Pastoral Staff
Rev. Jason Helopoulos, Pastor
Rev. Jason Helopoulos was born in the “Land of Lincoln,” central Illinois. He graduated from Eastern Illinois University in 1999. Jason then attended seminary in Texas and completed a Masters of Theology degree (ThM) with a concentration in Historical Theology in 2003. He served on the staff of Park Cities Presbyterian Church as a pastoral intern for one year and then accepted a call as an Assistant Pastor at Meadowview Reformed Presbyterian Church (PCA) in Lexington, North Carolina. In the fall of 2008, Jason was called by Christ Church PCA in Grand Rapids, Michigan to plant a daughter church in Lansing, Michigan. He accepted the call and moved to the field (and snow) as church planter and has been the pastor of Providence PCA in East Lansing since October 2007.
Jason is married to his beautiful bride, Leah. They are blessed with two wonderful children, Gracen and Ethan.
He enjoys spending time with his family, laughing, watching a good Chicago Bears’ game (as rare as they are), and feasting upon Chicago-style pizza. He is also a man marked by great faith and hope as he awaits the realization of a Cubs’ World Series championship within his lifetime.
Rev. Shawn Newsome, Campus Minister
Rev. Shawn Newsome is not technically on the Providence staff; he serves the Great Lakes Presbytery as Campus Minister at Michigan State University with RUF, the PCA’s campus ministry. However, Shawn and his family attend Providence and the ministries of Providence and RUF at MSU are closely related. Shawn and Jami were married in 1996 and both grew up in Dallas, Texas. Shawn received a B.A. from Baylor University and a M.Div. from Westminster Seminary. After completing an Internship at Park Cities Presbyterian Church in Dallas Shawn was called by the Great Lakes Presbytery to be the RUF Campus Minister at Michigan State University. He is a Dallas area pro sports fan, enjoys playing golf and bow hunting and likes to read and cook for family and friends. Jami earned a B.S. in Christian Education from Dallas Baptist University. She is a gifted educator with a heart for inspiring her students with a love for learning. Jami enjoys flea-market bargain hunting, keeping up with friends and baking. They are the proud parents of twin daughters Lydia and Naomi who were born in May of 2008 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia and arrived home in January of 2009. Together they enjoy most being parents to their daughters. They currently live in Lansing Michigan.
214.284.5654 (Shawn mobile)
