ABOUT US:

My name is Darren Gillespie and I have served as a United Methodist pastor for eight years. My wife, Paula, and I were married in 1990. We have three children: Chance, age 6; Shelby, age 3; and Jonah, age 5 months. We are currently serving three churches in central Kentucky, Casey County. We are currently in our fourth year at these churches. I am also a student at Asbury Theological Seminary.

Paula and I have been called into two very special ministries. We were first called to the Pastoral Ministry. We are committed to serving local churches within the United Methodist church. As I mentioned before, we have been serving in that capacity for eight years. Paula and I have also been called into ministry with deaf and hearing impaired persons. This call in our life began in 1993 when we discovered that our oldest child, Chance, is profoundly deaf. He was diagnosed shortly after his first birthday. We immediately entered into a program with the Alabama Institute for the Deaf and Blind. That program consisted of a class one day a week for Chance in which language as well as oral communication was used in a day care sort of setting. Paula and I immediately began to learn sign language, because from the beginning we have been committed to open communication with out son. We then move to Kentucky in order for me to attend seminary and Chance began attending the Kentucky School for the Deaf located in Danville, KY. We are very blessed that the Lord placed us in a church within driving distance of the school which enabled us take Chance to school each day, and he lives with us,not in the dorms at the school. As we became more involved with the deaf community through sign language classes, school events,parent-teacher association, etc., the Lord began to tug at my heart. I saw many deaf persons in the rural counties of Kentucky without the opportunity to attend a church of any denomination because there simply are not many churches which utilize American Sign Language interpreters, deaf leaders etc. Unless a Deaf person lives in Danville, Lexington, Louisville, or other large cities, they have very little opportunity to participate in church. One day, while I was praying and studying Gods Word,the Lord clearly called me into a second major ministry: He called me to establish ministry with deaf persons in ALL Kentucky counties! My wife and I, along with friends, Chris and April Beard, have committed ourselves to making the church accessible to deaf men, women, and children in all areas of Kentucky. We are currently working toward this goal in two areas: