Ministers and Staff

Senior Minister - John McCoy

Among John's circle of friends there is a dodo named Dudley, a possum named Possibility and a delightful little bear who insists his name is Bear-Who-Smells-Like-He-Does. You see, besides being a pastor, John is a ventriloquist. He and his pals (especially Bear) enjoy their occasional visits with the children at church.

John holds a Master of Divinity degree (cum laude) from Christian Theological Seminary (1971), an A.B. degree from Indiana University (1967) and a certificate in French immersion studies from McGill University, Montreal, (1966). He grew up in Elwood, Indiana. A full-time Disciples minister since 1971, John came to South Side Christian Church in August 1999 after completing a fifteen and a half year ministry with the Hometown Christian Church, Chicago IL.

He and his wife Arlene (the musically talented one of the couple who serves as South Side's organist and choir director) have two grown children. Their daughter Ann is an accomplished artist. She and her husband James Monroe live in Madison, Wisconsin. Their son Ian lives in Chicago where he works as an account executive for the Chicago Bears NFL team.

In addition to ventriloquism some of John's other outside interest include performing old-time radio shows, telling stories and celebrating all things Scottish.

John can be reached by e-mail, john@sschristianchurch.com or by phoning the church 9a.m.-5p.m., M-Th. (765) 457-9357.

Associate Minister - Clarence A. Jackson, Sr.

Clarence is the Student Associate Minister for youth and young adult families. Clarence holds a BS degree in Mechanical Engineering from Tuskegee University in Tuskegee, Alabama. He completed several hours toward a MS degree in Manufacturing Management from Kettering University (formerly GMI). Currently, he is enrolled at Christian Theological Seminary where he is in the M Div (Master of Divinity) program.

Clarence has held several ministry positions in the Kokomo area. At Second Baptist Church in Kokomo, he served as the president of men’s ministry, associate minister, and youth pastor, respectively. After serving at Second, Clarence founded and started a new ministry in January 2002 named Family Restoration Christian Center (FRCC) where he is the Senior Pastor.

Clarence had a very busy weekend in May of 1996. That’s because during his years at Tuskegee, he was not only busy studying but also entertaining his college sweetheart, Tawana Newbern. So on Saturday, May 11th, Clarence and Tawana were married amongst a host of family and friends. And, as if that wasn’t enough, the following day, Sunday, May 12th, they both graduated from the School of Engineering at Tuskegee. His weekends are still pretty busy because he and Tawana have three children of which consists a set of twins. Clarence, Jr. was born on May 19, 1997 and the twins, Myles Joseph and Melany Taye were born on August 14, 2000.

Church Secretary - Linda Stranahan

Linda can be reached by e-mail, secretary@sschristianchurch.com or by phoning the church 9a.m.-5p.m., M-F. (765) 457-9357.

Church Organist/Music Director - Arlene J. McCoy

Church Custodians - Bill and Midge Trueblood

Church Webmaster - Craig Thurmond

Craig can be reached by e-mail, webmaster@sschristianchurch.com.