Our Staff
pastor minister music director office secretary associate kit
The Rev. Aileen Robbins
Senior Pastor
Pastor Aileen Robbins has been a pastor for nine years at an Upstate New York ELCA congregation. She holds a degree in psychology from Pennsylvania’s Shippensburg State University where she graduated in 1983. In 1998, Pastor Aileen graduated from the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. As a pastor she is committed to her family, her congregation, and her community.
The rest of the family includes her husband of 23 years Matthew, daughters Bekki, Megan, and Kaylee. Matt works in the printing industry. Bekki is a junior at Valparaiso (Indiana) University, where she studies Theology. Megan is starting her senior year of high school. She plays the trombone and bassoon in the school band, sings in the select choir, and is looking at Lutheran colleges with a plan to study social work. Kaylee is in fourth grade, takes piano lessons, plays lacrosse and basketball, and is beginning to play the French horn.
One of Pastor Aileen's passions is worship. She especially enjoys finding ways to make the worship service engaging for children and youth by including them in the services. Prayer is another passion, and it is a dream of hers to travel to Chartres, France to research the many uses over the years of the labyrinth on the cathedral floor.
Pastor Robbins' life passion is being a part of Christ’s church, to connect with the people of God, and to walk together with them through all of the sacred moments of life. She loves drop-in visits to the office, sharing cups of coffee, spending time with the youth and children’s groups, and learning from all of God’s gifted people.
Rev. Katherine (Kit) Neel
Associate Pastor
Kit Neel
Rev. Katherine Neel is a native of Worthington, Minnesota and attended Concordia College in Moorhead, Minnesota. She is a 2006 graduate of Wartburg Theological Seminary in Dubuque, Iowa and was ordained June 25,2006.
Following college, Katherine began working full-time in Outdoor Ministry. She believes camp provides a wonderful atmosphere for people to reflect on God's presence in his or her life whether it's through bible studies, campfires, a walk through the grounds, or in conversation with others.
Pastor Kit values the time she is able to spend with her family members because distance often separates them. She has family in North Dakota, Washington state, South Dakota and Minnesota.
Pastor Kit and her husband Michael (pastor at Concordia Evangelical Lutheran Church in Kendall, New York) both enjoy adventures in the great outdoors, playing games, and spending time with friends and family.
Dr. Willie La Favor
Director of Music Ministry
Willie La Favor
Willie La Favor graduated from Indiana University in 1997 with a Doctor of Music in Piano Performance and Literature. He began playing the piano in church at the age of nine and prior to coming to Messiah Lutheran served as Minister of Music at Northwood Christian Church in Indianapolis, IN for eight years. His organ studies include a two-year tenure as the Organ Scholar at the Chautauqua Institution. He is married to Debbie Grohman, an ordained Presbyterian minister, and they have a son, Andrew, who enjoys "playing concert" at the organ and piano.
Mrs. Mary Kuziak
Office Manager & Director of Congregational Activities
Mary Kuziak has been office manager since August 1988. Mary is an asset to the church with all the ministry that she does here. She has been deeply and spiritually involved in the congregation by actively participating in the the congregation's life. She has helped the congregation move forward through transitions, as well as coming up with ideas to help the congregation move forward in it's ministry. An active part of the local secretary's association, she is constantly in touch with other congregations and their ministries as well. She is a mother of two and enjoys wine bottling and beer making in her spare time.