Leadership
Jesus Christ alone is head of the church. He, however, exercises his care through elders appointed to oversee the church primarily in providing spiritual care. This group of men includes the pastor, who is the teaching elder, along with others who serve together with the pastor as ruling elders. The deacons make up another office in the church, serving alongside the elders, whose responsibility is in the area of mercy and caring for the outward needs of our congregation.
Elders
BRYAN RIGG
Pastor
bryan.rigg@mercypres.org
Bryan was born and raised near Lancaster, PA. Liberty University originally brought him to Lynchburg where he received a Bachelor’s of Religion and met and married his wife, Kate. After graduation, they moved to Philadelphia, PA, where he attended Westminster Theological Seminary.
After seminary, Bryan and his family moved back to Lynchburg to begin working at Mercy’s sister church, where he served for five years. He then served as both an assistant and associate pastor at Mercy before being called as head pastor in February 2020.
Bryan and Kate have two children, Naomi and Charlie – both wonderful blessings from God! Their family ministers to the community through foster care, and they’ve had the privilege of caring for 5 additional children in long-term placements. Bryan enjoys fixing houses (he’s flipped/rehabbed 10 in total). He also loves playing basketball, coaching volleyball, watching his kids play sports, visiting the National parks, and spending summers outside at the lake.
Chris Deneen
Assistant Pastor
chris.deneen@mercypres.org
scott long
Ruling Elder
Sabbatical
RICK ULMER
Ruling Elder
rick.ulmer@mercypres.org
JOHN EAST
Ruling Elder
john.east@mercypres.org
chris misiano
Ruling Elder
Sabbatical
SHAWN GEORGE
Ruling Elder
shawn.george@mercypres.org
WYNN SHACKLEFORD
Ruling Elder
wynn.shackleford@mercypres.org
STEPHEN HOBSON
Ruling Elder
stephen.hobson@mercypres.org
RUSTY SMITH
Ruling Elder
rusty.smith@mercypres.org
Deacons
tim dailey
Deacon
tim.dailey@mercypres.org
Tony Pearson
Deacon
tony.pearson@mercypres.org
RYAN WHITE
Deacon
ryan.white@mercypres.org
mike ellsworth
Deacon
Sabbatical
RYAN ROBERTS
graeme leitch
Deacon
graeme.leitch@mercypres.org
scott robinson
Deacon
scott.robinson@mercypres.org
AUSTIN OLSON
jim shimp
Deacon
jim.shimp@mercypres.org
staff
JEREMIAH SHEETS
Director of Music and Youth
jeremiah.sheets@mercypres.org
Jeremiah is from Palm Beach County, Florida. In 2002 he began serving in his home church, Wellington Presbyterian Church, leading worship for the youth ministry. Falling in love and feeling called to ministry work he spent several years doing worship, youth ministry, and serving as a deacon. In 2014 he felt called to church planting and spent 6 years working with two church plants in Palm Beach County. Jeremiah started working at Mercy Pres in August of 2020 as the Director of Music and Youth.
Jeremiah and his wife Kandy have been married since 2008. They have four children Jemma (2011), Malachi (2014), Jewel (2017), and Gideon (2019). They love being outside together and have gladly traded the beaches of South Florida for the mountains of Virginia!
Emilee Ellsworth
Administrative Assistant
emilee.ellsworth@mercypres.org
Emilee grew up in Orlando, FL, and moved to Lynchburg in 2009 to attend Liberty University. The following year, she met her husband, Mike, who now serves as a deacon at Mercy, where they have been members since 2016. They were married in the snow in January of 2016 and welcomed their daughter, Juliana, to their family in March of 2020. The Ellsworths live in Bedford and enjoy a variety of outdoor activities in the area.
Emilee joined us after working 5 years in communications. She became Mercy’s Administrative Assistant in April of 2019.
STEPHEN JOSHUA
Sound Team Manager
sound@mercypres.org
Stephen is originally from Lancaster, PA. He moved to Lynchburg in 2009 with his family and began working for Liberty in 2016, where he is currently a System Administrator in the IT department.
Stephen has attended Mercy since 2017, where he began serving on our worship team, first as a guitar and cajon player. As his expertise in managing our sound needs grew, along with his love of sound and technology, he was hired on staff in 2018 as our Sound Team Manager.
Stephen married his high school sweetheart, Liz, in 2019. The two love hiking and working on cars together, and are expecting their first child to join their family this spring!