I am honored to be the Senior Minister of Irving North Christian Church. I am blessed with an amazing community of faithful people who live out their faith in real and profound ways. I have been in the Christian Church almost my entire life. Its values of unity and openness have always been central to who I am as a minister. I believe that God wants us all to live a full and vibrant life full of the love and grace and peace that he first showed us. My passion is to help people find what God has in store for them and then help them to begin that journey.
I have lived in Texas almost my entire life except for when I lived in Atlanta, GA during seminary. I graduated from Candler School of Theology at Emory University in May 2003 and was ordained in June 2003. Before I was a full-time minister, I also worked as a Respiratory Therapist for 15 years, 12 of that in Trauma ICU.
I am married to the love of my life, Kristen who also works in Irving. We have a dog named L.J.
I look forward to all the exciting things that God has in store for INCC as we journey through life together!
I am a lifelong Disciple. I have always been active in the church I was a member of, which included Christian Churches in Alexandria, VA; Princeton, WV; Oklahoma City, OK; Charleston, WV and Hurst, Texas. I retired from the Federal Service in 1989, and answered the call to the ministry in 1991. I chose the route of Licensed Lay Minister because that best fit what I felt I was called to do. I have served in nearly every capacity a person can in the church from Interim Minister down. From 1993 until 1996 I served as a Licensed Prison Chaplain in a maximum-security prison. My passion for the ministry is Pastoral Care. I have served 32 years as an Elder in the Christian Church. I am widowed and live in Bedford, Texas. I am very excited about the ministry here at Irving North Christian Church. I truly believe God led me to this church. A person can feel the love and the Holy Spirit alive in this church when they walk through the doors. You get the feeling of: 'I'm home!'
Sarah Almanza grew up in the North Texas Area in a Disciples of Christ church. As a youth she was on the Youth Ministry Council. She graduated from Texas Christian University with a B.S. in Social Work. While in college she was the youth director at First Christian Church Duncanville, she also had an internship as a medical case manager. After graduation, she moved to Seattle, WA where she experienced a wonderful growing opportunity. She is passionate about helping people in any way possible as well as sharing the God's love with the world. She also has a dog, Howard, a min-pin/terrier mix who is the love of her life.
Laura was born in Dallas and grew up in Commerce, Texas, where her father was the head of the art department at East Texas State University. She is still a member of her home church, First Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in Commerce. Laura started taking piano lessons at the age of five when her father traded his paintings for piano lessons. When she was ten years old she began playing piano for the Sunday School sing-song every Sunday morning at church. Laura went on to major in piano performance at Oberlin Conservatory of Music, and after completion of her junior year there, she felt a calling to finish her degree in social work. She received her bachelor's degree in social work (BSW) from East Texas State University, and this is where she met Javier. Laura and Javier married in 1988 and their son Lance was born in 1992. She started teaching private piano lessons when they moved to Irving in 1996, and she maintains a studio of 26 piano students. She enjoys playing for weddings and other occasions as well, and performing with her husband and son. Some other interests she has are camping and being outdoors, traveling, eating Indian food, dancing, singing, gourd growing and crafting, and listening to a very wide variety of music. Laura is thankful every single day for the gifts and opportunities that God continues to provide for her, and above all else, the opportunity to be mother to Lance and wife to Javier.
Laura came to INCC after a 25 year career with the electric company in administration and information technology. She is married to Joseph Lin Ogg, who goes by Lin. Together they have 5 children. Laura and Lin live in Bedford. Her favorite things to do are gardening, scrapbooking, working crossword puzzles, and working out with Lin. Their newest adventure is rock climbing.