Westerville Community United Church of Christ

MEET OUR STAFF

Sharing the Ever-widening Circle of Christ's Love

SIGRID ROTHER

Pastor

Rev. Dr. Sigrid Rother has served at Westerville Community UCC since 2002. Her focus in ministry is teaching and preaching.

Sigrid received her theological education in Germany and also in England. She received a Th. M. in 1997 from Western Theological Seminary in Holland, MI, and a Doctor in Ministry in Preaching in 2003 from Chicago Theological Seminary.

A devoted mother and wife, Sigrid has been married to Thomas Cochrane since 1996. They have two children, Peter and Anna. In her free time she likes to walk, read, cook and travel.

Susan Langner

Associate Pastor

Rev. Susan Langner joined our staff in July, 2021 as Associate Pastor for Discipleship and Engagement.

Susan grew up in Wheaton, IL and attended St. Matthew United Church of Christ, where she learned the value of meaningful friendships in youth group, received the unconditional care of loving adults, met her first female minister, and built the foundation of her faith. It was not until after she graduated from Denison University and spent several years working in higher education and volunteering with her church's youth program that she felt the call to join a church staff. Shortly thereafter, with the support of her husband, she answered when the Spirit nudged her toward seminary and ordained ministry. She graduated from Methodist Theological School in Ohio in 2019 with a Master of Divinity and was ordained in 2020.

She is passionate about her family, and about raising her son and daughter to "act justly, love mercy, and walk humbly with God" (Micah 6:8). She believes in showing the love of God to children of all ages, reminding them they are beautiful and made in Divine image.

Geoffrey Gear

Director of Children's & Youth Ministry

Geoffrey Gear joined our staff in March of 2022 as the Director of Children's and Youth Ministry.

Geoffrey was raised in Hilliard, Ohio with a Methodist background, but was departed from the faith for a long period of time. He returned in 2018 after attending services at the Church of the Messiah in Westerville Ohio, and has walked the path ever since.

He received his Vocal Performance degree from Otterbein University in 2019, and has made a career as a music educator, sacred musician, and classical vocalist in Columbus. He began his education career by teaching private music lessons out of various studios in the city, which spurred his love for working with children. He has worked with 5 private studios, but now teaches voice and piano exclusively through Musicologie Lewis Center. He has also taught group piano lessons for 2nd-4th graders in Dublin through the FineArtsMatter program, KidzKeys. He continues to teach group voice lessons to underrepresented middle school youths on the Columbus West Side in cooperation with We Amplify Voices (WAV), and has taught early music education to children 6mo-3yr old with Gymboree Gahanna as their primary music teacher. It is his hope that by modeling how to walk with Christ in forgiveness and grace, we can create a better generation of compassionate citizens that keep love at the center of their lives.

HAROLD STEINDAM

Pastor Emeritus

Raised in a family that was an active part of St. John’s United Church of Christ in Genoa, Ohio, Rev. Steindam began to feel an interest in and then call to ministry at a very early age, and received much encouragement and many opportunities as he grew up. He graduated from Defiance College with a major in Philosophy and Religion and then entered the Methodist Theological School in Delaware, Ohio. While in his first year there he was called to his first church in 1973, commencing more than 40 years in ministry.

His pastoral service culminated in serving Westerville Community United Church of Christ, beginning when it was still in its early years and having the challenges and joys of being part of its growth in membership, stewardship, and most of all mission for nearly 23 years.

Harold and his wife Jenny enjoy traveling, bird watching and mission work.