Tucker joined the ServingLeaders team in 2021 after spending the previous five years as the Ministry Director for Christian Union at the University of Pennsylvania. Serving as a Chaplain at Penn provided an opportunity to disciple, train, and connect young Christian leaders for a lifetime of ministry. During this time, Tucker also served as a College Pastor and Teacher at City Line Church in Bala Cynwyd.
Prior to coming to the Philadelphia area, Tucker served as the Pastor at Denver Baptist Church (Iowa) for seven years. Tucker’s heart for the Church and for church leaders was enhanced through the relationships nurtured during this season of ministry. His passion remains to serve Christian leaders both in the local church and parachurch ministries.
Tucker’s role as Ministry Director of our Willow Grove Hub is an important step in our plans to continue expanding the capacity and geographic reach of ServingLeaders through new “Mission Hubs.” Seeing the need for relational proximity, we want to plant Hubs in new geographic regions with Ministry Directors who will each be a leader of leaders, on the ground connecting, equipping, and encouraging pastors and ministry leaders; a shepherd of shepherds, who will pursue and befriend leaders while developing and leading a team of ministry and counseling staff that can walk alongside leaders and shepherd their hearts.
Tucker earned a BA in English literature from the University of Northern Iowa, a Juris Doctorate from Drake University Law School, and an MDiv at Covenant Theological Seminary in St. Louis, Missouri.
Tucker and his wife of a quarter century, Marchelle, are Iowa natives but happily count Philadelphia as home. The Else’s (with their four kids) reside in Ardmore with their oldest two attending university in West Philadelphia. Tucker enjoys reading, watching college football, drinking coffee with his oldest daughter, going on adventures with his boys, and surfing with his youngest daughter. Tucker is also working on his first novel.
Patricia ‘Pat’ has worked in the mental health field for more than 35 years. Early in her career, she worked with chronically mentally ill adults in supportive housing. As she felt a calling to work with children, she returned to graduate school at Temple University to become a certified school psychologist.
For more than 25 years Pat has worked in public and nonpublic school settings supporting children (and their families) from preschool to adulthood to address a variety of educational, social, emotional and behavioral needs including anxiety, depression and neurodiversity. She is currently working on a dissertation exploring the impact of parent education regarding the effects of social media and smart phone use on the mental health of children. Pat is also an adjunct professor in a graduate special education program at a local university.
She has been married to her husband, who is a pastor, for nearly 25 years and has a son who recently enrolled in college. In her free time, Pat enjoys outdoor activities including hiking, swimming, and biking riding, as well as spending time with friends and family. She is an active member of her church including using her gifts working with children teaching Sunday School and with other children’s ministries. She is excited to join the ServingLeaders family and partner with them in their mission.
