St. James West

Pastor

Gene Backes

Pastor Gene Backes' history at St. James West (formerly St. James West UMC until June 30, 2023) began in 1979 when he was hired as the church's first Youth Minister. For 14 years, Gene developed and grew a thriving youth program, which included local mission work, camping retreats, and Spring Break trips to Florida. Gene moved on to serve as Lay Leader from 1987 to 2006, and then was hired as Pastor of St. James West.

Under Pastor Gene's leadership, and with the assistance and enthusiasm of countless volunteers, Ministry and Mission has grown by leaps and bounds at St. James West! Sunday praise & worship developed into a modern format with the addition of contemporary music; a second Sunday service was added to accommodate our growing congregation; and a third service, titled "Mondays With God," was introduced to draw in a younger crowd who desired a more relaxed worship atmosphere.

Additionally, Pastor Gene has served on leadership teams and been involved with several outreach ministries including Evansville District Walk to Emmaus, Tri-State Tres Dias, Evansville Chrysalis, and Kairos of Indiana. He has also spearheaded a mission trip to Juarez, Mexico, and a spiritual retreat to the Holy Land

Pastor Gene is a graduate of F.J. Reitz High School and received his Master's in Education from the University of Southern Indiana (USI). He has additional graduate studies from USI, the University of Evansville, and Indiana Wesleyan University. Pastor Gene retired from teaching at Reitz in 2015 after more than 30 years, instructing students in Psychology, Sociology, and U.S. History. He has coached for both the track and wrestling teams, and continues to be involved with coaching for the Reitz Football Panthers.

Pastor Gene and his wife Susie have two grown children; Jennifer (husband David) O'Neil, and Andrew (wife Andrea) Backes; grandsons Gabriel ("Gabe") and Joshua, and granddaughters Margaret, Adalyn, and Ava. Pastor Gene enjoys reading, traveling, and spending time with his family, especially his grandchildren.

Preschool Director

Marissa Hensley

Send Email • (812)428-0569

Hello everyone,

My name is Marissa Hensley. I am beyond excited to be taking over as the new director of St. James West Preschool. I know it’s going to be hard to be as amazing as Mrs. Jennifer but I’m going to try! I can’t wait to work with all of the students and their families. It's going to be an adventure full of fun, learning, and lots of excitement and I can't wait to see what the rest of this year has in store for us! I thought you might like to know a little bit about me.

I am married to my wonderful husband, Aaron. He is a realtor at Dauby Realty. We have not one, but three amazing daughters. Amelia is 4 years old, Ellowyn is 2 years old, and Izalea is 6 months old. They take up most of my free time, but some hobbies that I enjoy are baking (especially bread), crafting, and reading! I have lived in Posey County about half my life and the other half here on the westside. I went to North Posey High School and I have my associates degree in Early Childhood Education. I worked in a daycare for many years. While I was there, I was with almost every age at some point in time. I have also worked at a couple preschools including here at St. James. I only left here because I had a baby over the summer. I’m SO HAPPY to be back!

Please let me know if you have any questions or concerns. It is so important to keep communication open between us and I would love to talk to you whenever you feel the need! I look forward to a great rest of the year together!

Worship Director

Rick Poelhuis

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Children's Ministry Director

Ashley Lancaster

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Senior High Youth Coordinator

Gary Doninger

Send Email • (812)773-7000

Hello my St. James family, this is Gary "A." Doninger. AKA: Lil' Gary, Gary Alan, Gary "Jr.", and Gary the Cleaning Guy and Mr. Gary to some of the little ones. I guess you could also call me "The Magician" because, in case you don't know who I am, I am the one in the back of the church on Sunday mornings who rarely sits still so, "now you see me, now you don't", depending on which minute you are looking. I am excited (and a bit anxious) at the opportunity to be the new Senior High Youth Coordinator and be an additional source of guidance for the teenage members of our family here at St. James. I hope to inspire them and help them however I can to navigate the "dramatic" years of high school so that they can be even more confident in their beliefs and abilities as they transition to young adulthood. And to know that God is ALWAYS with them, giving them strength.

Most of you probably already know who I am or at least know (or knew) my family. I have been the custodian here at St. James for the last three years and I am the third generation of Doningers at St. James. Born, baptized, and raised here. Even had Pastor Gene as my youth leader some 40 years ago. Many of you remember my grandparents Charlie and Algene (hard to forget Algene if you knew her) and most of you probably know my dad Gary "R." Doninger and my mom Debi Doninger. Though mostly bred on the Westside I actually went to that Northside school on the hill Central High. But I made up for it by marrying my amazing wife Carol thirty-'one'derful years ago who IS a Reitz girl. But she just began her 18^th year working at Mater Dei so I will let you draw your own conclusions on that. We have an AWESOME son Daniel who also graduated Reitz and then U of E and has been a Facilities Project Coordinator for the Gulf coast states branches of One Main Financial for the last 10 years. SOOOO proud of him !!!

As mentioned earlier, I am rather high-energy and seldom sit still. I hope to bring that energy to our youth and keep them motivated to continue learning about our Lord, strengthen and deepen their faith in Him, and to live the lives he has intended for them. This is a new journey for me and will certainly be a period of personal growth as I will be learning as much from them as (I hope and pray) that they will be learning from me. I thank ALL of you for your confidence in me in this new position and for entrusting me with the well-being of your children. I do not take that responsibility lightly!! And any suggestions, concerns, help, and prayers will be truly welcome and appreciated.

Philippians 4:13 : "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me."