Our Pastoral Staff

Rev. Dr. Philip M. Jones
Senior Pastor and Head of Staff

Our Senior Pastor, Dr. Philip M. Jones, grew up in Pitman, New Jersey where he was nurtured in the faith at the First Presbyterian Church of Pitman. He was active in Boy Scouts and served as Church Custodian through his years Pitman High School. Phil remained active in the congregation, serving on boards and committees of the church as well as doing small group and youth ministry as he commuted to college at Glassboro State College (aka Rowan University) where he received a B.A. in Communications and Speech. His theological education was 50 miles north of Pitman at Princeton Theological Seminary where he earned his Master of Divinity Degree in Preaching.

Upon graduation Phil was ordained and then began his ministry as the first staff pastor in the 250 year-old congregation at Silver Spring Presbyterian Church in Mechanicsburg, PA. Phil helped found a new congregation in Mechanicsburg, and a state-wide young adult singles’ ministry. During that 7 year ministry he met his wife, Susan, who was a member at a neighbor Presbyterian congregation in Camp Hill. Their first son, Joshua, was born there in Harrisburg.

Shortly thereafter the young family moved to Monroe, Wisconsin, where Phil was called to be a solo pastor in a town and country congregation south of Madison. During that 7 year call, Phil was elected Moderator of John Knox Presbytery which co-hosted General Assembly in Milwaukee. Their second son, Benjamin was born in Monroe.

For the next 15 years Phil served as Senior Pastor of First Presbyterian Church of Maumee, Ohio. During this time he earned his Doctor of Ministry degree in Parish Revitalization from McCormick Theological Seminary in Chicago. Our congregation’s Pulpit Nominating Committee made several trips to Toledo to visit Phil’s congregation and hear him preach. They agreed that his many achievements there and gifts were a perfect match for our best hopes and goals. On September 9, 2007, the congregation voted to call Phil to be our 11 th installed Senior Pastor.

Susan is a School Psychologist at Morris Hills Regional School District. They have a labrador retriever named Aeris who shares the Warwick Road manse with them. Phil and Susan always look forward to visits with Phil’s brother, Tom, and his wife, Julie, and nephews Charlie and Carson, who live here in Summit. But with 5 and 4 brothers and sisters respectively, they also enjoy visiting their family scattered across the country.

Phil and Susan enjoy jazz, classical music, and contemporary Christian music, touring museums wherever they travel, and community service. Phil was President of the 85-member Maumee Rotary Club which awarded him a Paul Harris Fellowship. The city of Maumee also recognized him as Citizen of the Year for his community work. Phil and Susan both like to garden and landscape, cook, and read. Phil is also a crossword puzzle addict with no hope of recovery!

Reverend John C. Illian
Associate Pastor for Christian Community

John is a life-long Presbyterian who grew up in Burbank, California where his parents were members of First Presbyterian Church. It was here that he said, "YES!" to Jesus Christ and where his faith was nurtured by a loving, supportive congregation.

After completing high school, he attended the University of California at Los Angeles and received a B.A. in History and a Secondary Teaching Credential. After this, he became a junior high school teacher, coach, and student activities director in Solana Beach, California.

During this time, John married Connie Parrish - a graduate of the University of California at San Diego, and a member of the First Presbyterian Church in Burbank. They like to say that their life together has been an "adventure" for God. Connie says that they have never had a dull moment.

Those adventures have taken place in the context of...going to seminary while starting a family...serving as an associate pastor in three communities: Springfield, Ohio; Malibu, California, and Greeley, Colorado...Connie working part-time and now full-time as a teacher.

Connie and John have four daughters...Debbie (28), a biology teacher in Southern California...Jenny (26), a biology teacher in a bilingual school in Honduras...Kaidi (24), married to Jeremy and living in Denton, Texas...Beverly (21), a biology student in Calvin College in Michigan.

John is a person who has a life-long call to serve in the Presbyterian Church USA as an associate pastor. He is a graduate of Fuller Theological Seminary, an experienced professional who was ordained in July 1983, a trained Stephen Leader, a founding member of the Association of Presbyterian Mission Pastors, and a person whose gifts, passion, and experience are in the areas of caring and outreach.

Reverend Rebecca Laird
Associate Pastor for Spiritual Development

Raised in Idaho, Rebecca went to college in San Diego where she was the Director of Campus Ministries until she moved north to help plant a new church in the Haight Ashbury District of San Francisco. A bi-vocational minister for many years, she served the local church in administrative and Christian education capacities and worked as Associate Editor specializing in religious books for HarperCollins Publishers. While working in publishing she pursued her seminary education and graduated from the Pacific School of Religion in Berkeley, California and earned a certificate in spiritual direction from Mercy Center in Burlingame, California.

After leaving San Francisco and moving to New Jersey with her family, Rebecca worked as a consultant for World Vision US Programs in New York City and continued writing and editing books and curriculum for several religious books publishers. She was ordained by the Church of the Nazarene, the denomination of her birth, in 1995 after serving her internship in Manhattan. She continued to lead retreats and was a columnist for a national magazine while working as the editor of Fellowship in Prayer an interfaith journal in Princeton, New Jersey.  She completed all of the ordination exams for the PC(USA) in 2004 and is a corresponding member of the Presbytery of Elizabeth.

Rebecca is the author of several books including, Spiritual Direction: Wisdom for the Long Walk of Faith,  No Hiding Place: Empowerment and Recovery for our Troubled Communities, The Will of God Workbook, Unfailing Love: Growing Closer to Jesus Christ, and The Heart of Henri Nouwen: His Words of Blessing (with Michael Christensen). She was awarded the Stoody West Fellowship for Religious Journalists and earned a Certificate in Spirituality and Values Journalism from Northwestern University.

A resident of Madison, New Jersey, Rebecca and her husband Michael Christensen, have two teenaged daughters, Rachel and  Megan.  Michael is the Director of the Doctor of Ministry Program at Drew University Theological School.

Rebecca joined the ministry staff of CPC in February 2003.