Don Hamilton

Senior Pastor

“I remember driving around Indianapolis in my frozen foods delivery truck, telling my friend Gary that I would never become a pastor. That was over forty years ago when God must have chuckled about my comment. I’ve been a pastor for thirty-four years, serving at Vibrant (formerly known as Capital Area Christian Church) the entire time.”

After several “prodigal” years, and a rather dramatic return to the Lord, Don sensed a call to vocational ministry and attended Johnson Christian University in Knoxville, Tennessee. “I had intended to become a youth pastor, but people told me that I had a gift for teaching the Bible in ways that were very practical and understandable. My rough background helped me naturally understand “regular” people. They said I should use those gifts as a preaching pastor, so I decided to major in preaching.”

Don met his beautiful wife, Gail, at college. “What can I say, she was hot and I wanted to date her.” Thirty-six years and four daughters later, they are still happily married. Don continued his education, earning Masters and Doctorate degrees, while witnessing God reach many people through this church family. “We’ve grown from a small group of Jesus followers, to a large, multi-campus church. But it’s not about bigger numbers, it’s about helping people get connected to God through Jesus Christ - one by one. My favorite challenge to our church family, is to make a difference in someone’s life this week by connecting them to God. Anyone can do that. If my preaching and leadership have encouraged and challenged people to do this, I consider my ministry and this church a success.”

Mike Russell

York Haven Campus Pastor

In 2012 Mike along, with a group of others, started a campus in Etters which relocated to York Haven Boro in September of 2017. Mike has a passion for telling people about Jesus in a down to earth way and sometimes uses cool words like “Incognito.” Mike is a graduate of Lincoln Christian University with a bachelor of arts in general ministry. When not at church Mike is usually spending time with his wife Jenna, his four girls Joelle, Trinity, Grace, Zoe and his only begotten son Nate. Mike wrote this and wonders if he should continue talking in the third person.

Nate Grella

Pastor of Spiritual Formation

When Nate felt that God was calling him to the ministry he had no idea the ministries he would lead and the things that he would do.  In High School, Nate felt called to be a Student Minister, but God had other plans for Nate in ministry. For the last 15 years, Nate has served in just about every role in the church except for being the janitor, but if it was needed he’d gladly step into that role. Nate currently serves as one of the Teaching Pastors at Vibrant along with overseeing the Spiritual Formation, Shepherding, and Finance ministries. You’ll also often times find Nate playing a role in one of our crazy videos that we use on Sunday mornings.  We think he always secretly wanted to be a Hollywood actor, but he’s never received a call. Nate is married to Amanda, his high school sweetheart, and other than his mom is the only one who can get away with calling him by his real name, Nathan. They have two awesome kids, Blake and Mckenna, who are their mini-mes.   Nate’s constantly trying to use his Jedi mind tricks to convince others to root for Ohio State, and convince others what Chicken Pot Pie really is here in Central PA.   
 

Alex Robinson

Creative Arts Pastor

Alex is the creative arts pastor at Vibrant and leads ministry teams related to media, technology, and music. He is passionate about helping people engage with God by creating experiences and environments which challenge them to see Jesus in a fresh way. You’ve heard of the most interesting man in the world, but Alex describes himself as the most boring man in the world (1 Thess. 4:11-12). He likes to spend time with his family, watch documentaries, movies, the latest Netflix Originals, reading theological books, and is curious about the art and science of coffee and beer brewing.

Matthew Steele

Worship Director

Matthew brings over 15 years of music ministry experience as a worship leader at both our Lambs Gap and York Haven campuses. He assists the Creative Arts pastor with spiritual and talent development and helps to oversee the production of all Vibrant worship experiences. You will often find Matthew talking about the Washington Redskins or Pittsburgh Penguins with his buddies but he’s also a bit of a nerd who loves WWII history, Sci Fi, Kung Fu, and superhero movies. Matthew and his wife, Bobbi, have a daughter, Audrey.

Tj George

Pastor of Care Ministries & Volunteer Services

TJ's job and delight is to get you connected to a place of volunteer service both in the church and out in the community (she describes this as something that can "make your heart sing"). As the Pastor of Care Ministries & Volunteer Services she understands how hard it can be to find your way around a big church, and wants to do whatever she can to help you get to your desired destination.  TJ has been married to Fred for, well, a very long time, and they have two sons, Zachary, 26,  and Hunter, 22.  These three men bring her the greatest joys in life and she is grateful that they all know and love Jesus.  If you ever need to find her office - just keep walking through the building until you find the amazingly awesomely blingey purple one – that would be it!

