Saddleback Small Groups

Campus: Central Office Team

Pastor of Connections

Steve Gladen

Steve has been Pastor of Small Groups at Saddleback Church since February 1998 and serves as an Elder of the church. He oversees the strategic launch and spiritual development of over 7,000 adult small groups on multiple campuses. He has authored Small Groups With Purpose, which has been translated into eleven languages to date, Leading Small Groups With Purpose and Planning Small Groups With Purpose (Summer 2018). He has a driving passion to see each church attendee connected to a qualified shepherd and become an integral part of their church body, living purpose driven lives for Christ. He frequently speaks at conferences and consults with church leaders from many denominations both in the United States and around the world. Prior to joining Saddleback, Steve has been on four other church staffs of varying sizes. He earned a Masters of Divinity from Fuller Theological Seminary in 1985, and a B.A. in Biblical Studies, with minors in Greek and Philosophy in 1982, from Evangel University. Steve and Lisa have been married since 1989 and have two children, Erika and Ethan.

Campus: Lake Forest

Connections Minister

Julie Chung

Julie Chung married her best friend Sam and together, absolutely love parenting their son and two daughters. Julie spent the early 90’s as an elementary school teacher before she felt the call to church ministry. Before joining Saddleback, she became a certified coach, and has served two other local churches in children’s, family and marriage ministries. Julie currently leads the Connections Team at the Lake Forest campus where she has the privilege of supporting a critical step in the church’s spiritual pathway. She earned her Masters of Arts in Theology from Fuller Theological Seminary where she is currently pursuing a Doctorate of Ministry degree and looks forward to graduating before Jesus comes back.

Campus: Lake Forest

Small Groups Pastor

Chris Reed

Chris married his beautiful bride, Tina in 1990. They have three wonderful children, Jacob, Kaylee, and Macie Joy. Chris began pastoring at a church in Los Angeles in 1995 where he was the Youth Pastor. He was the Executive Pastor of Student Ministries at John Maxwell’s church in South Florida before he came to Saddleback in 2008 as our Pastor to 20s/30s. He has since served as the Pastor to Singles. Currently, he leads our Lake Forest Small Groups Team. He earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in Biblical Studies and his Master of Arts in Organizational Leadership.

Campus: Lake Forest

Small Groups Pastor

Mark Grunden

Mark joined Saddleback’s pastoral team in 2017. A Mid-west guy from Madison, WI, Mark has extensive international experience having lived in Southeast Asia, Eastern Europe and has travelled to over 40 countries. His home is a multi-cultural household, with his wonderful wife, Alicia, who is Chinese-Malaysian. He brings the best of what East and West have culturally to raise their four kids.

Mark has a mix of business and ministry experience. For over 10 years Mark was a marketing professional, the last three of which he started his own marketing firm helping tech companies in SE Asia enter the US market. He has been a pastor at churches in Las Vegas and Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, and has led various ministries as a lay-leader since he was 13 years old.

Mark holds a BA in Biblical Literature from Taylor University, MBA from Bakke Graduate University and is currently pursuing his Masters in Divinity from Southern Seminary.

Campus: Lake Forest

Small Groups Minister

Laura Lepire

Laura married her best friend Calvin in 2019, and in 2020 they welcomed their first daughter, Hannah. Their family also includes a small but mighty maltipoo puppy named Boba Fett. She is an avid coffee drinker and loves all things outdoors. Growing up in Oregon, Laura graduated from Oregon State University with bachelor degrees in English, Philosophy, and Education. In 2006, she moved to California to attend Talbot School of Theology where she earned a Master’s degree in New Testament studies. She started working at her first church in Santa Ana in 2006, and then joined the small group team at Saddleback Church in 2015. With over 14 years in ministry, and 10 years of experience working with small groups, Laura is dedicated to helping followers of Jesus discover and live out God’s purpose for their lives, and believes growth happens best in the context of community.

Campus: Lake Forest

Small Groups Pastor

Kamron Zameni

Kamron has a huge heart for community in every sense of the word. Whether it was a sports team, an online gaming group, family, friends, or a shared interest in a culture, he always had a community to identify with. One of the things that brings him great joy is being able to create, cultivate, or contribute to a community of people that serve one another, share common interests, and pursue goals together. He always looks forward to getting to know people from other countries and cultures, especially when it comes to tasting their food!

