Pastor/Elders

God has placed elders as leaders over his church. When the Bible speaks of pastors, elders, and overseers in the church, the same office is being described. The task of these men is to shepherd (i.e., pastor), oversee, and teach the church (1 Peter 5:1-2). The elders are the qualified (1 Tim 3:1-13, Titus 1:6-9), exemplary (1 Peter 5:3), Spirit-appointed (Acts 20:28), leaders in the church. The pastors/elders at Grace Bible Church share leadership responsibility; all elder decisions are made with unanimity.

Ashley Anderson

Pastor/Elder
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Ashley was born in Kansas and grew up on a farm in east central Kansas. At the age of sixteen he came to faith in the the Lord Jesus Christ. He attended Moody Bible Institute from 1958-1962; then after graduation from Tabor College he became a public school teacher in Kansas. During that time he married a Christian lady who became the mother of their two children, Janet and Jonathan. He received a Master of Science degree in educational administration from Kansas State University in 1981 and became a public school administrator. He served for fifteen years in that capacity in Kansas and for three more years in Colorado. During the time in Colorado his wife died of cancer. He worked one more year and moved to California, where he attended The Master’s Seminary. While there he met Janet who had lost her husband to cancer; they were married in 2005. They have the shared goal of serving the Lord in a more full-time capacity during retirement years. After his graduation from seminary in 2007 they moved to central California where he served as pastor of a small church for over six years. After retiring from there he and Janet moved to Chandler, AZ in 2014. They joined Grace Bible Church where Janet serves in Next Generation ministries and Ashley serves as a smallgroup leader.

Scott Demarest

Pastor/Elder
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Scott was born on the mission field in Nigeria, and spent his childhood years in Africa and England, and he returned to the US in 1975. Scott came to Christ in repentance and faith in 1981. He moved to the Phoenix area in 1991 to work in the software industry and has attended Grace since 2003.  Scott provides support to the missionary families sent out by Grace, and he leads BUILD, the foundational discipleship ministry for men at Grace. Scott and his wife Sarah have been married since 1990 and are blessed with three grown children.

Jacob Hantla

Pastor/Elder
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Jacob was saved in 1999 after his first semester at Arizona State University where he graduated with degrees in biomedical engineering and nursing, later obtaining a Masters degree in nurse anesthesia. Jacob was a founding member and deacon of East Valley Bible Church Tempe (now Grace Bible Church) in 2001. Shortly afterward, he married Kiki, with whom he he has served in a variety ways. He currently leads the booktable and Spanish ministries and provides regular pastor/elder presence and leadership in Student Ministries and our web presence.  Jacob works as a nurse anesthesiologist. He has been a pastor/elder since 2008. Jacob and Kiki have three children, Elianna, David, and Andrew.

Ben James

Pastor/Elder

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Ben was raised in Santa Clarita, California and met his wife Melissa in high school at Grace Community Church in Sun Valley, CA. Ben and Melissa both attended The Master’s College and were married in 2003. Ben, Melissa and their daughters, Charis and Emma, moved to Arizona and became members of Grace Bible Church in 2007. Ben provides shepherding oversight to a smallgroup and serves in Build, the men’s discipleship ministry at Grace Bible Church. Ben and Melissa have served in Next Generation Ministries since 2007, where Ben served several years as a deacon. Melissa also serves in Wellspring, GBC’s women’s discipleship ministry. Ben has a degree in Christian Ministries Administration from the Master’s College and an MBA from Arizona State University and works in Risk Management & Compliance in the insurance industry.

Matt Kellso

Pastor/ Elder
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Matt was born in Michigan, moved to South Carolina at an early age, and has been in Arizona since 1987. God saved Matt at a young age while he was in South Carolina. He met his wife Jenna at their high school youth group in Tempe, AZ and they were married during college when they were 18 and 19. Matt graduated from Arizona State University with a bachelor’s degree in Industrial Engineering. Matt and Jenna were both founding members of East Valley Bible Church Tempe (GBC) and have served in various capacities since the beginning. In 2020, Matt started working for his online coffee roasting business full time and in July of 2021, they opened a coffee shop in Chandler (Sagebrush Coffee). Matt and Jenna have three kids Jonathan (2001), Noah (2005), and Eden (2007).

Eric Martin

Pastor/Elder
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Born and raised in Ohio, Eric graduated from the Ohio State University in 1996 and then moved to Arizona where he began work as an engineer in the software industry for a defense contractor. On April 1, 2000 his heart was radically transformed by God and he turned from his sins to follow Jesus Christ. He immediately started attending East Valley Bible Church in Gilbert and was a founding member of the church plant in 2001 that became Grace Bible Church. He has served GBC in many different ministry roles.  He currently serves as chairman of the elder board. He and his wife Sarah have been married since 2003 and God has blessed them with three precious children, Isaiah, Nathan, and Gabrielle.

Denny Pagel

Pastor/Elder
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Denny was born in South Dakota in 1949 and remained in the midwest until 1994 when he and his wife Barb moved their family to Gilbert, AZ. They have been married since 1982 and were radically transformed by God’s amazing grace in June of 1993. They have been blessed with five children, three daughters-in-law, one son-in-law and thirteen grandchildren. They have been at Grace Bible Church since December of 2008. Denny and Barb are currently involved in Next Generation Ministries, leading a smallgroup, and facilitating pre-marital classes.

Smedly Yates

Pastor/Elder
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Smedly came to Grace Bible Church as an elder in March of 2008. Smedly, his wife Janet, and their kids moved to Arizona from Nashville, Tennessee, where he served as pastor of student ministries at Community Bible Church. Smedly and Janet were married in May of 2000 while in graduate school in California. They have five children: Evi, Zoe, Emet, Grace, & Madeline. Smedly graduated from The Master’s Seminary, and Janet earned a master’s degree in Biblical Counseling from The Master’s College. Both Smedly and Janet graduated from the Moody Bible Institute in Chicago.