Name: Zach Bumgardner (spouse P. Dennisa)

Education: Dayspring Christian ('07), AAS Digital Video Production, Aims Community College ('13), Bachelors Ministry Leadership, Life Pacific University (in progress '24)

Ministry Experience: Young Adult Internship Pastor, New Hope Greeley ('04-'07); Worship Pastor, Mosaic Church ('07-'12); Connections Pastor, Metro Christian Church ('12-'15); Co-Lead/Planting Pastor, elevate church HI ('15-present)

Occupation: Pastor and aspiring semi-professional sumo wrestler

Testimony: I was born in Colorado, but was raised on Oahu through elementary school. As a pastors kid I grew up in the church watching my parents do their best to love people and serve their community. Ministry was not always easy for them, but their dedication to the church was evident. We moved back to Colorado and I struggled to find my way after high school like many PK's do, but God's goodness brought me back to serving and playing worship in the church. I met Dennisa (my better 3/4's) in Denver at a youth prayer-rally at the church where she was the children's pastor. We were married soon after and felt God's call to Ministry. We lived in Hawaii for a short season, but ended up back in Colorado where we started our first full-time ministry position working with young adults. Then we spent 5 years helping plant Mosaic Church and grew in our passion for planting and the local church. We moved back to Honolulu in 2012 to work at a newer church, but we continued to feel God's urging to plant something of our own where we could co-lead the way we felt God had created us to. In Novevmber of 2015 we stepped out in faith and elevate church was born. We've had many ups and downs since then, sometimes it feels like many more downs, but God has remained faithful through it all. He's sustained us and is still moving at elevate, sometimes in spite of us, and I'm extremely grateful to be a small part of what He's doing here in on Oahu.