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Elders and Deacons At RCC
As Head of the Church and the Savior of the body, the Lord Jesus Christ gave officers necessary for the edification of His Church and the perfecting of the saints. These officers are Elders (pastors/shepherds, overseers or rulers) and Deacons (Phil. 1:1; 1 Pet. 5:2-3; Tit. 1:5, 7; 1 Tim. 3:1-7; 3:8-13; Acts 6:1-6). Elders have responsibility to oversee the whole work of the local church, with a focus on the ministry of the Word, prayer and worship (Acts 6:2, 4; 2:24; 4:31; 1 Tim. 4:13-16; 2 Tim. 4:2). Deacons have been given as assistants to the Elders to administer the work of the church (Acts 6:1-6; Num. 11:1-4; 10-17). The congregation is to follow with esteem and love the teaching and example of those who lead them (Heb. 13:7; 17; 1 Thes. 5:12-13).
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Dennis Tuuri - Elder
Ordained in 1983 as RCC's first Elder, Dennis' faithfulness to God's Word has been a blessing within and without the church. Within the church, men are challenged to be faithful Bereans and leaders of their families, reforming lives and church practices to God's word. In the community, he went where many feared to go, freeing up home and private school laws in the mid-80s. He is the Executive Director of the Parents Education Association, writing Biblical Voter Guides for Oregon. His reputation in politics brought him the honor of serving as a Board member of the Oregon Family Council. His activities now include yearly trips to Poland where the need is great for Biblical teaching. Dennis and his wife Christine live in Canby and have five children and four grandchildren.
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Chris Wilson - Elder
Chris has a passion for world missions and has been instrumental in helping to develop a missions program at RCC. He has gone to West Bengal four times to teach pastors the word of God, as he has so faithfully done at RCC. Chris owns and operates a veterinary practice in Beaverton, Oregon. He studied veterinary medicine at Iowa State University. In 1982 he moved his family to Oregon to assist a Christian veterinarian that is actively involved in world missions. Chris and his wife Sharon have six children and live in Tigard.
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John Shaw - Elder
Dr. John Shaw pastored Reformation Bible Church, a reformed congregation, from 1988 until 2000 in Hillsboro, Oregon. John is an experienced teacher and has a strong interest in Christian schools, and science education in particular. He was instrumental in founding King's Academy, an RCC-affiliated Christian school, and is currently serving as Chairman of the Board. After graduating from Portland State University with a B.A degree in Psychology, John went on to earn an M.S. in Electronic Science, and a Ph.D in Applied Physics, both from Oregon Graduate Institute. Currently, as the president of Shaw Technologies, Inc., Dr. Shaw provides consulting and contract "R & D" for high tech companies; he specializes in mathematical and scientific analysis and embedded computer systems. John lives in Tualatin, Oregon with his wife of 40 years. John and Debbie have two grown children and eight grandchildren.
Doug Hayes - Elder
Doug has been closely tied to RCC since 1986, first as a member and then sent to be the first pastor of a mission work of RCC in the Seattle, Washington area. He was ordained to the Gospel ministry in 1993 by the Elders of RCC and pastored Christ the Sovereign Covenant Church in Auburn, Washington until 1998. He returned to RCC in 1999 and has served in various ministries of the church since then. Much of his attention has been given to helping the Elders produce expository Bible curriculum, with the goal of teaching all sixty-six books of the Bible in our Lord's Day Bible classes. He has been to West Bengal, India to teach pastors the word of God in the Reformed Presbyterian Theological Seminary. Doug and his wife Amy live in Milwaukie, and have 5 children and one grandchild on the way.
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Howard Lortz - Deacon
Howard is a founding member of RCC and has faithfully served the church in a variety of capacities. He is often the catalyst God has used to jumpstart important projects, including RCC and the Parents Education Association. Howard is particularly gifted as an administrator and has been used by God to organize and facilitate various ministries at RCC, including our annual Family Camp. He is involved in our annual budgeting process, and took the lead role in the acquisition of our present facility. Howard has been an executive for Boise Paper Solutions for many years. He and his wife Valerie have six children, three grandchildren and live in Vancouver, Washington.
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Bob Evans - Deacon
Bob is the facilities manager here at RCC and is responsible for the care and maintenance of our building. He is also regularly engaged in mentoring young people. Bob has spent many years in the Milwaukie area and currently live in Gladstone. He and his wife Patti have nine children, four grandchildren and two on the way. |
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Takashi Fukuda - Deacon
Takashi, born and raised in Japan, oversees the weekly Agape meal (common meal or potluck dinner), one of RCC's distinctive practices. He also is responsible for the exterior maintenance of the church and is the benevolence coordinator. He and his wife Debbie have been members at RCC since its earliest days. They have six children, two grandchildren and reside in Redland, just outside of Oregon City. He owns a flourishing landscaping business. |
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Jeff Cone - Deacon
Jeff Cone, a CPA, has strong abilities in the area of finance and helps with the church budget, financial reports, and the church accounting system. He owns a successful consulting company. Jeff and his wife Ann have six children and live in Mulino, Oregon.
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Roger Payne - Deacon
Roger oversees the weekly Agape meal (common meal), one of RCC's distinctive practices, and has a passion for encouraging fellowship amongst God's people. He also coordinates our internal benevolence program and our greeters. Roger served six years active duty in the US Navy from 1972 - 1978, then attended Multnomah University, graduating in 1984 with a Bachelors of Science degree in Biblical Education. He now works for Portland General Electric. Roger and Beverly have 4 children, and have been members at RCC since 1995. |
Brian Erland - Deacon
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Brian became convinced of Reformed doctrine in the summer of 1998, while on a business trip with his wife, and together started reading “Eschatology of Victory” and “Paradise Restored.” The family began attended RCC in 1998, and became members in October, 1999. In April, 2000, Brian was transferred to northern California, where he acted as general manager for a branch of his firm. The family transferred their membership to Covenant Reformed Church of Grass Valley. Brian was ordained and installed as a deacon in this church in October 2000. His major ministries were the nursing home program, acting as Treasurer, and overseeing building maintenance. Brian served as a deacon until he transferred back to Oregon in September, 2002 and the family transferred their membership back to RCC. At RCC, Brian started a benevolence ministry for seniors at McLoughlin Place in Oregon City, has organized several sports activities for members of the church, including co-ed softball, boys’ basketball teams and helping organize activities for Future Men’s camp and Family Camp. Brian is Sales Manager of New Market Development, for West Coast Coffee Company, where he has been employed for 14 years. He has been married for nearly twenty five years, has three children, and lives in Estacada.
David Tooze - Deacon
David became convinced of the sovereignty of God and the truth of the Bible in 1996 and in 2001 made Reformation Covenant his family church home. He says the best part of the Lord’s Day at RCC is that it doesn’t end at noon – rather, it lasts all day long! David has a heart for practical service to RCC and her families. Today, his main responsibilities are assisting with facility maintenance and with family moves. For the past four years David has taught eight and nine-year-old children in the Lord’s Day Bible Classes and five years ago helped start King’s Academy Christian School for Junior and Senior High students. David is a graduate from Oregon State University with a Bachelor’s Degree in Parks Management and has been employed by the City of Portland, Office of Sustainable Development, as the Senior Energy Specialist since 1987. He was ordained deacon in the spring of 2008. He and his wife, Minden, have been married 22 years. They live in Milwaukie with their three teen aged children.
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