In his free time, he enjoys playing video games and sports, finding the best/new places to eat, watching Korean dramas with his wife, and spending time with his friends and family. He also is just tapping into his new love/hate relationship with fixing things around the house. He loves being outdoors, especially near bodies of water.

Kamron and his wife Hanna married in 2017 after meeting each other through the Jesus Otaku anime outreach ministry at Saddleback Church. He is incredibly grateful for the love, encouragement, support, and kindness she shows to him and others. One of his favorite things about Hanna is her sense of humor, which is something he strongly values in his relationship with Christ and those around him.

Campus: Lake Forest

Small Groups Pastor

Rex Minor

Rex has been a Pastor on many church staffs for the past 25 years in the areas of small groups, pastoral care/recovery and discipleship. Before becoming a Pastor, he was a Marriage and Family therapist in private practice. He was born and raised in California, but has also pastored in Illinois and Colorado. His passion is to help people find a home in the Kingdom of God and to help them grow and live like Jesus would if he were in their place. He is beyond grateful to be on the staff at Saddleback since June, 2019.

When he is not working, he enjoys doing home improvement projects or finding great restaurants to frequent. He also loves hanging out with his adult children, whom he would consider his best friends, along with his grandchildren.

Rex has been married to the love of his life, Andrea, for 37 years. They have three children, Mallory, Paige and Trent. They also have two incredibly adorable grandchildren, Carson and Ben.

Campus: Lake Forest

Small Groups Pastor

John Simons

John Simons was born in Bridgeport, Connecticut and raised in Orange County, California. He graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science at California Baptist University (CBU), and also received the degrees of M.A. Philosophy and M.Div from Talbot School of Theology, Biola University. John has been married two years to his wife, Kristen, who works as a nurse and is a proud dog-mom to their mischievous beagle, Riley. His interests include: Reading all genres of fiction (but favors science fiction and fantasy), conversations on theology, ethics, culture/pop-culture, film, and discipleship.

Campus: Anaheim

Connections Minister

Heather Cova

Heather was born and raised in Orange County. She left the OC for about 10 years for her education. She earned a Ph.D. from St Andrews University in Scotland in 2004, and a B.A. in Religion and Philosophy from Roberts Wesleyan College in Rochester, NY in 1999. After moving back from Scotland, Heather began her career in nonprofit management working for organizations such as KidWorks in Santa Ana and The Fieldstone Foundation in Newport Beach.

In January 2018, Heather joined the team at Saddleback Anaheim as the Minister of Ministry. She transitioned into the Connections Minister role in May 2019. Heather and her husband Zajid have attended the Anaheim campus since they got married in January 2014. They enjoy living within walking distance of the Orange Circle in Orange and appreciate all that Chapman University brings to the area as well. Heather enjoys creating in the kitchen, especially learning how to make her husband’s favorite Mexican home cooked meals.

Campus: Los Angeles

Campus Pastor

Aaron Crumbey

Aaron Crumbey, better known as AC, was born and raised in Detroit, Michigan. He received his Bachelors in Computer Information Technology from the University of Phoenix. He is currently pursuing his Masters in Theological Studies. AC has been serving in ministry since the age of 15 doing pretty much anything that helped his church fulfill their God given purpose. AC has a beautiful wife named Sandra and three beautiful children Shania, AJ and Mikaela. He and his family have been at Saddleback for the last ten years. The majority of his time at Saddleback, AC has been a Youth Pastor with the High School Ministry pointing students and families towards Jesus. He’s also taken and completed Saddleback’s 30 week lay counseling course. AC starting off as a volunteer and has been loving on and caring for the families at Saddleback way before he even came on staff. Over the years God has just continued to grow AC’s heart for the families of Saddleback Church. One of his heart’s desire is that all people would receive God’s love and purpose for their lives, and he is committed to doing his part in making that happen. AC now serves as the Campus Pastor at Saddleback Los Angeles. He is excited about being there and serving the people of LA, mobilizing the church to make an impact and reach everyone God is calling them to reach in the beautiful city of LA. He also loves music and loves to use his talents to reach people for Christ.

Campus: Corona

Connections Pastor

William Johnston

William has been serving at Saddleback for the past two and a half years. He grew up in Northern California and moved to Southern California to attend Azusa Pacific University where he earned his Bachelors in Christian Ministry. William loves hiking and exploring nature, anything baseball related, and eating fried chicken. He is passionate about helping people find and experience transformative lives with Jesus. He hopes that people he serves will have a greater understanding of their God given purpose and have lifelong commitments with Jesus that impact and restore their communities.

