Chris Boylan
Chris’ predominant spiritual gift is teaching, and he and his wife, Kim, lead a small weekly Bible study that began in their home in Washingtonville. Chris spent many years in youth leadership in the church, has taught in Sunday school classes from 5th grade up through high school and several adult classes, and served as a Deacon before becoming an Elder. Kim has worked alongside Chris in all of these ministries, and she has served in leadership roles in the Women’s Ministry and annual Women’s Conference. The Boylans have two children, and both were raised in the knowledge and love of the Lord at Grace. SarahBeth graduated from Messiah College and is a 5th grade teacher at Round Hill Elementary School. Danny is currently a third-year pre-med student at Messiah College and plans on a career in medicine.
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Jay Magnelli
Jay Magnelli has been an area resident and regular attendee of Grace Community for 20 years. He, his wife Dot, and their two daughters have come to a saving knowledge and relationship with Jesus Christ through the various ministries at Grace. Jay is a mechanical engineer by profession. Within the church he has served in various capacities, including outreach leader, Deacon, Sunday school teacher, and Elder. He has had the opportunity to lead numerous outreaches from “The Greatest Star” musical outreach to many “Baseball Clinics with the Pros.” As a Deacon and Deaconess, he and his wife coordinated baptismal services for several years. He is currently teaching an adult Sunday school class called Beginnings, designed to help new believers get grounded in their faith and, along with his wife, is leading a weekly home Bible study. His favorite section in scripture is the “Sermon on the Mount” in Matthew 5-7, and his favorite scripture verse is 1 Peter 3:15.
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Eric Savacool
Eric has lived in the Tri-State area all his life. He accepted the Lord while dating his wife, Karen, prior to their marriage in 1983. Karen came to Christ at age 19 during a church altar call in Huguenot, NY and was the one who first introduced Eric to Christ. They lived in Montague, New Jersey and attended the First Baptist Church in Port Jervis, where Eric served as Chairman of the Trustees, Finance Committee, Missions Committee, and Building & Grounds and Karen served in Vacation Bible School, on the Missions Committee, and in Children’s Sunday school. After moving to the Slate Hill area in 1995, God led them to seek another church, and they became members of Grace in 1996. Eric has been actively involved in ministry as a children’s Sunday school teacher, Kids Club Supervisor, Co-chairman of the Building Committee, and usher. Karen has been involved in the Children’s Ministry, SummerQuest and annual Women’s Conference at Grace. The Savacools have two children, Bethany and Marc, who both have trusted Jesus as Lord and Savior and been baptized.
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Nicholas Casciotta
Nicholas came to the Lord in 1987 during an Easter Sunday Service at Wantagh Baptist Church in Wantagh, Long Island. Both Nicholas and his wife, Mechelle, had grown up in Roman Catholic homes and wanted their children raised in a Christian environment. This desire moved them to attend Wantagh Baptist Church, where Nicholas found the Lord and Mechelle began growing in her faith. The Casciottas were members of that church for nine years, where Nicholas served as a trustee and adult Sunday school teacher and both were youth leaders. They have been active at Grace Community for the past few years. Nicholas has served as head usher and is now stepping into a teaching role as an Adult community class teacher. The Casciottas started a Bible study in their home about eight months ago, along with a couple of other families from Grace. During the week, Nicholas works as a manager of software development for the Depository Trust and Clearing Corporation in Manhattan.
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Juan Goyzueta
Juan was born into a Catholic family in La Paz, Bolivia. He attended a Catholic school until age 10, when his family moved to Flushing, New York. As a teenager, he became more aware of God’s love through the witness of his older sister, who brought him to church to see a movie. Soon after his conversion, he was baptized and became a member of the First Baptist Church of Flushing, joined the youth group, and sang in the choir. He was involved with the High School Born Againers and co-founded his high school’s Christian Club. In college, he participated in InterVarsity, and during medical school was involved in the Christian Medical Society and briefly taught adult Sunday school. After his first year in medical school, he married Valerie, whom he met at a college-age fellowship at church. They came to Grace Community eight years ago. Valerie now serves in the children’s ministry and volunteering for MOPS. Juan is an usher and has been a member of the Strategic Team. They have four children — Andrew, Arielle, Anna, and Aaron.
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Johnson Chang-Fong
Johnson is a native of Trinidad. His yearning for God found fruit after high school when, through contact with a U.S. missionary family, he was challenged to read the New Testament. He committed his life to the Lord, became involved with evangelistic street meetings, and was baptized in a local Pentecostal Church. At the University of the West Indies he studied Civil Engineering and became active in Intervarsity Christian Fellowship. After graduation, Johnson served as an Elder responsible for administration and preaching, taught adult Sunday school, and ministered in music worship. He earned an M.S. degree in Structural Engineering at the University of London, England and MBA at the University of Southern California. Johnson married Ivy in 1990, and in 1995 they moved with their young children to Montreal, Canada, where Johnson pursued consulting work with international agencies in the aviation sector. Johnson became Manager of Engineering and Development at an Airport Management firm based in Teterboro, New Jersey in 1999. The family moved to Washingtonville and became members of Grace Community. Johnson has served as greeter, usher, and deacon, and since 2005 has been leading the Generations community class.
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Jonathan Black
Since coming to Grace in 2001, Jonathan has been involved in many church activities. For six years, he and his wife Tina taught 2nd grade children during 2nd service. They currently assist in hosting the Worship service for grades K-5 in Children's Ministry. They also served on the Children’s Ministry Leadership Team, where they helped formulate the vision statement for Children’s Ministry. Jonathan and Tina have also been church greeters, volunteered for SummerQuest, and have been involved in many quirky skits during the Children’s Worship service. They have both attended Trés Dias, which greatly enhanced their spiritual walk and strengthened their relationship with Jesus Christ. They have a daughter who is also very involved in many church activities and mission trips. Jonathan was also the Team Lead for the Cyber Ministry Team for several years, which was responsible for rebuilding the website for Grace Community into its current form. He is currently the Director of Information Technology at Grace Community Church. In his professional life, Jonathan holds a B.S. degree in Electrical Engineering and an M.S. degree in Computer Science and designs and builds computer software systems for major corporations.
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