Chestnut Ridge Church Leadership
Chestnut Ridge Church is blessed to have a leadership team who are truly dedicated to Christ and accomplishing His will. Following are brief bio's of our leadership team and their qualifications for ministry.
Pastor Greg Neely
Senior Pastor
Pastor Greg was appointed to serve as Chestnut Ridge Church's Senior Pastor January 6, 2008. Prior to that, he served various other churches in student pastor and senior pastor roles.
The attributes that best describe Greg as a pastor are strong preaching, leadership development and counseling. He has expressed a burning desire to lead a church like Chestnut Ridge Church where biblical views are embraced and encouraged, with members who care about the needs of those around them and who want to connect others to the body of Christ. Pastor Greg takes worship and preaching very seriously, spending time each day focused on Bible study and seeking God's direction for ministry.
He graduated from Fruitland Baptist Bible College in 2005.
Pastor Greg has been happily married for 26 years to his wife, Kristi. They have three children and two grandchildren.
Zack Hayes
Student Ministry
Zack Hayes has been serving Chestnut Ridge as Youth Pastor since 2017 along with his wife Ambriel.
Zach graduated from Fruitland Baptist Bible College with an associates degree in Religion and Christian Ministry.
God has been at work in Zack's life, leading him toward Chestnut Ridge and Student ministry through open doors and opportunities to serve. The Lord has been speaking to and through Zack and has been leading him to walk more closely with HIM and show HIS love through the life of this young couple.
Tim Blankenbeckler
Worship Pastor
Tim was called to serve at Chestnut Ridge in September of 2018. He has served in ministry for more than 30 years with experience in both youth ministry and music ministry.
Tim was born and raised in Smyth County VA and now resides in Monroe, NC.
Tim is a 1992 graduate of Fruitland Baptist Bible College, a 1995 graduate of North Greenville University and also studied music at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary.
Tim is supported in his ministry by his lovely wife Marie.
Barbara Powell
Children's Ministry
Barbara Powell joined with the ministry team at Chestnut Ridge in June 2018 with the goal and purpose of assisting families to grow young disciples. She has many years of experience working with children in multiple capacities and had been leading children's ministry the previous 9 years in our community.
Barbara graduated from Illinois College in 1998 and enjoys traveling with her husband, Chris, and their children.
Daily Inspiration: Galatians 6:9
Debbie Putnam
Administrative Assistant
Debbie has been keeping order in our offices since January of 2018. Her experience in the school system where she retired in 2017 prepared her for the constant motion of ministry life.
Debbie is lovingly supported in her ministry by her husband Roy. They have 2 children and 6 grandchildren.