Christine Stoxen was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin and has lived in a number of states including Connecticut, Delaware and South Carolina. She graduated from Gettysburg College with a B. A. in Psychology in Elementary Education. Following college, she served in the Lutheran Volunteer Corps in Wilmington, DE in a homeless shelter for women and children. From there, she served as a social worker for the State of Delaware, continuing to work for social justice. In 1995, she felt a call to ordained ministry and in 2000 she graduated from Lutheran Theological Southern Seminary. Pastor Chris has served three congregations in South Carolina and came to Holy Trinity in Chandler in 2017. When she is not at the church, you can find her hiking, reading and spending time with her two grown children, Zachary and Nicholas, and their families, which include grandsons Oliver and Chance.
Pastor Bernie Carl was born and raised in Wheeling, West Virginia. He graduated from West Liberty State College, West Liberty, West Virginia in 1973 and the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Gettysburg, Pennsylvania in 1977. Pastor Bernie has served congregations in West Virginia, Maryland, and Pennsylvania. He retired from active ministry in 2013 after 35 years of pastoral ministry, the final 20 years serving St. Peter’s Lutheran Church in Uniontown, Pennsylvania. He moved to Chandler in 2013 where he lives with his wife, Barbara. Pastor Bernie and Barbara are the parents of one son, B. William Carl who resides in Kailua, Hawaii with his wife, Caroline and their two daughters, Delainey and Adelaide. In addition to his work as the Pastor of Caring Ministries at Holy Trinity he enjoys an occasional game of golf as well as the sports scene provided by the Sun Devils, Coyotes, and Diamondbacks. He is not yet ready to cheer on the Cardinals as he is a huge Pittsburgh Steelers fan.
Luis Ochoa was born in Guatemala and moved to Los Angeles, CA when he was 7 years old. He graduated from Trinity Lutheran College in Issaquah, WA in 2008 with a BA in Children, Youth and Family Studies. He has been doing youth ministry for 13 years and enjoys every part of it. He has been married to his wife Bobbie for thirteen years and has three kids; a son, Eduardo and two daughters, Joleen and Aaliyah. He enjoys cooking, being outdoors, spending time with family and friends and playing and watching different sports. Being part of the ELCA has been key in his faith journey and he is very excited to share his faith and personal experiences here at Holy Trinity Lutheran Church. Ordained in 2023, Luis serves at both Holy Trinity and First Evangelical Lutheran.
Charles has served as music director at Holy Trinity since 2017. A pianist, composer, arranger, singer, and teacher with backgrounds in classical music, improvisation, and jazz, Charles loves working with musicians of all kinds, from amateur to professional and everything in between. He graduated from the University of Arizona with a Bachelors of Music in composition and holds a Masters of Music in composition from McGill University in Montreal, Canada. When he's not at church, Charles enjoys brewing beer, playing video games, reading, and going on adventures with his wife, Roxanna.
Born and raised in Phoenix, Mitzie has always had a special place in her heart for writing and community. Her love for writing led to a broadcast journalism degree from the ASU Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication.
Applying her creative skillset, she's worn a ton of hats throughout the years jumping from journalism to retail marketing, public relations and the non-profit sector. She's heavily involved with HonorHealth Foundation, Foothills Food Bank and Knots for NICU, a local non-profit which creates hats for NICU babies nationwide.
Aware of the amazing work and community created by Holy Trinity Lutheran Church, Mitzie is excited to assist on the social media side to generate awareness so others can see the incredible impact.
Mitzie spent four years serving on the First Things First East Maricopa Regional Partnership Council. The organization funds early childhood education, early literacy and resources to strengthen families.
Mitzie resides in the East Valley with a household of boys, including her husband, eight-year-old son and two crazy rescue dogs. If you happen to see her around campus filming with her iPhone, make sure to say hi!
