I am honored and excited to be appointed to serve you as the pastor of Dorranceton United Methodist Church.
I was born on June 14, 1958. I grew up in Shavertown, PA and attended Shavertown Methodist Church. My parents Elwood (Pinky) and Mary Lou Swingle taught me the value of serving others by serving in the church and volunteering with the Red Cross and the Boy and Girl Scouts.
Sky Lake Church camp was foundational in teaching me what it meant to love God and love my neighbor. I also learned the joy and majesty of seeing God at work in nature and I saw the care that the camp staff had for each other and the campers. I began to hear God calling me into ministry at Sky Lake. However, the first time I knew God was calling me to ministry was in my late teens when I preached at a youth led Easter Sunrise Service. I felt comfortable and energized giving the message and I received affirmation from the congregation and others.
After high school I attended Penn State Wilkes-Barre Campus and Capitol Campus and joined the National Guard. I earned an associate degree in Surveying Technology, and a Bachelor of Science in Transportation Technology from Penn State, graduating in 1982. In 1982 I also received my commission as a Second Lieutenant in the National Guard. I entered active duty in the Army in 1982 and served for 23 years, retiring in 2005.
My wife, Barbara, and I were married on June 20, 1982. We have worked together to serve Christ and others throughout our various assignments with the military that include, Oklahoma, Massachusetts, Texas, and Germany. We have two sons, William, aged 38, and Adam aged 33. We also have five grandchildren, William and his wife Amy have two girls, Isabel (9) and Rebecca (5) and Adam and his wife Ashley have one girl, Leah (9) and two boys, Micah (6) and Joshua (4). Both of our sons are teachers. William teaches kindergarten and Adam teaches middle school social studies.
At each crossroads in my career, I felt God continuing to call me into ministry. I answered God’s call by serving in various leadership positions in the churches and chapels we attended, but I still felt God calling me to ordained ministry. After I retired from active duty on June 30, 2005 Barbara, our sons and I moved to our current home in Montclair, VA and in 2006 I began to explore my call to ministry more deliberately. As I reflect on my military career, I can see God working to prepare me for ministry through my many assignments and experiences. I experienced how Christians worship in various parts of our world and how other religions understand God. I learned that people are more alike than we are different. We all share a desire for peace and security for ourselves and our children.
I graduated Samuel DeWitt Procter School of Theology in Richmond, VA, in 2014 with my Master of Divinity degree. Attending seminary at a Historically Black College and University helped prepare me further for pastoral ministry in a multicultural environment.
I served at Andrew Chapel UMC in Stafford VA, serving in a part time appointment. I am bi-vocational. I will retired from my secular job with the Department of Defense in June 2022. As pastor of Andrew Chapel, I continued to develop spiritually, learning to trust God’s grace and timing and to look for God at work in all situations. I believe God is using me to bring the good news of God's love to people who need to hear and experience what true unconditional love for God and for our neighbors. I am looking forward to continuing to share God's love in the congregations and ministry settings where God sends me.
I am honored and excited to become your pastor. Barbara and I look forward to getting to know you all and to work together to make disciples.
Blessings,
Tom Swingle