Campus: Irvine North

Connections Pastor

Steve Yu

Steve Yu is Korean-American born in Sao Paulo, Brazil and grew up in the east coast. He appreciates his upbringing in different cultural environments because it has led to many conversations about other people’s background and culture. One of his favorite ways of connecting with people is eating good food or drinking coffee. He is very passionate about exploring delicious food. As much as he loves connecting with people, he loves spending time with his wife and two kids. As a family, they enjoy playing the video game called “just dance” and family Netflix nights on the weekend. When Steve has free time, he enjoys training for triathlons and going on date nights with his wife.

Campus: Irvine South

Connections Pastor

John Shin

John’s life goal is to do the most damage for the kingdom of God. The term Bible nerd cannot be more true for any other person. Studying correct methods of biblical interpretation, proper application, and the relationship between certain passages throughout Scripture is very exciting for John. Other than studying theology and Scripture, John loves to do hip hop choreography, lift weights, make short films, beat box, play the drums, watch soccer, play volleyball, pretend to be PJ Masks and play PAW patrols with his children, watch documentaries, listen to film scores and work on his you tube channel PJS.

John has always been intrigued with media arts and Scripture, and how he can use media in creative ways to teach Scripture, share the gospel and reach the world for Christ. There is an endless amount of teaching that comes from the gospel and life. Delivering it in a pathway that can reach millions without compromising the truth is always on his mind.

Before coming to Saddleback, John was an Elementary Pastor for 8 years, involved with college campus ministry for 12 years, church planting for 2 years and taught previously at Talbot School of Theology as an Adjunct Professor in Hermeneutics and N.T. Survey.

Campus: Laguna Woods

Campus Pastor

Jeff Feld

Jeff Feld grew up in the Los Angeles area and is a USC Alumni with a BS in Business and a Computer Science emphasis. He immediately joined the corporate world and worked for technology companies in LA and Orange County. Once Jeff and his wife Jeanine found Saddleback Church, he began serving as a volunteer Small Group Community Leader for many years before coming on staff. Before Jeff’s current role at Saddleback Laguna Woods, he was a Small Group Pastor at the Lake Forest campus. He has a great passion for fellowship and welcoming others to become part of God’s family. Jeff also served as part of the Global Purpose Driven team that helps other churches implement P E A C E and the five Biblical purposes (PD) of a healthy church. He is currently working on his Masters in Ministry Leadership at Rockbridge Seminary.

Campus: Newport Mesa

Connections Pastor

Lalo Garcia

I was born and raised in Costa Mesa California. I Grew up playing Soccer, I played at that collegiate and also played at the Semi-Professional Level. Attended Orange Coast Community College for two years and then Received a full ride scholarship to California Baptist University where I played and received my Bachelor of Science degree, and I have received a Masters of Arts degree from Rockbridge Seminary. I love Saddleback Church, it is where I discovered my own personal relationship with Jesus. I am married to the woman of dreams Liliana Garcia, and will be celebrating the life of our first baby this fall. I love to read, workout, run, and always seeking a challenge.

Campus: Online Campus

Connections Pastor

Kevin Lee

Kevin Lee is a Small Groups Pastor at Saddleback Church. He oversees both home groups and online groups of Online Campus. He passionately believes that Small Groups is where God loves to change lives. Kevin has a small group that he participated for 7 years and counting. He currently lives in Fullerton, California.

Campus: Rancho Capistrano

Connections Pastor

Jacob Wilson

Jacob Wilson was born in Santa Ana, California and raised in Huntington Beach, CA. He graduated with a Bachelor’s in Biblical Studies from Biola University and received a Master of Arts degree in Bible Exposition from Talbot School of Theology. Jacob’s personal impact from community-driven groups has fueled his passion to help cultivate authentic relationships within the body of Christ. When he is not working, you’ll find his nose in a book or spending time with his wife, Jourdan, and their two ridiculously beautiful children, Elijah and Emery.

