Staff

Lead Pastor, The Loft
anixon@loftchurch.com

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Before joining the staff of The Woodlands UMC, Andy served United Methodist churches in Arkansas for 13 years. Most recently he served as senior pastor of First United Methodist Church of Maumelle, a suburb of Little Rock. A graduate of Washington and Lee University and Yale Divinity School, Andy enjoys the academic side of Christianity.

Heading up the worship team, preaching, and overseeing the daily operations are just a few of Andy’s responsibilities as the lead pastor of The Loft. “I’m someone who didn’t grow up in church,” shares Andy. “One of my greatest loves is helping the church become relevant to the lives of those who are yet to discover their place in it. I’m challenged and excited about the opportunity that’s ahead of us in fulfilling God’s plan for this ministry.”

Andy and his wife, Deborah, have been married for 15 years, and they have two children, Anna and Noah. When not at church, you are likely to find him running the trails of The Woodlands or pursuing a passion for cooking—two hobbies that complement each other nicely, or so he thinks.

Pastor of Young Adults
thagans@twumc.org

Terence was born and raised in America’s Finest City—San Diego, CA. When he was 14, he found out that Jesus is awesome, and decided to become a Christian. Back in his high school days, he studied hard, pretended to be a wrestling superstar, and decided he wanted to become President of the United States of America. During his freshman year at Stanford University (don’t get too impressed… after all, he only majored in Sociology), Terence joined the Army Reserve and later Army ROTC. About a year before he graduated from college, he realized that God was calling him to be something much cooler than the President—he was calling him to become a pastor. He spent the next three years at Duke University’s Divinity School, where he studied theology during the day, and served as the RA for an undergrad fraternity at night. Now Terence has the best job on planet earth—he gets to hang out with young adults and spread God’s love all over the place. In his free time, Terence loves to run, watch movies and hang out with friends, talking about deep, interesting or random stuff late into the hours of the night. Among his more noble ambitions, Terence eagerly awaits the day when he will become the first preacher ever to be featured on the cover of GQ Magazine.

Loft Logistics
rtunstall@loftchurch.com
281.466.8624

Rozlyn is a native of Richmond, Virginia and moved to The Woodlands in the fall of 2006. Prior to moving to Texas, she attended Virginia Commonwealth University and graduated with a B.A. in Political Science. Her initial plan was to do policy research for the private sector but later discovered the Lord had something else in mind. She joined the staff at The Loft in July of 2007, where she was given the title “Loft Logistics.” She enjoys her job immensely and considers The Loft Church her home. When Rozlyn is not working at The Loft she enjoys salt-water fishing, boating, western horseback riding, antique shopping, movies, politics, reading, and gardening.

Director of Drama Ministry
dbarber@loftchurch.com

Dori Barber discovered her interest in drama at age three when she insisted on acting out her bedtime stories. Since that time just sitting and listening has always been a little on the boring side. Dori has a BFA in Theatre from Southwestern University and years and years of experience in youth ministry. She is a preacher’s daughter who told God she would never work for a church. Never say never. Dori’s passion is about communicating the truth of God’s love, and she sees the use of drama and other visual arts as an often neglected but greatly needed instrument to do that. Getting to work at the Loft with an amazingly creative team of people who are driven to proclaim truth yet always looking to do this in culturally relevant ways is super energizing for Dori. She is grateful to be part of such a church.

Dori is a wife to Keith and a mom to Claire, Caleb and Josh. When she isn’t writing, directing or acting in drama for the Loft she might be deer hunting at her parent’s ranch near Medina, or cheering on her children at their sporting events.

Director of Small Groups
aellis@loftchurch.com

“I grew up in the church. I’ve done the Bible studies. I’ve worked with the children’s ministry. I’ve interned with the youth group. I’ve volunteered as a greeter. You name it, I’ve done it. But the times I understand God’s love the most—the times I truly get what it means to be the body of Christ, the church—is when I am connecting with others in a small group.”

Ashley was born and raised in The Woodlands, graduated from Baylor University (sic em!), wandered the world for a year, and then planted roots in her favorite city, Chicago. In her 4 years there, two choices stand out above the rest: 1) she fell in love with her church, got involved and joined a women’s small group, and 2) she fell in love with John, got married and joined a newly-weds small group. Having been a part of a small-groups driven church, Ashley sees how missional communities transform lives through transparent relationships. She loves people and desires community. That is why she believes her job as the Director of Small Groups is the best one around!

Apart from people, Ashley enjoys traveling to remote places, camping, power tools, building furniture, the idea of sewing, and Subway sandwiches with mayonnaise, pickles, and cheese.

Director of Contemporary Worship
ddunn@twumc.org

David Dunn, a West Texas kid, grew up with five other siblings in the heart of Oil Country. He started his music career while struggling through a petroleum engineering degree at Texas Tech University (Wreck ’em!) After graduation, he took a break from the music industry and spent a year in Zambia, Africa doing mission and humanitarian work.

Upon returning to the States, David partnered with a college ministry in Oklahoma City and promptly began work on his self-titled second album. This EP had a mainstream, radio-friendly feel, breaking away from the acoustic-rock sound that defined his first album, Eye Sore. David describes his lyrics encompassing “things I care about,” and hopes his work meets people where they are—putting a dent in their pre-existing worldviews.

David is set to release a new full-length record in the fall of 2011.

Throughout his career, David Dunn has continued traveling, performing, and expanding his fan base. Blessed beyond measure by the recent partnership with The Woodlands UMC, David “can’t wait to see what the Lord will do.”