Pastor Jeff was ordained as an elder in the Church of the Nazarene in 1996 after pastoring in
Caldwell Ohio, and while he was serving as a youth pastor in Plant City, Florida. In 1997 he
entered the Army as an active-duty chaplain and served in that capacity for over 21 years. Upon
retirement, he pastored the Fayetteville Church of the Nazarene for a total of 8 years until he was
called to serve as the Administrative Director of Global Nazarene Discipleship International.
Following a restructuring of that department, Jeff came to Topeka Fairlawn in May of 2025.
He has a BA in Religion from Trevecca Nazarene University (‘89), a Master of Divinity from
Nazarene Theological Seminary (‘93), a Master of Liberal Studies with an emphasis in ethics
from Kent State University (’07), and a Doctor of Ministry from Nazarene Theological Seminary
(’16).
Jeff enjoys sports of all kinds, driving and maintaining his very first car – a ’72 Chevelle,
playing guitar, and hunting. Jeff and his wife Angie were married in 1988 and together they have
5 amazing children and six even more amazing grandchildren. His life verse is 1 John 3:1-3, ask
him about it sometime!
Pastor Tom Richardson comes to us with over 35 years of ministry experience. His ministry and vision are based on building strong relationships in the church and community. He is passionate about helping others to develop close personal relationships with Christ, exhorting them to realize their God-given Call, and teaching them how to realize that Call in their lives.
Tom has served as a Lay Minister in the Methodist Church and was licensed and ordained in The Open Bible denomination and in The Foursquare denomination. He has moved his minister’s license to the Church of the Nazarene and currently holds a district license with the Kansas City District.
While at the Open Bible Church near Dayton, Ohio, he served as Assistant Pastor and Director of Christian Education. He also served as the principal of the church’s Christian School. He then served as Senior Pastor of a church in Winchester, Indiana, and served as the Assistant Principal of their Christian School. Most recently, Pastor Tom served as Senior Pastor of the First Foursquare Church in the inner city of Topeka.
Tom has always served as a bi-vocational minister. While pastoring, he worked as a Field Engineer and Technician. He is an Air Force veteran who served as an Aircraft Mechanic and Senior Controller over squadron maintenance.
Tom and his wife, Debby, have three biological children and now they serve as adoptive parents of four beautiful children. Tom loves to read, especially on the subjects of Church History, American History and World History. He still loves to keep up on Military Aircraft.
Tom has graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in Theology from The American Bible College and Seminary. Debby is a graduate of Butler University with a Bachelor’s Degree in Business and Merchandising. She is also a graduate of American Bible College and Seminary with a Master’s Degree in Christian education.
Tom and his wife Debby have been married for 42 years. They were high school sweethearts and have known each other almost their whole lives. They have seven children together and five grandchildren.
Edwina has attended Fairlawn since 2007. In that time, she has been active in Children’s Ministry, led the Children’s choir (The Mini Crescendos) and she has also been active in adult choir (including Passion Play and Christmas According to Scrooge), as well as the Praise and Worship Team.
Edwina’s passion is leading children, teaching them that God loves them, Jesus wants to be their friend, and with God’s help, they can do anything! She also loves singing with the kids, leading choir, and praising God through song.
Edwina also has a passion for animal welfare and rescue. She currently has four dogs (Peggy, Precious, Princess and Sugar) and three cats (Bert, Harvey, and Boris) all of whom are rescues. She has always said her dream job would be rescuing dogs and singing with kids.
Edwina strives to let others see the love of Jesus through the way she lives. She says it is a work in progress, but she strives to always do her best.
Edwina has lived in Topeka most of her life, with a ten-year period in her childhood living in Texas. She led her first children’s choir at the age of 17. She has three grown daughters, and three grandchildren, Johanna, Owen and Oliver. Hobbies include reading, taking walks with her dog Peggy, meeting neighbors, and spending time with family.
Cindy was born and raised in Lawrence, KS and has been attending a Nazarene church for over 20 years. Cindy and her husband, Bill, joined Fairlawn in 2006. Cindy enjoys playing in a Lawrence community handbell choir, and being very active in the church including taking care of the babies in the nursery on Sunday mornings.
Interests: Spending time with family (including the 2 family cats) and playing handbells.