Pastor Gene Grass and wife Carol

Who would have thought that my wife, Carol, and I would still be ministering at New Vision Fellowship after twenty-eight years? When we arrived in 1979 we brought two small children and a suitcase full of enthusiasm to serve the Lord here in Beaverton. What a ride it has been! Today our three children are married and Carol and I are grandparents. Beaverton has been a wonderful place for us to learn, grow and raise our children.

Carol is a Health Care Services Manager at OHSU. She has been my great encourager through the years. (She is patient, too!) Her hobby is gardening; her handiwork can be seen in the church grounds, which she designed and has spent many hours caring for.

As for me, I love to juggle, to ride unicycles and to collect stamps – an interesting combination of hobbies, I’m told. I also love to provide practical ways for people to live a Christian life, and to deal with the joy and pain of living. It has been a great privilege serving the Lord in this church. New Vision people are warm, caring and they have a sense of humor.

Many years ago the Lord gave me a verse that has been a continual source of strength and hope to me. It is found in Philippians 4: 13, and says, “I can do all things through Him [Christ] who strengthens me.” I’m thankful to the Lord for his Word and for letting me be his man in this place.