Pastor

Reverend Susan L. Haynes

Susan received her Bachelor of Business Administration from Georgia State University. Prior to attending seminary, Susan held various positions in the business world, including owning and running a small business.

A lifelong Presbyterian. Susan served on the Youth Council of Atlanta Presbytery and was a Youth Advisory Delegate to the 1973 General Assembly. Before entering the ministry, Susan served in many different capacities in local church and church councils, including serving as the Moderator of Cherokee Presbytery in 1987 and a Ruling Elder Commissioner to the 1994 meeting of the General Assembly of the PCUSA.

After receiving her Master of Divinity from Columbia Theological Seminary, she was ordained as a Minister of Word and Sacrament on March 7, 2004. Susan served as an Associate Pastor and Interim Pastor/Head of Staff at several churches in the Greater Atlanta area.

Susan presently serves Cherokee Presbytery as Treasurer, and as a member of the permanent Judicial Commission and the Ministry Support Team.

Director of Music

Dr. Mark A. Mentzer

Dr. Mark A. Mentzer is an educator, scientist, author, and musician. He managed aerospace companies and led global-product development in Europe, Asia, and the Americas. He taught at several universities and colleges for many years. His technical books are widely distributed in three languages. Mark’s music experience includes composition, arranging, theater productions, touring, accompanying, and live performance. Now residing in Blairsville, Georgia, Mark enjoys writing fiction and technical texts, performing popular music, and serving as the new Director of Music at Faith Presbyterian Church of the North Georgia Mountains.

Clerk

Candy Frank serves as the Clerk of Session.

The role of the Clerk of Session is to:

Record the transactions of the Session
Serve as secretary of all meetings of the congregation
Keep rolls of membership and attendance
Maintain any required registers
Preserve its records

Administration

Under the leadership of Bill Young (left) and Al Gnann (right), the Administrative Planning Team is responsible for :

The care of our facilities
The management of paid staff
The finances of the church
Volunteer staffing and management of the church office

Congregational Care

Elders Diane Shillcutt (left) and Terri Charron (right) lead the work of the Congregational Care Planning Team. This planning team defines its role as “…to find ways to connect and care for our members in a variety of ways”. That variety of ways includes:

Blue Bird Book Worms
Crafting Groups
Faith, Hope and Hammers
Memorial Garden
Receptions, celebrations, social events, memorial services and congregational meals

Mission and Outreach

The Mission and Outreach Planning Team is co-chaired by Lynda Ray (left) and Sally Crawford (right). Recognizing the needs of the area we serve, Faith leads or participates in community solutions to address those needs. A sampling of the teams activities is:

Clothing drives
Disaster-relief support
Efforts aimed at the issue of food-insecurity in school age children and adults
Support of residents at local nursing homes
Participation in community arts events
Active support of community programs such as Habitat for Humanity

Spiritual Development

The Spiritual Development Planning Team, led by Elders Bob Elwell and Sylvia Goodyear, is responsible for all activities aimed at helping a person expand their personal understanding of the teachings of the Bible and making it a part of their lives including:

Regular weekly worship services
Church music program
Small group learning opportunities
Celebrations of Life
Observation of special days during the Christian year
Opportunities for personal spiritual growth.