Stefanie Hayes
Senior Pastor
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Stefanie Hayes (she/her/hers) is an ordained elder currently serving Hanscom Park UMC in Omaha. Previously, she served two churches in rural Nebraska, worked in college ministry at a large suburban Dallas church, and completed her seminary internship at a reconciling church in Dallas. Her undergraduate degree is in Music Education from the University of Texas at Austin and she taught middle school and high school orchestra for five years before discerning her call to ministry. After graduating from Perkins School of Theology in 2016, she made her way to Nebraska and the Great Plains Conference.
Pastor Stefanie has a heart for justice, a calling to preach, and embraces children and youth as vital participants and leaders in worship. She identifies as a creative and a bridge-builder and has passions for creative worship planning and cultivating healthy local church rhythms. She values District and Conference work as well as ecumenical and interfaith partnerships.
While Rev. Stefanie Hayes did grow up in Texas, she is also a proud Nebraskan who enjoys exploring the state, hiking, kayaking, history, music, ballroom dancing, yoga, anything by Brené Brown, and Hispanic food. She feels excited to serve Hanscom Park UMC and looks forward to getting to know the church and the Omaha community.
Peter Karanja
Associate Pastor for Community Engagement
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Rev. Peter Karanja born and raised in Kenya joined Hanscom Park United Methodist Church as an Associate Pastor for Community Engagement on July 18, 2021. He is humbled to serve in this capacity as Associate Pastor after interning at HPUMC in the Summer of 2020 at the peak of the Global Pandemic. It is during this time that he got to engage, connect and grow in relation with the Covid-19 hard-hit diverse community of migrants and refugees here in Omaha who would come to Church for food support and other amenities.
Peter is a graduate of Africa University with a Bachelor of Divinity and Master of Divinity at Theological School of Drew University. He is an Alumni of both the Global Justice Volunteer and the Global Mission Fellow programs of Generation Transformation of the Global Ministries of the United Methodist Church. After working alongside the marginalized far from his home context (in Zimbabwe, the Philippines, and Germany), he has found the need to be in solidarity with communities that suffer injustice, no matter the locality. Peter has a great passion for Social Justice, Ecological Justice, and Holiness and sees the Church as a catalyst of social transformation, bringing healing to unjust social systems.
Peter served one year as a pastoral intern at Livingston United Methodist Church in New Jersey and for 3 years as Youth Coordinator in Trinity United Methodist Church and as a visiting preacher to local churches within Naivasha Kenya. He loves the diverse cultures within Omaha city and its amazing sunsets that remind him of God’s ever-present love.
Erin Moore
Office Manager
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Erin is from the Dundee area of Omaha, where she spent the first part of her childhood growing up. When she was in elementary school her family relocated to Elkhorn where they lived for about 10 years until she graduated high-school.
Erin has spent time working in both nursing and in teaching ESL here in Omaha. She comes to Hanscom Park United Methodist Church from Burlington Capital where she has worked as a Receptionist and Office Associate. She has also worked in reception services at Together Inc.
Erin and her husband, Levi, live in Benson where they love taking walks, shopping, and cooking. When she has down time, she enjoys writing, working on craft projects, and getting to know people in the community.
Marlys Lubash
Financial & Membership Secretary
Treasurer
Jannene Sass
Music Director