
OUR LEADERSHIP
DR. FRED STEELMAN
Interim Senior Pastor | fred@brainerdhills.com
Dr. Steelman has a B.S. from Mississippi State University, a Masters of Divinity from Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, a Doctorate of Ministry from New Orleans Theological Seminary, and an Honorary Doctorate from Carson Newman University. He has been a pastor from more than 50 years, 33 of which were at Red Bank Baptist Church in Chattanooga.
Dr. Steelman has been active in denominational life serving on major boards of the TBC and the SBC. He serve from 1975-1984 on the TBC Executive Board and was elected President in 1983. As a Trustee at Carson Newman University from 1995-2007, Dr. Steelman was Chairman of the Board from 2003-2004. He is married with three grown children and five grandchildren. Since his retirement in 2006, he has served several lengthy interims and has managed to hunt and fish a significant amount.
OUR LEADERSHIP
OUR LEADERSHIP
Get to know our Pastoral Staff and ministry teams who help lead our Church family.
JEFF CLARK
Minister of Music | jeff@brainerdhills.com
Jeff joined the staff of Brainerd Hills in January of 1993 after graduating from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary with a Masters in Church Music. He originally served as Minister of Music & Youth, but as the church expanded, was moved to music ministry exclusively. His passion is to see the church engaged in heartfelt, biblical worship.
Jeff and his wife, Kris, reside in the East Brainerd community and have three children.
OUR LEADERSHIP
OUR LEADERSHIP
Get to know our Pastoral Staff and ministry teams who help lead our Church family.
MIKE LOFTON
Minister of Education | mike@brainerdhills.com
Mike Lofton joined the pastoral staff of Brainerd Hills in 1998 after serving as Associate Pastor and Minister of Education at First Baptist Church of Ridgeland, Mississippi. Mike oversees the educational ministry of the church which encompasses the Sunday School Ministry, Discipleship/Equipping Ministry, and Outreach Ministry.
Mike graduated from Mississippi State University and New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary and resides in Chattanooga with his wife Deborah and his two children, Meagan and Adam.
OUR LEADERSHIP
OUR LEADERSHIP
Get to know our Pastoral Staff and ministry teams who help lead our Church family.
ANDREW CRAWFORD
Minister to Students | andrew@brainerdhills.com
Andrew serves as Minister to Students, joining our staff in September of 2013. He is from Ringgold, Georgia and is a product of the student ministry at Brainerd Hills. His desire is for students to fall in love with our Savior, Jesus Christ and follow Him wherever He leads.
He and his wife Jennifer have been married for five years and have two children, Cooper and Lily. They currently reside in Ringgold.
Andrew holds a BA in Business Administration from Maryville College where he played football and wrestled, and he is currently pursuing a Master of Divinity degree.
OUR LEADERSHIP
OUR LEADERSHIP
Get to know our Pastoral Staff and ministry teams who help lead our Church family.
LINDSAY BLACKWELL
Director of Preschool and Nursery | lindsay@brainerdhills.com
Lindsay grew up in Huntsville, Alabama. She has a degree from the University of North Alabama in Social Work. Lindsay has over 10 years experience working in the field of childcare and early childhood education. She has worked with children of all ages. Lindsay has a passion to see children grow in their foundation in Christ starting at birth.
Lindsay and her husband, Richmond, have been married since 2005. They have two daughters and currently live in Ringgold.
OUR LEADERSHIP
OUR LEADERSHIP
Get to know our Pastoral Staff and ministry teams who help lead our Church family.
ANITA PARKER
Children's Ministry Director | anita@brainerdhills.com
Anita and her husband Tim are from Rock Spring, GA. Anita has an Early Childhood Education Degree and has worked with children for many years. She has had several roles working with children, including serving as Children and Preschool Director at her former church as well as being a USA Gymnastics Team coach.
Anita's passion is to show the love of Christ to each child and to help build a solid foundation in their relationship with our Lord Jesus Christ.
OUR LEADERSHIP
OUR LEADERSHIP
Get to know our Pastoral Staff and ministry teams who help lead our Church family.
OUR LEADERSHIP

LATEST UPDATE
March 21, 2023
Over the past few months, we have received numerous worthy resumes. It was obvious as we read through them that many would be qualified to serve here alongside us at BHBC. At this point, our committee has completed the step of sifting through the resumes to 15 candidates that we are working to learn more about. Each of those received a questionnaire last week via email.
Unfortunately, this means that many candidates who have been interested in our search will not be able to move forward in the search process. Honestly, this part of the process is hard. I know many of you desire to serve the Lord, and we believe that God has a place for you. I have been in your shoes more times than I can count, and it can often be disappointing, disheartening, and feel like rejection. I hope you remember that we are seeking the Lord to discover whom God has for us. Therefore, it means you are the person God has chosen for another opportunity.
After we review the questionnaires, we will interview 3-5 candidates. Our hope is to begin that part of our search early in April. Thank you for your prayers as we continue to seek the Lord's will in who He desires to serve here with us.
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March 10, 2023
Our committee was hopeful to move on to the next step at the end of this week by sending questionnaires to candidates. However, we have not been able to finishing looking at all the resumes. If you submitted a resume, I know this can feel like a slow process and can be frustrating. I have been there, and I understand. Please know we are prayerfully working as quickly as we can. We are hoping to finish this step by the end of next week, and we will continue to add updates as needed. Please continue to pray for us as we are seeking the Lord’s will in who He desires to serve along with us here at BHBC.
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February 23, 2023
Over the past month, we have received a large number resumes. I know many of those who submitted a resume are wondering where we are in our process and if they are still being considered as a candidate. At this point, we are still reviewing those resumes and trying to narrow them down to a smaller number. My hope is that in the next couple of weeks we will be reaching out to those candidates we believe God is leading us to take the next step with. Please continue to pray for us as we are seeking the Lord’s will in who He desires to serve along with us here at BHBC.
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January Update
Welcome to the search for BHBC Student Pastor. We will be collecting resumes through February 17, 2023. Our goal with this page is to keep both our church family and potential candidates informed of where we are in the process. We have already begun praying that God will direct us to the person He has for this position. I hope you will join us in praying for clarity, wisdom, and discernment throughout this process. If you have not submitted a resume and would like to, you can email it to studentpastorsearch@brainerdhills.com. If you would like to see the job description, please click here.
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Our Student Pastor Search Committee has already met several times in the past month. We have spent our time implementing our process; evaluating the needs of our church and community; listing qualities we desire in a student pastor; meeting with students, parents, and student workers to hear their feedback; and doing lots of praying. These things take time, and we want to make sure we are never behind or in front of what God is doing. The following is our plan, but we also understand that sometimes God intervenes and does things differently than our plan. As a committee, we are open to any step in this process God may change along the way. Here are the steps we are planning on taking:
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Collect resumes (last day for resumes will be February 17, 2023)
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Evaluate resumes
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Narrow search to 10-15 candidates
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Candidates will respond to a questionnaire
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Narrow search to 3-5 candidates
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Zoom interview
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Narrow search to 1 candidate
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Zoom interview
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Theological interview with pastor
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Plan visit to meet our staff, tour city, and interview with committee
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Present candidate to church (this will include an entire weekend with scheduled activities)
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As always, we invite you to be in prayer with us as we seek God's will in this matter.