Staff and Council

Lead Pastor
bert@counciltreecovenant.com

It turns out that I’m now a pastor living a unique call these days. I showed up in 1998, fell in love with this place and have been here ever since. I served as the Youth Pastor for seven years and became the Lead in 2005. My wife Heather and I got to have and raise all three of our now young adult children here and we live in relationship with some of the world’s greatest people here at Council Tree. I love mountain biking, reading, running, backpacking, paddle boarding and cross-country skiing. I studied at Fuller Theological Seminary receiving an MDiv in ’98 and a Dmin in ’23.

Associate Pastor of Children’s Ministry and Connections
diane@counciltreecovenant.com

I was a part of our staff team from 2006-2018 and after a short break to finish seminary at North Park and lend a hand to a Covenant Church in Connecticut, I returned  to Council Tree in November of 2021. There is no other local church I’d rather be a part of! I’m a proud mother of 5 young adult children (+ one daughter in love and one son in love), a widow, a seven on the enneagram, and almost a Fort Collins native. I have walked three Camino’s through France, Spain, and Portugal and hope a 4th is in my future. I love to go on adventures of all shapes and sizes, feel the sun on my face, and use photography to help me practice the prayer of examen. I am ordained with the Evangelical Covenant Church.

Associate Pastor of Worship and Discipleship
dan@counciltreecovenant.com

Called to pastor God’s people in worship, Dan has a passion for leading the Church in the formational act of corporate worship and drawing people towards lives of ever-deepening discipleship to Jesus. Dan began at Council Tree Covenant Church in September of 2023 after serving another Covenant church in the Chicago suburbs for the previous eight years. Dan and his wife Molly are both from northern Illinois, where they had lived their whole lives until moving to Fort Collins. Together, Dan and Molly have two young kids and a very patient dog. Dan has too many hobbies, some of which include playing hockey, ultimate frisbee, skiing, hiking, backpacking, songwriting, and playing as many different instruments as he can. Dan has a Bachelor of Music Education from North Park University (2015) and a Master of Arts in Worship from Northern Seminary (2023).

Student Ministries Directors
benandlexi@counciltreecovenant.com

We are honored to share this position as we share Christ’s love with students here at Council Tree. We got married in April of 2022, and quickly found ourselves leading Council Tree Youth by January of 2023. Ben grew up at Council Tree, and Lexi grew up at another Covenant Church in Redwood City, California where we met working in ministry together. We got married, and moved back to Colorado where we now get the honor of working with Council Tree Youth. Even though Ben studied Mechanical Engineering and Lexi worked admin jobs out of high school, we will both tell you that we LOVE working with students and showing them there is so much more to life with Christ.

Interim Garden Director
chris@counciltreecovenant.com

My wife Nancy and I joined this Church in 1990. We raised both our children in this community. I retired from education after 29 years with the Thompson School District. I earned two degrees from the University of Wyoming in 1987 and one from Lesley University, Cambridge Mass in 1998. I spent two plus years remodeling our home and adding on a large addition. Then I was able to spend two years thoroughly enjoying retirement by traveling, volunteering and mountain Biking around the west. Our Lord called me to take a gardening position at Council Tree Covenant Church in October of 2022. It's been exciting to see what God has done and is doing.