Our Leaders

Elders

Our church is led by a team of elders who share the responsibility of shepherding the congregation. They do this primarily through teaching, praying, equipping, counseling, and caring for the organizational leadership of the church. Although some of our elders are also full-time staff members, all elders share the same authority in their pastoral role.

Mikel Berger

Elder

Mikel has been a member of Kossuth since 2004 and an elder since 2015. He has previously served as a deacon and also currently serves as a Connections class teacher and Care Group leader. Mikel is a Partner at DelMar Software Development, LLC and Co-founder of MatchBOX Coworking Studio. As a lay elder, he enjoys when God presents opportunities in the marketplace to share and demonstrate the love of Christ. From early childhood until today, God has surrounded him with a loving family that has taught him much about Jesus. God continues to do that through his wife Jessica, son Gunnar, and daughter Clella.

 mberger@ksbc.net

Paul Briggs

Elder

Paul has been at KSBC since returning from Italy in 1997. He has been married to his best friend, Geri, since 1983. Paul and Geri have four children born in 1986, 1990, 1993 and 2000. Paul is a campus pastor serving the international student community at Purdue University through the student organization, Salt & Light Christian Fellowship. Paul likes to read, spend time outdoors working in the yard, and biking. At KSBC Paul teaches regularly in the International Connections class, seeks to mobilize God's people at KSBC in reaching the world coming to us at Purdue, oversees the Campus Ministry, works with the Membership process, and preaches on occasion. Seeing Gospel opportunities and training God's people to be involved in them so that the church can reflect brightly the glory of the One who loved her and gave Himself for her (Ephesians 5:25) is one of the reasons Paul enjoys serving as an elder at KSBC.

 pbriggs@ksbc.net

Abraham Cremeens

Elder, Pastor of Discipleship & Vision

Abraham has been at Kossuth since July, 2010. He guides the church's discipleship and outreach ministries, oversees the college ministry of Kossuth, Salt and Light Christian Fellowship, and frequently leads worship on Sunday morning. Abraham earned his BS in Music at Illinois State University, and it was during his college days that God drew Abraham to Himself and saved him. Abraham married his wife, Kari, in April of 2009, and they have two sons, Liam and Hudson. Abraham recently completed his MDiv at Faith Bible Seminary here in Lafayette.

 acremeens@ksbc.net

Bill Davis

Elder

Bill and Sarah have been married since 1988 after meeting on the campus of Purdue University. After living outside of Indiana most of that time, they moved “back home again” to Lafayette in 2006 and have been at KSBC ever since. Their four children span in ages from high school to married with their own children. Bill is a business and technology consultant to a handful of corporate and non-profit organizations. Bill came to faith in Christ in high school when God used a faithful witness to help Bill see both Jesus’ deity and authority alongside his reconciling role as savior in Colossians 1. Bill and Sarah are grateful for the gospel passion of KSBC and for God’s sovereign work in our lives in the church body. He is especially driven by a mission to see the saints equipped for the work of ministry, and to see marriages and families strengthened for the sake of the gospel.

 bdavis@ksbc.net

Gami Ortiz

Elder, Pastor of Worship and Connections

Gami has been at Kossuth since April 2019. After almost a decade of military service, God called him to full-time ministry. Gami earned an MDiv from Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary with a concentration in Missional Studies. That led him and his wife to work for six years as missionaries in Haiti, where he equipped local church leaders for ministry. Gami and Cathi have been married since 2001 and have 5 children: Miguel, Kayla, Sandra, Isaac, and Aya. They enjoy hiking together and connecting with others.

 gortiz@ksbc.net

Will Peycke

Elder, Pastor of Family Ministry

Will joined the Kossuth team in July of 2015. His ministry training includes a BA in Pastoral Studies, MA in New Testament, and MDiv in Pastoral Studies from Calvary Bible College and Theological Seminary. Will and his wife Kay have been married since 2006 and have four children: Drew, Caris, Tobia, and Judah. They have served together in youth and family ministry at churches in Missouri and Illinois and are excited to dive into life and relationships with other families at Kossuth. Will enjoys baseball, canoeing, paintball, theology books, and seeJesus seminars. But his favorite things are date nights with Kay and spending time with his kids.

 wpeycke@ksbc.net

Staff

Our staff team is responsible for carrying out the daily tasks and operations of the church's ministry. Each staff member has a focused area of service, but all work together to carry out the vision and mission of Kossuth.

