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New England Church Planting Conference
November 9, 2023 at 10:00 am – 4:00 pm EST
New England
Church Planting Conference
Thursday, November 9 – Boston, MA
10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
About the Conference
Come learn from those on the frontlines of church planting in New England and beyond! Whether you are just exploring church planting or are serving on a church planting team, this conference, on November 9, will provide a great opportunity to learn, grow, and connect. We will have several main sessions and breakout sessions to equip and encourage you.
Main Sessions
All main sessions will be TED talk-style presentations followed by table discussions.
“Why Church?”
ABOUT Dr. SCOTT W. SUNQUIST
Bio: Dr. Scott W. Sunquist is the president of Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary and professor of missiology. He helped plant churches in Singapore and in Pasadena, California. He is the author of Why Church?, Understanding Christian Mission, and several other books. Visit his biography page to learn more.
“Planting Among the
Poor and Marginalized”
About Morgan Proudfoot
Morgan and his wife, Jess, along with their 5 kids, 1 grandson, have deep New England roots. Though Morgan originally grew up in inner-city Seattle, most of their family is in New England. Since being married 20 years ago, Morgan has served at a couple of small churches, planted a church in Pittsburgh in 2007, and then served on staff at The Village Church. Most recently their family made one last and final move back home in August 2018 to New Bedford, Massachusetts to plant and establish a new church in the city. Seeing the incredible need in New Bedford and surrounding areas, he launched Neighborhood Churches for Forgotten Places. Through this ministry, he is working to enlist church planters and partners to establish 30 more neighborhood churches in New Bedford and 20 neighborhood churches in nearby Fall River.
“Empowering Women
In Church Plants”
About Amy Castello
In the last 15 years, Amy has helped launch two church plants, taking part in discipleship, counseling, teaching, strategy, and leadership. She has been involved in almost every area of ministry at various stages of a church’s growth. She also serves as the Send Boston Network Spouse Care Advocate for over 60 pastor wives and female leaders across the Greater Boston area. Her role involves helping leaders pursue holistic health for effectiveness and longevity in both life and ministry. Amy is an avid reader, mother of four teenage daughters, and loves the mountains.
“Keeping Evangelism in Focus
in Church Planting”
About Sean Sears
Sean and his wife, Billie, started Grace Church in Avon, MA, in 2005 with a couple of their spiritually disconnected neighbors and 3 college students. It took 4 years to reach 100 people, but then they began to grow rapidly. Grace is now in 4 locations, has sent out 9 church plants since 2009, and baptized more than 1,300 people in Metro Boston. They just sent out their last planting resident and are now interviewing for their next one.
“Partnering to
Serve the Community”
About Josh Wyatt
Josh is the founder and lead pastor of Charles River in Boston. In addition to serving the city of Boston, he has a passion for seeing the spiritual tide turn in New England in his lifetime. For nearly 20 years, he has been active in church planting in Greater Boston, most recently through the development and deployment of church planting residents. Josh’s unique focus is starting ministries for youth and residents in urban housing developments that serve to create a microcosm and vision for what the Lord can do in the city at large. In his free time, he enjoys coaching baseball at Boston Trinity Academy, marathon running, and exploring New England with his family.
“Engaging
the City”
About James Roberson
James grew up in Westchester County, outside of New York City. James’s father worked for IBM before becoming a pastor and James’s mother worked as a Social Studies teacher. In college, James played football for James Madison University, while majoring in Speech Communications and minoring in Theatre. James is diligently focused on social justice issues and has developed programs on youth empowerment, AIDS, substance abuse, and domestic violence. In 2011, James graduated from Southeastern Seminary while simultaneously pastoring a church in Raleigh, North Carolina. James has since helped to plant churches in Maryland, Georgia, and New York. His family moved to Brooklyn in 2013 to start Bridge Church. James and his wife Natasha were married in 2003. In his spare time, he loves watching sports and going to the gym. James and Natasha live in Brooklyn with their three daughters.
Breakout Sessions
Special Guest Dr. Erin Crider and others will lead breakout sessions for you to explore specific
topics & engage with other local church planting leaders.
“Church Planting in
Post-Christian Culture”
About Dr. Erin Crider
Dr. Erin Crider is an adjunct professor of practical theology and director of church planting at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary. She is passionate about ecclesiology and church planting and earned a PhD in Divinity from the University of Aberdeen, Scotland with a thesis titled “Planting the Word: Theological reflection on the operant missional ecclesiology of US church planting movements 1960s-present.”
Visit her biography page to learn more.
“Planting Churches in Rural Places for God’s Glory”
About David Pinckney
Missions Pastor, River of Grace, Concord, NH; Rural Church Planting Strategist.
“How Community Restoration Can Lead to Starting a Community of Faith.”
About John Ames
Director, Boston Send Relief Center