Pastor

Rev. WILL STERN

Will grew up with no electricity in a small cabin in the mountains of Colorado. When he was 12, his family moved from the mountains of Southwest Colorado to the rolling hills of Western North Carolina. Will began taking violin lessons and soon developed a passion for music. He studied at an arts conservatory in order to become a concert violinist. However, God had different plans.

He was called from the life of a musician to the life of a minister. First, he served as an intern in the Czech Republic, and then he worked at a church plant in North Carolina. For a while, he thought God wanted him to become a theology professor, so he studied at Duke Divinity School and then completed his M.Div. degree at Westminster Theological Seminary in Glenside, PA. Soon after moving to the Delaware Valley, Will served at Faith Presbyterian Church in Wilmington, DE, until he was sent out to plant Hope Presbyterian Church, which he is still thankful to pastor.

Will met his wife Grace at the same arts conservatory where he studied music. They are parents of three beautiful children. 

Provisional Session

Elders from other local churches (called a provisional session) will help lead and support Hope Church until we nominate, train, and elect our own elders in the future, Lord willing.  Though you may not meet these men in the church’s day-to-day life, they all serve faithfully to make the work possible.

Jim Brown

From 1973 to 1985 Jim and his wife planted and pastored a church in North Carolina that grew from 16 to 200 adults and children. In 1985 he was called to be associate pastor at Faith Presbyterian, Wilmington, DE. In 1987 he was elected senior pastor of Faith, a capacity in which he served until June 30, 2012.  On July 1, 2012 he became half-time assistant pastor at Faith. Throughout his ministry in Delaware, Jim has been involved in church planting and in the pastoring of church planting pastors. He has served on the “provisional sessions” of three of Heritage Presbytery’s church plants. Jim also serves on the board of a foundation that assists in the funding of Presbyterian and Reformed church planting efforts throughout the US.  His work on the foundation puts him in regular, personal, contact with many church planting pastors. Jim believes that one of his primary callings is to support, encourage, and counsel church planting pastors.  In fact, he has trained and mentored 9 interns during his tenure at FPC who have become church planters, pastors, and missionaries.

Ethan Dunham

Ethan Dunham has been a PCA member for 16 years. He has served as both a deacon and an elder for the past 12 years at Faith Presbyterian Church. Also, he teaches toddler Sunday School, adult Sunday School classes, and regularly leads small group Bible studies. He graduated from the Rochester Institute of Technology in 1994 with a degree in graphic design. He owns and operates a graphic arts e-commerce business in Wilmington started in 2004. Ethan, with his wife Lisa, have four children ages 12, 9, 9, and 9. He is the proud father of triplets! Ethan also sits on the school board of Tall Oaks Classical School, in New Castle, DE, where his children attend.

Jason Sica

Jason Sica is the founder and pastor of City Church of Wilmington, a particular church of the Presbyterian Church in America. Before planting City Church, he served as an assistant pastor at Faith Presbyterian Church in Wilmington for over four years. Jason serves on the church planting committee of Heritage Presbytery, and as a member of the Acts 29 Network, he has participated in the assessment of church planters in the Philadelphia region.  Jason holds a B.A. in Christian Ministries from Geneva College and an M.Div. from Covenant Theological Seminary. He and his wife, Katie, live in Wilmington with their two daughters.

Bill Zinkand

Bill Zinkand was ordained a Ruling Elder in the Presbyterian Church in America on May 3, 1998, and has been involved in Session work at three different PCA churches since that time.  He is currently serving as Clerk of Session at Evangelical Presbyterian Church, PCA, of Newark, Delaware, and is an adult Sunday School teacher and small group leader.  Bill has been involved in work at the Presbytery level since his ordination and is currently serving as Treasurer of Heritage Presbytery, a position he has held since 2015.  Bill also serves on the Church Planting and Revitalization Committee, the Reformed University Fellowship Committee, and the Committee on Administration for the Presbytery.  He is married to Dory, who is a former Principal of Tall Oaks Classical School and currently serving as President of the Women’s Bible Study and Fellowship at Evangelical Presbyterian Church.  Bill is delighted to be back on the Provisional Session of Hope PCA after a four-year hiatus and looks forward to working with everyone there.

Frank Barlow

Frank has been a member and ruling elder at Faith Presbyterian Church in Wilmington for several decades. Over that time, in addition to serving on the Session, Frank has led Community Groups, taught Sunday School, and led Evangelism teams in visitation evangelism. Frank has served as Treasurer of Heritage Presbytery. Frank’s wife Ann is also active in ministry at Faith, currently serving as a Co-Director of Faith Preschool and Child Care. She also previously served as President of Heritage Presbytery Women’s Ministry. Frank and Ann have six children and five grandchildren.