Leadership Structure
You could say that Jesus is the lead pastor of our church. We believe that Jesus is our true leader and head. We believe that Jesus provides his church with leaders who give their lives to serve and care for the church. Jesus gave the church a few offices to help structure leadership. First, we are led by what we call elders or pastors. Second, we also have deacons who function in a lead servant role. Third, our members function as an office. We believe that membership at the church is an important commitment that comes with responsibilities to live out the "one anothers" of the faith and to be involved in the direction and decision making of the church.
Staff Pastors
bland mason, Lead Pastor
Bland and his wife, Teresa, planted City on a Hill Church, in Brookline, in 2010. Bland and Teresa have been married 28 years and have the three kids - Jordan, Hannah, and Sarah. In his free time, he enjoys traveling, exploring the Boston food scene, offroading in his Wrangler, and reading in the areas of theology, philosophy and culture. He holds M.Div. and Ph.D. degrees from Southern Seminary, and serves as an adjunct professor at Gordon-Conwell, Midwestern, and Southern seminaries. He served as chaplain to the Red Sox from 2009-2019.
EM: bland@coahchurch.org
Insta: blandmason
Mike Hong, Pastor of Worship and Mission
As pastor of worship and mission, Mike oversees the discipleship of the church through the Sunday worship gatherings and leading musicians in the worship ministry. He also facilitates partnerships with outside organizations and ministries, which includes anything from local neighborhood non-profits to overseas ministries in other countries.
A resident of the Boston area since 1999, Mike spent several years working with InterVarsity Christian Fellowship at Boston College before enrolling at Gordon Conwell Theological Seminary in 2008 to pursue an M.Div. He joined City on a Hill's staff in the summer of 2011. Mike and his wife Tanya have two children, Alina and Mark.
EM: mike@coahchurch.org
TW: WMHong
Tyler Speck, Pastor of community groups
Tyler moved to Boston in November of 2016 and came on staff in June of 2017. As Pastor of Community Groups, Tyler provides support for Community Group Leaders and overall vision and direction for the Community Group Ministry. In May of 2019 he and Ashlan, a fellow church member, got married and now have a child together. He has a Master of Divinity degree from Southern Seminary. In his spare time, Tyler likes to drink good coffee, play chess, and work from cool places downtown.
EM: tyler@coahchurch.org
Insta: Specktb
Lay Elders
Jeff Johnson, Lay Elder
Jeff and his wife Abby have been married for over 10 years and have two vibrant daughters, Eliana and Kayla. They started attending City on a Hill in the fall of 2012 after having moved around quite a bit. While they are both working professionals, their real passion is for building community and entering into the beautiful mess of real relationships.
EM: jeff@coahchurch.org
Suny Liaw, Lay Elder
Suny moved to Boston in 2014 with his wife, Yen (who serves as our treasurer), and two boys, Isaac and Caleb. Suny serves as an attending physician at Children's Hospital in the palliative care area. Suny focuses his time as an elder by coaching community groups and teaching the occasional class. Suny became an elder in 2017.
EM: suny@coahchurch.org
Kaleb Chang, Lay Elder
Kaleb became an elder at City on a Hill Brookline in 2017 and serves alongside his wife, Celina, in overseeing the Benevolence team. Kaleb and Celina have been married since 2010 and live in Roslindale with their son, Jesse. Kaleb is a data specialist and previously served as a deacon at Redeemer Presbyterian Church in New York City.
EM: kaleb@coahchurch.org
Ed Park, Lay Elder
Ed is originally from New York but has lived in the Boston / Brookline area for almost 30 years. He and his wife Kim have three kids in high school and middle school – Hannah, John, and Joseph. Ed professionally works in mergers and acquisitions in the software industry. At City on a Hill, he serves on the finance team and community group ministries. Ed and Kim consider Boston their long term home, where God has called them to serve the Church. Outside of work, Ed enjoys exercise, playing video games, and being his family's resident IT support / homework tutor.
EM: ed@coahchurch.org
Staff
Mollie Dykstra, director of administration
Mollie oversees the day to day operations of City on a Hill Brookline and is a point of contact for those who are in the church community and those looking to get involved. Mollie and her family lived overseas for several years before making a home in Brookline, MA in the spring of 2012. A graduate of Trinity Western University, she worked at Focus on the Family (Canada) before choosing to follow her dream of being a stay at home wife and mother. Having a vested interest in the spiritual development of the children at CoaH, Mollie also served on staff as the director of CoaH Kids from 2013-2017. She enjoys spending time with her family, traveling, and all things retail.
EM: office@coahchurch.org
Hannah Dantas, Director of CoaH Kids
Hannah grew up in Boston and has attended City on a Hill Brookline since it was planted in 2010. She and her husband, DJ, have a little girl named Sophia, and a dog, Jules. Hannah has always loved caring for kids, both in her work as a nanny for many years and as a teacher. She is passionate about seeing children come to know and love the Lord. As the Director of CoaH kids, she oversees the children's ministry and equips volunteers to serve each week. In her free time, Hannah enjoys spending time with her husband and daughter, drinking exorbitant amounts of coffee, and watching true crime documentaries.
EM: hannah@coahbrookline.org
ANDRE FERREira, director of coah students
Andre joined the CoaH staff in 2024 but has been around the Boston area for over 10 years ever since he moved here from Brazil. Andre has a bachelor's degree in Psychology from Gordon College and a bachelors in theology from Faculdade Unida. Previously, he served as a volunteer associate pastor at Lovely Church in Peabody, MA. In his free time, Andre enjoys making and listening to live music with friends, discovering new food spots around the city, playing table tennis, listening to podcasts, and watching TV shows and films. Andre is in charge of the overall vision, direction, and shepherding of the students at CoaH.
EM: andre@coahbrookline.org
Shane Pratt, Technical Intern
Shane was born and raised in South Africa, but is the child of an American. After much prayer and deliberation, Shane moved to the US and got immediately plugged in with City on a Hill in 2014. Shane serves as our technical intern on top of managing a sweet youtube page.
EM: shane@coahchurch.org
Hanna Kim, Artist in residence
Hanna and her husband Joseph have been serving at City on a Hill since 2011. Hanna joined the staff in 2017. She plays the flute and assists in leading weekly worship gatherings. Hanna creates custom vocal arrangements and notates lead sheets for our Sunday morning gatherings as well as for our Somerville and Brighton congregations.
Hanna graduated from Berklee College of Music with a degree in jazz flute performance and songwriting. Prior to that, she finished a M.M. in flute performance and conducting and a B.A. in music in universities in California. While she is working as a professional flutist, composer and arranger, Hanna wants to glorify God and contribute to the community through her music and talents.
EM: hanna@coahchurch.org