Jamie Robinson

Communications Director

Jamie is our communications director and oversees our website, social media, and print communications. She graduated from Kentucky Christian University where she met her husband Alex, who is also on staff at Vibrant. Jamie enjoys serving as a worship leader and youth leader at the church. She likes playing video games with their three boys, binge watching shows on Netflix with her husband, and enjoying the company of others.

Lori Cartmill

Lambs Gap Campus Children's Pastor & Community Impact Director

If you have never met Lori she is outgoing, fun, full of energy, and loves people. These qualities and energy allow her to lead a strong, growing Children's Ministry and a forever growing Outreach Ministry. Lori is called to be a "voice" for those without a voice which drives her passion for children and those with special needs of all ages. She also coordinates partnerships between the church, local organizations, non-profits, and businesses to make a difference in our community. On any given day you may find her playing on the floor with kids, leading a major event, or eating lunch with a community leader. All of which are just as important to her as she lives to Love God, His People and His World.

Jenna Russell

York Haven Campus Children's Pastor

Since Jenna was a a little girl she's always wanted to work with kids. Serving as York Haven Campus Children's Pastor, she feels nothing beats seeing that light bulb moment when children come to know Jesus. Jenna's heart's desire has also been to be a wife and mother. The Lord has blessed Jenna with her husband Mike and their 5 crazy, awesome kids. She loves to have fun with her family and friends. She also enjoys trips to the beach, amusement parks, taking pictures, watching movies, and best of all drinking coffee!

Kristin Hamilton

Student Ministry Pastor

Kristin earned her bachelor's degree in Communications degree in 2012 after attending Eastern University and Penn State Harrisburg. After years of volunteering, internships, and residency training she became the full-time Student Ministries Pastor in 2014 across both campuses. Kristin enjoys music and serves on the adult and youth worship team as a vocalist, pianist, and drummer. An avid traveler, she's served many missions trips with adults and teens. Kristin has a passion for teenagers and connecting them to Christ. She believes that “changed people change the world” and is excited to be a part of God’s growing Kingdom.

Kristin loves the color pink, sleeping in, cooking, photography, hanging with her 3 sisters and awesome parents, watching movies, and her favorite show Parks and Rec; cracking up at the motto “treat yo’ self!” She thinks ice cream is the best food and bunnies are the greatest animal on the planet.

Stacey McDonald

Community Events Coordinator

Stacey started as a volunteer at Vibrant in 2009 and is now serves as the Community Events Coordinator. She facilitates teams of volunteers that lead and plan events like Egg-a-Rama, Sports Camp, and Movie Night as well as Adventure Park projects. Stacey enjoys the outdoors and moving from one project to the next and is honored to work with the church and community volunteers.

Amanda Grella

Office Assistant

Amanda and her husband Nate have served Vibrant for 5 years and have two wonderful children together. Amanda performs routine clerical and organizational tasks and supports staff when needed. Previously, she was a children’s pastor in Ohio for 7 years. When not working in the church office, Amanda has her own business where she creates jewelry and other artistic accessories from vintage silverware.

Jim Reyna

Grounds & Maintenance Manager

Jim has 12 years of formal experience in construction, home renovations, and repairs and has been fixing all sorts of mechanical things since high school. As Vibrant's Maintenance Supervisor, he is responsible for all care related to the buildings, grounds, vehicles, and equipment on the 53-acre Lambs Gap campus and the York Haven campus. He's a self-proclaimed music fiend who loves mixing sound for the worship band (and is an aspiring drummer). With the little spare time he has, Jim's an adrenaline junkie and avid skier and mountain biker. Jim and his wife Rachel love The Lord, traveling, British TV shows, and their two awesome cats.

Lisa Gaugler

Financial Secretary

Lisa earned a Marketing degree from Penn State University and has an extensive background in business. As Financial Secretary her primary responsibilities include all bookkeeping, payroll and budget tracking and analysis. When away from work, Lisa enjoys going to the dog park with her husband Gerry and their three dogs and binge watching their favorite shows on TV.