Rev. Glenn Baaten - Born in London, Ontario, Canada, has spent most of his growing up years in southern California. Glenn came to his Christian faith in Jr. High school during the "Jesus Movement" which swept the country in the early '70's. After having moved around the denominational landscape a whole bunch, he felt led by the Spirit, along with his wife Cathy, to call the Presbyterian church home. That was some 20 years ago. For many years, Glenn ran a contracting business in Northern California, when he and Cathy felt Christ's call for him to go into ordained ministry. It was upon completion of his studies at San Francisco Theological Seminary that it was apparent that God would be calling Glenn and his family way out of the area! It was a major move, but the Baaten family has taken well to life in the Midwest over these last years. Glenn has served as pastor of the First Presbyterian Church of Harrison beginning August 1, 1998. The members of First Presbyterian are like family members, and the Baatens feel most loved and at home here in Harrison.

Two years, in faithfulness to Christ's call to our church, we completed a long anticipated building expansion program which almost doubled the size of our facilty. There has been much enthusiasm around the church and a newly found excitement and purpose among our members. Many new members- many young families- have joined in the last couple of years. Glenn looks foward to many more rewarding and satisfying years as pastor of this special flock. On a theological note, Glenn is committed to working with fellow Christians to further the cause of the Gospel. He values Jesus' prayer of call to unity among his disciples - John 17 - and actively promotes a view of church ecumenism based upon Great Tradition of the church as reflected in common history and liturgy, the classical creeds, and the ecumenical councils.

Besides life in church, Glenn is an avid cyclist and loves the beauty of the rolling countryside along the highways and by-ways of rural Southeast Ohio. His enjoyment of reading, especially theology and philosophy, borders upon obsessive. Cathy enjoys the Ohio countryside in a different way - as an enthusiastic runner. Their children are now grown and out of the house. Their daughter Christine, is married and lives with her husband in the Orange County, California area. She works as a music promoter and venue event planner and her husband, Ryan, works in Irvine, as a commercial real estate broker. Their son Adam, resides in Austin, Texas, and is busy playing live music venues there. He is working hard to successfully make his mark as an original artist playing his own distinct form of piano-ballad rock. The one other much loved member of the clan who still lives with the Baatens in Harrison is of a canine variety - their curly, black, standard poodle Isabella.

Rev. Glenn Baaten