Our Leadership
Our Leadership Team is a partnership, where we serve together to nurture the spiritual life of the church. Our “Leadership” is based on Servant Leadership where leaders serve others with courage and humility to honor God. The focal point of servant leadership within the church is “to prepare God’s people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up” (Ephesians 4:12). A servant leader seeks to invest himself/herself into the lives of our people so that, as a whole, the church community grows to be more like Christ.
• Covenant is “governed” by a Congregational Spirit • Lay Leadership Council • Lay Leader Pastoral Relations Board (PRB)
• Vocational Staff in Various Ministries • Lay Leader Ministry Chairs
• Covenant is “governed” by a Congregational Spirit • Lay Leadership Council • Lay Leader Pastoral Relations Board (PRB)
• Vocational Staff in Various Ministries • Lay Leader Ministry Chairs
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Cary Slater — Lead Pastor
Cary grew up in Minneapolis, then fled for balmy Chicago to attend Wheaton College. He got his Masters of Divinity at Alliance Theological Seminary. Cary thanks God every day for life with Roseann and their two young adults, Abby and Noah. They share their home with a dog who wasn’t supposed to get this big. Cary enjoys history, reading, newspapers and getting outside. He has served churches in Seattle and Phoenix. But it is the Covenant Church of Easton that is home, serving as Student Ministries Pastor on 2 separate occasions for a total of 13 years and as Lead Pastor since 2013. Cary loves the east coast and the people who live here. He loves helping people trust and see God in the day to day, and experience the church as a community in ways they never knew possible. |
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Kristine Lackowski — Director of Children's Ministry
Kristine graduated from Salve Regina University with a degree in Elementary Education and Special Education. She received her Master’s Degree from Southern Connecticut State University specializing in Remedial Reading and Language Arts. After teaching for several years, Kristine made the decision to stay home to raise her three children and immersed herself in children’s ministries, volunteering in many areas. After many years of leading and directing programs and events at her former church, the Lord called her from volunteer to staff where she served as Christian Education Director. Kristine joined Covenant Church as the Director of Children’s Ministry in 2017 where she and her family now worship. Kristine deeply loves every one of the children at Covenant Church. She believes that if Jesus takes root in their heart, the fruit of that seed will continue to grow throughout the rest of their lives. (Proverbs 22:6). Watching their faith grow fills her heart! Kristine also deeply cares for their families and enjoys organizing meaningful programs which bring them together. Kristine is married to Chris, and together they have three young adult children: Brianna, Christopher, and Melanie. Now that they fly in and out of the “coop”, they cherish time together as a family when they can. In her spare time, Kristine enjoys doing things that leave an eternal impact, traveling, cooking and her newest endeavor…anything sourdough! |
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Debbie Packnick — Associate Pastor / Director of Student and Young Adult Ministries
Debbie joined the Covenant Church of Easton in the summer of 2015, and she and her husband Rob quickly fell in love with the people and the mission of the church: Loving God, Growing Together, Going Out as Servants. Debbie is actively engaged in the life of Covenant through Prayer Ministry, Bible studies, service and mission projects, and weekly connections with the youth, young adults, and adults in our faith family. She earned her bi-vocational ministry license through the Evangelical Covenant Church (ECC) in 2020, her seminary degree from North Park University in 2023, and her ordination in the ECC in June of 2024. All the while, she has continued to serve as director of the Mother’s Day Out Preschool in Trumbull, which ministers to nearly 100 families and children each year throughout Fairfield County. In her free time, Pastor Debbie likes to cheer on students at their sports games or high school plays, and you’ll frequently find her at Starbucks or Chick-fil-A catching up with them over coffee or lunch. Whether it’s serving the homeless, riding a roller coaster, or gathering for a group prayer, Pastor Debbie loves helping youth and young adults connect their everyday lives to the things of God and their true purpose. Debbie and Rob live in Shelton where they raised their 3 children: Kyle, Craig, and Alison, all of whom are now young adults living in Fairfield County. Kyle and his wife Tess live in Trumbull, Craig (also a pastor) and his wife Hanna live in Norwalk, and Ally lives in Southport. |
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Steve Reedy — Pastor of Leadership Development
Steve has a calling to help Christ-followers flourish in their faith and leadership. He is passionate in helping people flourish as cross-cultural leaders who would help churches grow in depth and impact in their settings and in unity across social diversities. Steve is active in parachurch racial reconciliation and justice ministry. Steve has extensive executive leadership experience in business, non-profit, church and para-church settings. He graduated with a Masters of Divinity Degree from Alliance Theological Seminary in 2013. Ordained in 2016, he is currently pursuing a doctorate in global leadership of the Christian church at Asbury Seminary. Steve and his wife Adrienne have longtime roots in the Covenant church since their move to Connecticut in 1997. They reside in Wilton, CT where they raised their three grown sons, Terrence, Calvin and Quinn. Steve loves serving the local community, where he serves as Trustee of the Wilton Historical Society. Since 2003, Steve has been President of the James. T. Reedy Sr. Scholarship Fund, which helps under-served scholars from his native Reading, PA reach their academic and vocational goals in college and beyond. Steve loves travel, reading, bookstores, coffee, and e-biking in beautiful places with Adrienne and friends, and enjoys walks in the woods with the family dog Kyana. |
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Kristian Otten — Director of Worship Arts
Kristian Otten has worked faithfully as the Director of Worship Arts at Covenant for over 10 years, following the unexpected call to serve in his home church after attending Wheaton College (many years after Pastor Cary). God is good and He provides! Besides his worship leading and musical responsibilities, Kristian occasionally works with Service Ministry on various building and fixing projects in service to the local community throughout the year, as well as various projects with other ministries throughout the church. Kristian hopes to continue to grow in his relationship with Christ through ministry at Covenant, serving the surrounding community in all the ways God calls him. Kristian and his wife Nicole, a member of the Worship Team, enjoy two wonderful children (Forrest & Emilia). In Kristian's (nonexistent) spare time, he also works in sales controlling finance for Beiersdorf (Nivea, Aquaphor, Eucerin, Coppertone), and enjoys participating in occasional triathlons early before Sunday morning services. |
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Kirstin St. Jean — Church Office Administrator
Kirstin was raised in the greater Hartford area and discovered a love for Jesus early in her life. This was nurtured through her Congregational Church upbringing and many summers at Christian camp. Those experiences deeply shaped her faith and later inspired her to pursue a degree in Youth Ministry from North Park University in Chicago. After college, Kirstin spent 15 years working with Special Education students in a variety of educational settings. During that time, her heart for discipleship continued to grow. She is pursuing a Master’s in Christian Formation through the Equip Cohort, a partnership between North Park Theological Seminary and regional conferences, which combines online study with in-person learning. Kirstin’s passion for the multiethnic body of Christ was cultivated through her involvement with The Hartford Project, a ministry that brings together students from across the region to serve the city, share the Gospel and unify the body of Christ. Over the years, she has served in many leadership roles with THP, including leading many teams with her local church and three years as Board President. Kirstin and her husband, Jay, have been married for 10 years. They love traveling, spending time with family and friends, and exploring new places together. When she has free time, you’ll often find Kirstin making handmade cards, on the water in her kayak, or planning her next kayak camping trip somewhere in the Northeast. While she and Jay are recent additions to the Covenant family they have appreciated varied ways to cultivate relationships through service and being a part of between service study groups. They look forward to more of what the Lord has for them here. As Church Administrator, Kirstin looks forward to serving and loving the family of Covenant Church, supporting the ministries of the congregation and encouraging people to feel connected and cared for. |
