Rev. Patrick Nicolino, Senior Minister
Patrick was born in Akron and resides in Ohio City with his husband, J. Gary. He is completely blind but that has not stopped him from just about anything! Patrick earned a B.A. in History and a B.A. in Philosophy from the University of Akron and possesses a M.Div. from St. Mary’s Seminary and a M.A. in Psychology from John Carroll University. He is A.B.D. status for his Ph.D. from Union Institute. Patrick is an Adjunct Faculty member of the Sociology Department of John Carroll University. He thoroughly enjoys skiing, reading and vacationing in Provincetown, Cape Cod. The motto that Patrick attempts to live by is “Love one another as God unconditionally loves us.”
Tracy Belcher, Minister of Education, Communication, Outreach
Tracy joined the First Church staff in August, 2008, with a desire to contribute to the faith life and spiritual growth of church members. She is a life-long resident of Elyria and, has a blended family of five children, five grandchildren and an awesome dog named Bella Luna.
Andrew Page, Business Manager
Bette Lou Higgins, Administrative Assistant
You may know Bette Lou from her frequent work in local theater particularly Eden Valley Enterprises where she is the Artistic Director. She holds a B.A. in theatre from Baldwin-Wallace College and M.Ed. in Educational Technology from Cleveland State University. Most recently, she worked as producer on the Emmy-nominated documentary, “Trail Magic: The Grandma Gatewood Story”.
Dylan Sanzenbacher, Director of Music
Dylan is from Warren, Ohio, and is currently a Music Education major with piano primary at the Baldwin Wallace University Conservatory of Music in Berea, Ohio. You can find out more about him by visiting his website.
Rick Lawrence, Sexton
Taquala Carroll, Assistant Sexton
Rexel Cantry, Assistant Sexton
Anthony Hall, Assistant Sexton