REV. DR. JACK E. SKILES

Rev. Dr. Jack Skiles was called to be senior pastor at the First United Church on April 30, 2006, and officially assumed his position on July 1.

Rev. Skiles is a native Hoosier with a degree in psychology from Ball State University.  He completed his M.Div. at Central Baptist Theological Seminary (Kansas City) and his D.Min. at Christian Theological Seminary in Indianapolis.  Following two associate minister positions, the first at a merged ABC/UCC congregation in Grosse Pointe, Michigan, and the second at First Baptist of Indianapolis, he was called to the South Church in Mt. Prospect, Illinois.  Rev. Skiles pastored the South Church for 16 years, growing it in numbers and transforming it into a vital, intergenerational congregation.

We are fortunate that Rev. Skiles' hopes to return eventually to Indiana could be realized at First United Church which, with its traditions of openness and tolerance, grounded in a genuine Christian faith, is a place where he can be comfortable.

Rev. Skiles' wife, Lynn James, is an ordained American Baptist minister who plans to continue her professional counseling work in Bloomington.  She is a licensed clinical professional counselor (LCPC).  Their daughter Kali will be a high school sophomore the fall of 2006.  They have one son, Aaron, a recent Franklin College graduate who lives in Indianapolis.

E-mail Rev. Skiles

REV. CAELA SIMMONS WOOD

Rev. Caela Simmons Wood was called to serve on our ministerial staff in October 2009 and officially assumed the position after being ordained in January 2010.   She had previously served as our Assistant Minister since 2007 while completing her Master of Divinity degree at Christian Theological Seminary in Indianapolis.

Originally from Kansas, Caela attended Kansas State University (Manhattan, Kansas) where she earned a bachelor's degree in History. She also holds a Master of Theological Studies from Perkins School of Theology at Southern Methodist University (Dallas, Texas).

Caela and her husband, David Wood, have lived in Bloomington since the summer of 2005.  They have one son, born in 2010.  Caela enjoys reading, watching movies, cooking, hanging out on Facebook, running, and hanging out with her beagle, Yankee.

E-mail Caela