Elders

Wessel is the son of missionaries in the Christian Reformed Church and spent part of his childhood in Brazil. After studying at Calvin College in Grand Rapids. Michigan, Wessel worked in Cleveland, where he met his wife Kathy and their two daughters were born. They came to Grace OPC when Wessel took a job at OSU, where he’s worked the past 16 years in cancer research. Wessel’s family loves serving the people of Grace OPC and they hope and pray that God will allow them to be part of this congregation until He calls them to be with Him. In his free time, Wessel enjoys spending time with his family, studying the Bible, reading books on theology and church history, and watching soccer and college football. The Dirksens live in Worthington.

Jason and his wife Dawn have three children. They have been members of Grace OPC since 2001, and Jason has been a deacon since 2014. He loves the people of Grace and is honored to minister among them. In his free time, Jason, who is a software developer by day, loves to walk in the woods with anyone who will go with him and with his dog, who always wants to go.

Chuck Shanks was originally from Memphis, Tennessee, and moved to Ohio in 2001. He joined Grace Presbyterian in 2003. He’s been the happy husband to Kat since 2008, and they live in Marysville. Chuck works for IBM and enjoys woodworking as a hobby. He appreciates that Grace Presbyterian is first and foremost committed to the ordinary means of grace in ministering to the church, and to proclaiming the gospel locally and to the nations. Chuck has been an elder since 2012, and he gets great joy in serving and learning along with the other elders and deacons and watching as God does extraordinary work through ordinary people.

Joe and his wife Molly are charter members of Grace, where they began worshipping in 1978 as newlyweds. The Lord blessed their family with five sons and they have found Grace to be a good and faithful place to raise a family. Joe and Molly have been able to worship with his parents as well as their children and grandchildren for many years now. Joe has served as an elder since 1983, and he counts it a privilege to work alongside other men committed to serving the gifted, committed, and giving congregation of Grace. For the last forty years, Joe has worked as an accountant in the agricultural and environmental industries. He enjoys reading history, biographies, and theology in his spare time.

Robert was blessed to be raised by godly parents in West Virginia, and he trusted in Jesus alone as his Lord and Savior at an early age. After many decades of involvement in the Presbyterian Church in America, Robert assisted his church in Cincinnati transition to the OPC in 2013. In 2019, he and his wife Sarah moved to the Columbus area to be closer to family. A structural engineer, Robert worked his entire career with the US Army Corps of Engineers as a civilian, and he continues to do some work on an as-needed basis since his retirement in 2016. Robert desires to serve God in whatever capacity He leads, and for now that is, along with in partnership with the other session members, “to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ.”

Randy and his wife Christine first visited Grace OPC in 2001 and knew they had found their church home. Consistent reformed preaching, warm welcoming fellowship, and a pastor and a session with a desire to serve the Lord in everything they do made it a wonderful place to worship. Serving as an elder since 2012 has been a joy for Randy. He is blessed to be a part of a church and a session of godly men who believe in spreading the gospel and strive to show God’s grace in everything they do. As Randy settles into retirement after 34 years in the pharmaceutical business, he enjoys cooking delicious dinners for his beautiful wife and loves spending time volunteering, hiking and gardening. The Wilsons live in Dublin and have two adult children.