Leadership Team

Picture
Garrett & Heather Mersberger and their three kids moved to Elkhart Lake, WI in 2014 and immediately fell in love with their new community. After Heather and their oldest daughter started a middle school girls Bible study group in 2018, things started to change rapidly. Soon a women’s study group started and the Holy Spirit was quickly at work gathering many women from the community to dig deeper into Scripture together. Over the next four years, several more Abide Community Bible Study Groups formed including high school boys, high school girls, middle school girls and most recently, men. As God grew these study groups, Garrett left his 20+ year career in the corporate world and heard God clearly call him into ministry during church one Sunday morning (this is a pretty cool story--ask him about it!). He began taking classes to become a pastor. In September 2021, Garrett was licensed as a Pastor with the C&MA denomination and in October their family officially planted the first C&MA church in Elkhart Lake – The Well! 

Dusting off their Bibles and investing in a close relationship with Jesus was life-transforming for Garrett, Heather and their family. They are passionate about sharing the vibrant life found only in Jesus with their community, and God is placing a burden on their hearts for reaching other overlooked areas with His transformational love. 
Advisory Team
We are thrilled to be surrounded by an amazing group of passionate Jesus-followers who have a wide variety of life and work experiences to draw from!
Team members: Trevor & Sarah Schuh, Chad & Sarah Ramminger, Heather & Garrett Mersberger, Kim & Gary Burdick (on screen), Mark & Bonnie (not pictured) Hembel

Congratulations,
​Pastor Garrett!

On July 23, 2023 we celebrated Garrett's completion of 2.5 years of learning through the LEAD Program. Here are some highlights of what he's accomplished:
  • Read through the entire Bible twice in two different versions
  • Monthly meetings with others in the LEAD program
  • Watched 130+ hours of video teaching with corresponding essay questions
  • 6 papers
  • 15 books
  • Licensing interview
  • 10-day overseas mission trip
For more info about the LEAD Program, visit their website.