Abraham Cremeens

Pastor of Discipleship & Vision

 acremeens@ksbc.net

Will Peycke

Pastor of Family Ministry

 wpeycke@ksbc.net

Gami Ortiz

Pastor of Worship and Connections

 gortiz@ksbc.net

Donna Wilkinson

Administrative Assistant

Donna retired from Purdue University in July 2016 to join the Kossuth staff as the Administrative Assistant. Donna and her husband, Jim, have been members at Kossuth since 2002. Donna earned a degree in supervision and computer technology while employed by Purdue. Some of Donna's favorite things to do include reading, quilting, scrapbooking, spending time with family and friends, and going on road trips with Jim.

 dwilkinson@ksbc.net

Dan Harmeson

Building Manager

Bio coming soon.

Ninoska Jones

Custodian

Bio coming soon.

Campus Director Job Posting

Deacons

Deacons are appointed to serve the church by assisting the elders in various areas of practical need. Our deacons are organized into ministry teams depending on how the unique skills and gifts of the individual align with the areas of need within the church. Our deacons serve the church generously and sacrificially on a volunteer basis.

Bill Bolander

Deacon (Senior Care)

Bill is a Christian school teacher and a father of five daughters. He’s been married to his wife Carol for 32 years, and a member of Kossuth for 30 years. His responsibilities as deacon involve leading and shepherding the senior saints. Seeing the body work together toward accomplishing its mission is the key to the enjoyment that he finds in serving as a deacon at KSBC.

Grant Gudeman

Deacon (Membership)

Grant is a district sales manager for Speciality Hybrids who has been at Kossuth since 2011. He serves as a deacon on the Membership Ministry Team. He and his wife Cara have been married for over ten years, and they have two daughters (Braylyn and Morgan) and a son (Lincoln). In his free time, Grant enjoys being with his friends and family, running, going to Purdue basketball games, and dominating fantasy football leagues.

Trent Kilgus

Deacon (Building and Grounds)

bio coming soon.

Kirk Odell

Deacon (Senior Care)

Kirk has been a member of Kossuth since 1976 and formerly taught and coached at Kossuth’s school (Highland Christian). He has been married to Gina since 1989. Kirk is involved with the Seniors Ministry Team, and he and his wife enjoy visiting and working with our senior saints. Kirk has three children and Gina has five; together they have 11 grandchildren and one great-grand-daughter. Kirk works part-time at the Collicott Insurance Agency and part-time at Lafayette Limo. Kirk enjoys working out at the YMCA, working outside in the warm weather, and taking long walks with his wife.

Chris Siebern

Deacon (Technology)

Chris serves as a deacon with primary responsibilities on the Tech Team. Chris first attended Kossuth as an undergraduate student after becoming a Christian through a student evangelism ministry in the mid 1990s. He and his family relocated to Lafayette from the Chicago region in 2011 and joined Kossuth the same year. Chris is a Product Development Manager for Optech International and a part time graduate student pursuing his Ph.D. in Civil Engineering at Purdue University. He and his wife Krista were married in August of 2000; they have three daughters, Grace, Hannah, and Emelia, and are expecting a son in April. When not working or studying, Chris enjoys motorcycling, bicycling, or anything mechanical that gets you from A to B.

Daryl Starr

Deacon (Missions)

Daryl and his wife Allison were married at KSBC in 2001 while in college. They returned to Lafayette in 2007 and immediately rejoined the church fellowship. He has served on the boards of both Crosswalk and Bethesda Outreach Ministries. He currently serves as Treasurer/CFO for Bethesda where he gained an appreciation for the administrative burden missionaries must bear in order to endure field work. He wants to help ease that challenge and see lives changed by using his talents to the fullest. Daryl spends the majority of his time leading an investment partnership called Little Engine Ventures where he has opportunities to share Jesus' love and stewardship principles in many diverse situations. And, final fun fact: numerous babysitters for his 3 daughters have gone on to become full-time missionaries.

Dean Zimmerman

Deacon (Missions)

Dean has been a member of KSBC for 38 years and counting. He serves the church by overseeing missions efforts and global partnerships. He loves working with missionaries and their varied ministries to reach people for the glory of God, and more recently he has enjoyed working with people from the church who desire to get on the mission field. He’s personally been on many missions trips, including ones to South Africa and Brazil. He and his wife Chris have three grown children and five grandchildren. He works as a Wildlife Biologist with the Indiana Division of Fish and Wildlife.