Josh Conn

Lead Pastor

Josh Conn is married to his college sweetheart Summer and they live in Hamilton with their three amazing children, Lilly, Titus and Lydia. They have been married 15+ years and love family movie nights, taking Hercules (the dog) to the dog park and watching their children compete in mixed martial arts tournaments.

Josh grew up in Des Moines, Iowa with parents who love Jesus and he came to know Christ as a child. His passion has always been for people to meet Jesus and to impact the world around him. He first started in Pastoral ministry in 1996 in Eugene, Oregon and he is a product of all that people have poured into him over the years.

In 2005 the passion to plant a church was placed in their hearts knowing that God was calling them to move from Oregon. They moved to New Jersey in 2006 with a passion to reach people and to plant churches. 217church was a leap of faith planted in 2010 and is a testimony of a God given vision put into action. In under 2 years the church now has 2 worship services and is over 300 in weekly attendance.

Josh loves developing people and is known as a vision activator who tells it like it is. 217church is a church that reflects this reality and under his leadership the church is ready to reach more people who need to meet Jesus.

Kevin Namur

Worship & Youth Pastor

Kevin Namur just recently married his wife Laura, in August 2011 after dating for 5 years. Kevin and Laura met in middle school through Kevin’s best friend (Laura’s brother). The couple began dating in high school and continued through college. Kevin proposed to Laura on a video shown during a 217church service. The church’s first marriage proposal! They have served with 217church since day one and are passionate about God and His people.

Kevin grew up in central New Jersey for most of his life. At a young age he moved to Venezuela with his family. It is there, where his family met and decided to follow Christ. Kevin’s family moved back to their hometown in New Jersey and began attending a local church. Kevin then began to serve in the youth ministry. After leading worship and going to several conferences, retreats, and 10 mission trips, Kevin decided to follow his calling to become a pastor at 17 years old. He enrolled at Nyack College for Pastoral Ministry and after finishing school, joined 217church as worship and youth pastor.

Kevin has always had a heart for Central Jersey. Being raised here and serving here, there is nothing that fuels Kevin more than watching people come into a relationship with Jesus in the area he grew up. After college it was clear that God was sending him on a new adventure. Kevin went to Mexico on a missions trip for a summer to seek God’s next steps for his life. God sent Kevin home from this trip with the promise that what He would call him to would be “long term.” In just a few days after landing back in the states the opportunity came for Kevin to become the worship pastor at 217church and the rest is history!

Dan Gay

Staff Team Leader

Dan Gay is married to Bonnie (25 yrs next March). They met as a result of their love for music and by the end of their first semester of college were dating. That love for music has translated down to their daughters. Alissa, a Sr. at Lynchburg College, Megan a Senior at WW-P High School, and Julianna the youngest (but probably will be the tallest) is an 8th grader at Grover Middle School.

Though he is greatly outnumbered by females in his house, he’s used to it! Dan grew up with 4 sisters and 1 brother in Ilion NY, a small town in upstate New York. He moved to New Jersey after college and has been here ever since.

Dan accepted Christ as a teen and has been involved in serving and leading in ministry in many different ways. It wasn’t until the last 10 years, that he felt that God’s church needed to do more for the community and to challenge its people to grow by getting involved.

Dan came to 217church for one simple reason, the vision and the purpose behind it. “I am driven by purpose and passion and at 217church I see how both work together to fulfill the mission God has given us, now THAT’S exciting to be a part of.”

Dan loves helping people grow in using the gifts God has given them. He is a “get it done” guy who gets to know people best while serving or working alongside them. His role is to help each ministry implement the 217vision so that lives will be restored and the community will be renewed.

Sandy Rivera

Operations

Sandy Rivera married the man she never thought she’d find, a gift from God; her counterpart. They have 3 incredible kids who love sports, serving others & above all, God. They love being around people and trying new things, especially holding large family gatherings!

Sandy was born & raised in the same New Jersey home until she married. She always had a passion to help people, especially with health, nutrition & learning who Jesus is. She has spent the last 11 years connecting how God provides for us with natural foods and herbs and has recently entered ministry within the last year. Her vision is to teach people how to properly care for their bodies as well as their well being through the Word of God.

In 2009 Sandy landed her dream job. Working for the nutrition school she graduated from, she had unlimited perks, a very nice salary & incredible staff team. While being pampered with massages, a personal chef & fresh flowers every day, there was a pull at her heart to work in ministry.

After turning down a raise and leaving her job, she joined the 217church staff. She learned there is no higher calling than working for God & serving His people.

Debbee Jeter

Hospitality

Debbee Jeter has been married for 19 years to Wayne Jeter and they have a 17 year old son Tyler who is a senior at Princeton High School. Debbee and Wayne met at their former church. She believes that Wayne is her very special gift from God. The Jeters have lived in Princeton (Kingston) for the past 3 years. Prior to moving to Princeton, they lived in Montclair and West Orange, NJ.

Debbee was born in North Carolina but spent most of her childhood in Philadelphia. She is a graduate of the University of Delaware and has worked as a Flight Attendant, and a Director, Human Resources and Employee Motivation in the Pharmaceutical industry. Currently Debbee has her own business and is a Mary Kay Sales Director, where she has the opportunity to bless women helping them to feel great about themselves both on the inside and out.

She has served in church all of her life but feels it wasn’t until 22 yrs ago when she developed a personal relationship with the Lord that her life took on a fuller meaning. She believes that God created her to be a motivator and encourager.

Debbee believes that God personally brought her to 217church. Prior to moving to the Princeton area, she had a number of encounters with strangers that told her about Princeton Alliance Church. During her first visit to the church Pastor Josh brought the message and she was totally blown away. She loved his frankness and his ability to bring the scripture and message to life. When 217church launched, she knew in her heart that this was where she was called to serve. It is her prayer that people will see a taste of Jesus through her and that many lives will be drawn to Jesus.

Bonnie Gay

217kids

Bonnie Gay and her husband Dan live in West Windsor with their three daughters, Alissa, Megan and Julianna. When their schedules permit the family can be found in their living room playing Wii. They would be happy to create a Mii for you too. They love family vacations, homemade cake and their little scrappy dog, Sophie.

Although she was born on the west coast and has lived in five different states, Bonnie has spent the majority of her life as a Jersey Girl. She accepted Christ at an early age in her room one Sunday after church and acknowledged God’s call on her life to pursue full time ministry in her high school years.

Bonnie is an avid equipper, resourcing people to accomplish what they need to do. She has served on the staff of Princeton Alliance Church (217’s mamma church) for a number of years. She believes that women who will follow God and live life with intentionality have tremendous potential and incredible influence. She is passionate about where God is leading 217church and amazed that she gets to be part of it.

Tim Nam

Projects

Tim was born in Philadelphia, but mainly grew up in New Jersey and currently resides in North Brunswick. He spent three years living in China, where his father was called to become a missionary. Though he was born in the US, he can read, write and speak Korean. While living in different countries and states, his parents instilled in him a love of music. He has been playing various instruments since the time he was young: he played violin for 6 years, guitar for 3, and lots and lots more. Whenever you run into him, he might have a different instrument in hand with a wacky idea.

Tim accepted Christ while he was still in high school. While in prayer at a retreat, he realized his need for Christ and how void his life was before he truly accepted Christ. Ever since then, he’s been on fire for God and what He has planned for Tim’s life.

The vision of 217church is what captivated Tim to attend, along with a late night phone call from Kevin Namur right after Tim got back from spending a year in Korea. Tim took it as an obvious sign from God! The direction of 217church and the vision behind it constantly keeps Tim in middle of the action, which is exactly where he wants to be.