bailey Tonkinson
Worship Leader
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Bailey Tonkinson
Bailey has been serving in churches as a part of worship for years. He loves music and how God uses these gifts and talents to bless others. Bailey is from Arizona and has spent his entire life in Gilbert. He loves all things sports and can spend hours talking about and playing them.
Matt Burkholder
Youth Director
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Matt Burkholder
Matt has the privilege of leading the junior high ministry and aiding in the high school and young adults ministries through teaching and administration. Matt has worked in youth ministry for four years and most recently worked in higher education as an academic and financial advisor. His heart in ministry is to help the next generation come to know Jesus and follow Him for a lifetime. Matt is married to his wonderful wife, Cara, and together they have three boys. In his free time, Matt enjoys road cycling, watching baseball, and spending time with his family.
Jake Pitner
Communications Director
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Jake Pitner
Jake is our Communications Director. He has had a love for creative media since he was 14 years old. Jake’s favorite thing is having meaningful conversations with people, and having a few genuine belly laughs along the way. He likes to believe that his taste in Chicago sports teams is exquisite; but their records would say otherwise. When he’s not designing, conversing, or watching a losing team play on TV, you’ll find him competing in some form of activity whether that’s baseball, basketball, Spikeball, or NHL on the PS4. Overall, the thing that makes Jake the most fulfilled is knowing that what he’s doing is making an impact for people and their eternal destination.
Logan Young
Media Director
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Logan Young
Logan is in charge of the creation of video and photo content for Illuminate. His job is to capture and tell the stories of how God is moving within our community. He has a heart for filming missions and traveling. Logan has a passion for the outdoors, food, and movies.
Isaiah Patterson
Technical Director
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Isaiah Patterson
Isaiah oversees the audio, visual, and lighting for the weekend experience. He has spent several years working in different churches learning, leading, and loving volunteer teams to create worship experiences. Isaiah loves hanging out with friends, good food, and playing board games. With the help of his talented team, Isaiah hopes to continually improve the worship experience so others can encounter the love and hope only found though Jesus.
Nisha Binder
Admin Assistant
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Nisha Binder
Nisha has the responsibility of organizational administrative support for various ministries. Nisha is a pharmacist by training and has worked primarily in managed care settings. Her passion is streamlining and creating efficiencies. Nisha is an Arizona native who enjoys baking (and eating!) pies in her spare time. She is married to her husband, Will and they have one child together.
Kelly Kramer
Admin Assistant
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Kelly Kramer
Kelly serves in project administration. She grew up in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado. She has an identical twin, a passion for her Lord and Savior, her family, architectural design, nature, and off-roading. Married to her wonderful husband, James, they have three kids and enjoy spending time with family, the outdoors, traveling, being involved with the car community, and serving at Illuminate.
Heather Abram
Office Manager
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Heather Abram
Heather helps keep everything in the administrative office running smoothly and organized, and helps with communication among all of the staff. Heather loves organization, give her a label maker and she will go to town! Heather is a native to Arizona, growing up just a few miles from Illuminate. She met her husband, Matt, in high school and spent many years traveling watching him play baseball. They have two daughters, Allie and Sienna. The Abram family loves to watch movies, play games, enjoy the outdoors and especially play with their two French Bulldogs.
Joshua Lopez
Audio director
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Joshua Lopez
Joshua has a curiosity for all things technical including audio, video, and lighting. Joshua spent four years serving in the U.S. Navy, acquiring skills that he currently applies to his role at Illuminate. Because of his heart for the Lord, Joshua desires to build up the church through a genuine and unique worship experience. He enjoys taking his dog to the park, finding the best deals at Goodwill, and traveling.
Emily Talpas
Local Outreach Assistant
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Emily Talpas
Emily works to build bridges between the Outreach Team, church, community, and ministry partners. She developed a heart for outreach as a teenager living in El Paso, Texas and it has continued to be a joy and privilege for her to help stir up that passion in others. Emily is also a worship leader at Illuminate and a member of the Women’s Ministry Team. Leading worship was the catalyst behind Emily’s involvement at the Phoenix Rescue Mission and a call to service there. Emily currently speaks at chapel, leads worship, teaches a Bible study, and helps coordinate service opportunities involving Illuminate that are designed to prevent homelessness. She was also asked to serve as an Ambassador for the Mission. Emily is married to Jeff and they have one daughter, Rachel.
Ashlyn King Cooper
Kids Ministry Assistant
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Ashlyn King-Cooper
Ashlyn is a member of the Kids Ministry team and is primarily responsible for volunteer scheduling and communication, as well as the planning and execution of Kids Ministry and Family events. Ashlyn is married to her best friend from high school, Taylor. Together, they have two young children, Taylyn and Maddox, and a dog, Carson. As a family, they enjoy making memories traveling, doing fun things around the valley, spending time with family, and completing home projects together. Ashlyn was born and raised in Arizona and loves being a native. Ashlyn has a passion for helping those around her and really connecting with them.
Natalia Molloy
Kids Ministry Assistant
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Natalia Molloy
Natalia has the privilege to be the Childcare Coordinator, ensuring that the Kids ministry is adequately staffed and overseeing the miracles happening in the lives of the families Illuminate touches. She also has a passion for bringing faith, support and love to expecting and newly postpartum families. Born in Montana but raised in Arizona and having attended Arizona State to study psychology, Natalia served in the demographic mental health and substance abuse recovery before finding God’s calling for her in working with children and parents. Her and her husband Sean have two daughters, Stella and Goldie. Natalia enjoys cooking, fitness and art.
Adisyn Richards
Kids Ministry Assistant
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Adisyn Richards
Adisyn is currently studying Biblical & Theological Studies at Phoenix Seminary. With her academic knowledge and experience at Illuminate, she hopes to teach people about the Word of God and its validity and relevance to life and eternity. She is passionate about the next generation, which is why she currently serves in Kids Ministry assisting in preparing lesson plans, facilitating childcare, integrating families into the church, handling email marketing and social media strategies. Adisyn loves to exercise and spend time in the sun, hangout with family, adventure through different parts of the world, drink coffee, and try new things. You’ll never see Adisyn without a book and journal in her hand!
Pam Lyons
HR & Finance Director
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Pam Lyons
Prior to joining Illuminate, Pam worked in corporate accounting, corporate benefits, non-profits, and managed high-profile executives. She is a skilled professional with a vast understanding of multi-faceted business operations including accounting, management, marketing, project management, and system conversions. Her passion is to provide organizational stability and structure while shoring up tenuous accounting processes.
On her days off you can find Pam and her husband Steve hiking the AZ desert, off-roading, walking their sweet black lab, or enjoying time with their two grown daughters.
Camden Weimer
Director of Facilities
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Camden Weimer
Camden was born and raised in the Arizona valley and is full of love for Jesus and how He has transformed his life. Ever since he was young, Camden has had a passion for fixing and creating things. He enjoys the challenge of learning new concepts and applying them. Camden also has a heart for serving in youth ministry and seeing the dramatic life change that Jesus brings in the students. He is an avid mountain biker and enjoys going for a ride whenever he can.
