What Is a Resource Person?
You are welcome to use the Contact Form in order to contact any member of the Susquehanna Conference Disability Ministries. Some members of our group have volunteered to go the extra mile in order to a physical presence within the conference. They have volunteered to serve as resource persons. Our goal is to eventually have one resource person in each district.
Many resource persons are also a member of the Disability Ministries, but some do not have time to actively serve on another committee; nevertheless, they have agreed to offer their valuable gifts and graces. We encourage you to contact our resource persons if you have any questions, comments, or concerns.
We Encourage You to Contact Us!
Rev. Rebecca L, Holland OSL (M.Div, B.S. English Ed)- Disability Ministries Task Force, Chair
Rev.. Rebecca L. Torres-Holland (B.S. English Ed. & M. Div.) is a visually impaired half-Filipino clergywoman serving in the United Methodist Church. She is passionate about working to empower people who have been traditionally marginalized by the church, especially women, people of color, and people with disabilities.
Rebecca graduated in 2011 with a B.S. in English Education. After graduation, she went on to attend Wesley Theological Seminary in Washington D.C. where she earned her Master’s of Divinity in 2014. While at Wesley Seminary Rebecca served as a pastoral intern at a cooperative parish where she gained experience working with both a large congregation in a prosperous area of the city as well as a smaller and more ethnically diverse congregation.
While in D.C., Rebecca also served as a pastoral intern at the United Methodist General Board of Church and Society (GBCS) located on Capitol Hill. While working at GBCS, Rebecca gained experience working with issues of social justice, including the Imagine No Malaria Campaign. She was ordained as an elder in the United Methodist Church in May of 2018. She currently serves as the solo pastor at a wonderful church in Central Pennsylvania. She is a member of the Order of St. Luke
Rebecca is the author of the poetry collection Through My Good Eye: A Memoir in Verse. Her book is available in paperback from Amazon and is coming soon to Kindle. All profits made from this collection will be donated to Christ Community United Methodist Church.
Rebecca writes about faith, diverse books, and disability awareness on her blog at BeckieWrites.com
Rev. Craig Gommer, OSL
Dallas & Firwood UMC –Scranton/ Wilkes Barre
Pastor Julie Rosensteel
Mountainview Parish, Williamsport
Mr. Jerry Post
Jerry is a certified lay servant and an active member of the Forty Fort United Methodist Church where he currently serves as the lay leader. In the past, Jerry has served as the chairperson for the Council on Ministries Committee and as a Sunday School teacher.
Jerry writes, “When I was fifteen years old, a family moved into my neighborhood with four children and one of their boys had a developmental disability. Their father was a minister and was willing to sit down and speak to me about his son’s disability. Ever since then I have always wanted to help people who are disabled. I have been employed working with individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities as well as a volunteer softball coach with the special Olympics. I have a family member with an intellectual disability, a family members who uses a wheelchair, and a friend who has a child with autism.
“My passion is to help people with disabilities. This is why advocacy is very important to me. Too many times, I’ve seen people without a voice left in a corner and forgotten about. It’s people like this that need advocates. This is why I was very happy to hear that the Susquehanna Conference had formed the Disabilities Ministries Task Force. It is both a privilege and blessing that the Lord has provided me this opportunity to serve on the Task Force as the resource person for the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton District to help give those disabled the chance they deserve so they know that God love’s them.”
Mr. Jeffery D. Holland
Jeffery is a native of Altoona, Pennsylvania, and an active member of Christ Community United Methodist Church where he serves on the trustees. He was the delegate to Annual Conference in 2018 and will also be the delegate to Annual Conference in 2019. He sits on the board of the Blair County Historical Society and is the chair of the sites committee. he is also a member of the National Railway Historical Society Horseshoe Curve Chapter.
Mrs. Pamela Harker
Pamela Harker is an active member of Christ Community United Methodist Church in Altoona, Pennsylvania. In the past, she has served as the lay delegate to annual conference. She is also a member of the Administrative Council and the church’s Matthew 28 Staff, where she holds the position of connections.
Pam is particularly passionate about spreading the love of God to all people. She is the leader of CCUMC’s Autism Support Group which offers comfort and fellowship to people and families dealing with Autism Spectrum Disorder.
Mrs. Abigail Kane
Abigail Kane currently serves as a Supports Coordinator at Service Access Management (SAM) Inc. where she manages services for people with disabilities. Abigail studies Communication Sciences and Disorders at Penn State University, where she served as President of Students Advocating for Disability Awareness. Abigail plans to become a Speech-Language Pathologist in the future.
Abigail has worked one on one with individuals, provided hab aid services, and managed a residential group home. Learning from the ground up has given her the unique perspective to know the needs of the individuals to provide the best possible assistance to the disability community.
Pastor Steven Atanasoff
Pastor Steven is passionate about raising disability awareness. He strongly believes in our mission to empower people with disabilities, educate the church and society about issues related to disabilities, and advocate for the needs of the marginalized. Steven serves as the pastor of Geyers United Methodist Church. You can contact his church office by calling (717) 944-6424.
SUSUMC Disability Ministries 