Pastors & Staff

Pastor Gary was raised on his family’s dairy farm near West Liberty, Ohio, learning from an early age the value of hard work. As a young man, he was in charge of the family fertilizer business. He figured he would continue on in the family business, but as it turned out, God had some very different plans for him, which were revealed to Gary after he was injured in a farm accident. With the support of his wife and three children, he began attending Cedarville University for seminary at age 28 and graduated four years later.

In 1991, Gary began Harvest Baptist Church in the basement of the Home Savings and Loan building in Wapakoneta, and it continued to grow and move to larger venues, including Wapakoneta Middle School, until the church building was constructed in 2001.

As senior pastor, Gary regularly delivers Sunday messages, goes on visitations and conducts marriages and funerals, among several other duties.

Gary has been married to his wife Joy for 47 years and together they have three children, Shannon, Nicole and Abby, and seven grandchildren.

Gary has a passion for children’s and teen’s ministries, and it’s his hope that Harvest reaches as many as possible by touching families in the local and surrounding communities.

 Pastor Tony grew up in Hamler, Ohio, and graduated from Patrick Henry High School before earning a Bachelor’s in business administration at Cedarville University. He then worked in the nursing home industry for several years, serving as the administrator to Auglaize Acres and then executive director of Otterbein Cridersville.

While working at Auglaize Acres, Tony was introduced to Harvest when he met Pastor Gary, who invited him to attend. After regularly attending Harvest for about nine months, Tony was asked to lead the youth ministry. He then pursued some advanced career opportunities in the nursing home industry, but later came to find that this was not God’s plan for him. In 2000, Tony came on staff at Harvest as a full-time pastor.

Tony’s list of responsibilities at Harvest includes helping people become true disciples of Jesus, Preaching, Counseling,  and taking care of Harvest’s  business affairs.

Tony and his wife Kim have been married for 30 years and have two adult daughters, Morgan who is a teacher in Indiana.  Alisha is married to Cameron and they have a son, Dax.

Pastor Scott was born and raised in the Wapakoneta area and graduated from Wapakoneta High School. His roots with Harvest run deep, as he started attending in 1991 after asking Jesus into his heart.

After being away several years pursuing his career in the construction industry, he returned to his hometown and came on to Harvest’s staff as a full-time pastor. He was asked to oversee Harvest’s small groups and Children’s programs.

Currently, Scott’s responsibilities at Harvest include running the children’s programs, including AWANA and children’s services on Sundays, and he is in charge of the church’s sports ministry. He also oversees any construction projects or additions to the church’s campus.
Scott and his wife Kelly been married for 28 years. They have two children, Sydney and Cal, and two grandchild.

Scott has a passion for sports ministry, and he hopes to see Harvest continue to tell children and their families about Jesus in a competitive but fun way.

Joel moved to Ohio via Texas to serve as Pastor of Worship Arts in 2017. He and his wife Lyndsie have two beautiful daughters, Ayda and Ellie, and are expecting their third in January 2023.

Joel has a passion for sharing and experiencing the Word of God. It’s his hope to help others know the God that we know.

Joel oversees our Worship and Tech ministries here at Harvest. He also loves being a part of the Body of Christ in our community with Uniting Wapak and Worship Anyway. These organizations are made up of pastors, staff and worship leaders  from area churches working to see Jesus' Name proclaimed in Wapakoneta.

In his spare time, he enjoys traditional archery, sporting clays, hunting, fishing, and 80's pop music. Yes, you read that right.

Todd grew up in Palatka a small town in Northeast Florida and has a wife named Heather, and a daughter in the children’s ministry. They have been attending Harvest Baptist Church since 2016 and started volunteering with the youth ministry not long after attending Harvest. He graduated with a bachelors degree in Youth Ministry and a Certificate of youth ministry from Liberty University in 2011. Todd has served as a Youth Pastor or Volunteer for approximately 16 years in Florida, Virginia, and South Carolina before joining Harvest. Also worked at a summer camp for three summers during his college years.

Todd worked as an intern during the 2021 - 2022 school year, and was very excited to transition into the Director of Youth Ministries position when the previous Youth pastor was called to go to the mission field full time.

Todd’s responsibilities include conducting Wednesday night services for Junior High and High School students, as well as our Quest class which meets Sunday mornings during our 10:30 service for fifth and sixth graders.

Todd has had a passion for youth ministry since a young age which was formed by the great relationships that he had with his Youth Pastor and leaders as he was growing up in Florida. He loves getting to know students and planning events to help foster relationships with students as well as pouring into them and helping them come to a deeper knowledge and understanding of the Bible.

Carolyn moved from Germany to Ohio in 1978.  She grew up in a country home just outside of Ada.  She met her husband, Brad, while in college.  They married in 1993 and in 1996 they bought a house in Brad's hometown, Wapakoneta.  They have a son, Tyler, who is pursuing his passion for football and a degree in Manufacturing Technology/Engineering at Ohio Northern University in Ada, OH.

Realizing the need for a church with a solid, biblical foundation,  Carolyn, Brad and Tyler started attending Harvest in 2004.  In 2008,  by God's grace and full support from Brad, Carolyn stepped out of her career field and entered the world of education, in order to be around more for Tyler.  After 14 years,  Carolyn felt God drawing her back to her collegiate roots and joined the Harvest staff in 2022.

Aside from her family and pets, Carolyn's favorites include reading, the outdoors and football!