Be Shepherds of the church of God, which he bought with his own blood.
In God's wisdom, He has prescribed in Scripture that local churches are to be led by a plurality of elders. They are shepherds and overseers under the great Shepherd and head of the church, Jesus Christ. The nine men serving as elders at Mount Vernon all meet the biblical qualifications for elders (1 Tim. 3, Titus 1). Most of Mount Vernon's elders are lay-members and not on staff. These men are set aside to oversee and lead Mount Vernon, specifically through the ministry of the Word and prayer.
John Hall (Vice Chairman)
John’s parents were very active in the church when he was growing up, and John professed faith in Christ at a very young age. He struggled as a young man to follow Christ, but at the age of 22, he was greatly helped by a teacher at church who exhorted him to root out worldliness and follow Christ with heart, soul, and mind. By the grace of God, John did. John and Jane have been at Mount Vernon for eight years. They have two adult children. John has been a deacon and teacher.
Jim Heiskell (Chairman)
In June of 1966, at a Campus Crusade for Christ conference in California, Jim became a Christian. His priorities changed overnight. Jim spends his days teaching, counseling, and mentoring junior high school students at the Heiskell School. At Mount Vernon, as the Director of Adult Sunday School Ministries, he regularly encourages our teachers. Jim is married to Connie and they have five grown children.
Rick Hutchins
Rick was raised attending a Southern Baptist Church where he accepted Christ and was baptized around the age of 12. In college he gradually pushed God into the background, believing that he was comfortably in control. In early 1983, a friend re-introduced Rick to the Savior in a life-changing meeting that began as something altogether ordinary. Rick says, “Our God is faithful and never gives up on us, never stops loving us, and my life is my proof of that.” Since coming to MVBC in 1985, Rick has served as a preschool teacher, Sunday School Director, Deacon, and on several committees. He has also served on the Worship Welcome team and the Leadership team. Rick is currently serving as the Deacon of Adult Sunday School.
Aaron Menikoff (Senior Pastor)
Pastor Menikoff began his ministry at Mount Vernon in June 2008. He has a Ph.D. in American church history from the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary where he received his M.Div in biblical and theological studies. Prior to this, he worked as a legislative assistant for U.S. Senator Mark Hatfield. Aaron’s heart is for the church and he seeks to live under the authority of Christ and His Word. Aaron and his wife Deana have three children.
Bryan Pillsbury (Associate Pastor)
Bryan has been on staff at Mount Vernon for nearly a quarter of a century. His life began in Greenville, South Carolina where he grew up in an unchurched home. In high school, friends invited Bryan to a Young Life retreat. There, for the first time, he understood his need Christ and the Lord saved him. God has used Bryan at Mount Vernon to teach, disciple, and to help us spread the Gospel in Sandy Springs and beyond. Bryan and his wife Paige have five children.
Hank Sturgess
As a young man, Hank’s faith was in his head, but not his heart. He knew a great deal about God, but had never known what it meant to be part of God’s family. In his late twenties, the Gospel truly made sense to him, and he was baptized as a believer. Hank and his wife, Charlotte, joined Mount Vernon in 1995. Charlotte went to be with the Lord a few years ago. Hank has continued to faithfully serve the church he loves, teaching and serving wherever there is a need.
Scott Sullivan
Scott was born and raised in a Christian home. His father served on the pastoral staff at their church in Decatur. It was during the spring of 1983 that God began a mighty work in his heart, and Scott came to fully understand Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross and what it meant for him to turn from sin and believe in Jesus. He professed his faith and was baptized. While there were times in his life that he strayed, God was always faithful to draw him back. After graduating from college, Scott began investing in the lives of young people in his church, teaching a college Sunday School class and working with the Student Ministry. Scott has taught Sunday School at Mount Vernon and is currently the Deacon of Youth Ministry.
Brad Thayer (Associate Pastor)
Brad grew up in a Christian home and came to know Christ as a teenager. He began to grow in earnest having heard a sermon on Isaiah 6 about the holiness of God and the depth of our sin. Brad has been on staff at Mount Vernon as an assistant pastor since October 2008. He received a degree from Boyce Bible College and previously served as an elder at Third Avenue Baptist Church in Louisville, Kentucky. He is married to Candace and they have four children.