Campus: Saddleback en Español

Connections Pastor

Joel Donis

Joel is a Southern California native. That enjoys traveling and meeting new people. Growing up being part of a pastoral family he has been influenced by ministry his whole life. Which is why his greatest passion is connecting people to a deeper relationship with Jesus. His wife, Nely Donis and two children Jacob and Zoey play such an important and motivational role in his ministry. Understanding the importance of family and the calling over his life, his desire is to help bridge culture and diversity to be centered around the gospel.

Campus: San Clemente

Connections Pastor

Jeff Tysor

I love Jesus, my wife, my 2 kids Jade & Jackson, and serving at Saddleback Church. I have been on staff since 2012 where I started on the Accounting team. In 2016, I transitioned from my career in Accounting into full time pastoral ministry and I consider it a huge privilege and honor.

Campus: San Diego

Connections Pastor

Clay Stokes

Clay Stokes was born in Omaha Nebraska, moved to Texas for a few years and has been a die-hard California fan since moving to the Bay Area in 1975. He received his bachelors in History from San Jose State University and went on to get his MDiv at Denver Seminary. Clay has been in ministry for nearly 40 years, serving as a church planter, Executive Pastor and Senior Pastor in churches in the Bay Area and in San Diego. He most recently landed his dream job as the 101 Pastor at Saddleback San Diego where he thoroughly enjoys spurring others on in their faith and helping them find their place and joy within the life of small groups. Clay and his wife Candy have 4 grown children and 6 grandchildren (and counting) whom they utterly enjoy and spoil. Clay and Candy are foodies, so if he’s not working or entertaining one of the Small People, you’ll likely find him and Candy driving up and down the coast, trying out new eateries. Otherwise, he’d be delighted if you called him for a round of golf or to go to a baseball game!

Campus: South Bay

Connections Pastor

Giovanny Gaviria

Giovanny Gaviria is passionate about empowering and connecting the new generations through a personal relationship with God. He has served in pastoral and administrative leadership positions for non-profit organizations. Giovanny has been the president of the Youth Baptist Inter-denominational Convention that consists of more than 500 churches in the area of Los Angeles and Hawaii. He has also worked for one of the largest Hispanic Evangelistic Associations called Alberto Mottesi Evangelistic Association (AMEA).

He has helped developed EDEAM (School of Evangelists Alberto Mottesi) academic programs expanding to 136 international centers throughout Latin America, Africa, Europe and the Middle East. He has graduated from the University of La Verne with a B.S in Psychology, and earned a MBA from Liberty University. He is currently pursuing a Doctorate in Educational Leadership from Liberty University as well.

Giovanny is happily married to Veronica, and they have two sons; Nathan and Liam. He enjoys exploring new places and spending time with his family.

Campus: Yorba Linda

Connections Pastor

AJ Boncore

AJ Boncore is our new Connections pastor at Saddleback Yorba Linda. AJ and his wife Christy have been married for 5 years and they have 1 child named Rion. AJ was born and raised in northern California and moved to southern California in 2016 to follow God's call to be a pastor. AJ experienced a radical transformation in his life and decided to devote himself to vocational ministry. He attended Biola University to get his bachelor’s degree in biblical and theological studies while leading the College Ministry at Saddleback Anaheim. Currently, he is studying at Talbot School of Theology to get his master’s degree in preaching and pastoral ministry. AJ loves small groups because he believes that small groups are where life change happens. It was in a small group where his faith began to flourish and he desires to see the same flourishing among all the small groups at Saddleback Yorba Linda. Over the years, AJ has grown compassion for reaching the lost through evangelism and loves sharing the gospel with people everywhere he goes. Ultimately, AJ wants all the small groups at Yorba Linda to be balanced in all 5 purposes but especially in the area of evangelism.

Campus: Buenos Aires

Connections Pastor

Ruben Altamirano

Ruben was born in Paraguay and moved to Argentina when he was 5 years old. He accepted Christ when he was 10 and has dedicated his life to love and serve Lord ever since then. Also, he is a professional librarian and is currently working towards getting a Master in Theology at the Southwestern Theological Baptist Seminary.

He joined Saddleback in November of 2014 and served in First Impressions and as a Small Group HOST and then as Community Leader. He’s been a part of the pastoral team since 2016 and is currently the Connections Pastor at the Buenos Aires campus.

He loves hugging and is the best at remembering people’s names. When he’s not serving others, he is with his gorgeous wife Ceci and with his beautiful baby daughter, Ailén. Or playing video games. He is known for giving the best restaurant recommendations and will do anything for good ice cream.