Bethlehem Lutheran church
Lutheran Church Missouri Synod (LCMS)
Biographies
Pastor David Blair
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Pastor David Blair was born in Salem, Oregon. His family moved to Klamath Falls, Oregon when he was 4. There he attended grade school and high school. He met his future wife Cindy, in junior college at Concordia, Portland. He attended Valparaiso University, Valparaiso, IN and Concordia Senior College, Ft. Wayne, IN and Concordia Seminary, St. Louis, MO, graduating in 1981. He and Cindy were married in 1978 at Christ the King in Bellevue, WA. He served his year of vicarage at Bethany Lutheran Church in Alexandria, VA. Cindy has worked the past 20 years as an Educational Therapist for Bellevue Christian School at their Mack Elementary campus in Woodinville, WA. |
They have four daughters: Natalie, who works at Crista Ministries in
North Seattle; Bethany, married to David Chhom and grandson Judah
live in Hayward, CA; Heidi, teaches in Eugene, OR; and Rachel, who
is in her 1st year teaching 4th grade at
Trinity Lutheran School in Bend, OR.
Pastor David has served congregations in Goleta, CA, Odessa and
Marlin, WA, and Seattle, WA.
He has also served as interim minister in Kenmore, WA and as
an intentional interim in Puyallup, WA, McMinnville, OR, McCall and
Cascade, ID and SeaTac, WA.
His great passion is to be used by the Lord to connect people with
Jesus in their day to day lives.
He loves sports of all kinds.
He enjoys spending time with family, hiking, biking and
walking with Oliver, the family 8-year-old Golden Retriever.
James Hing
Conductor,
Organist, Pianist, Singer. For over three decades Hing has led numerous
church music ministries, community choruses, & civic groups across
the United States, including his home state of Washington.
He is presently Music & Choir Director at Bethlehem Lutheran
Church, Renton Washington, and Director of the award-winning,
nationally-known, Starbucks Chorus.
The Starbucks
Chorus, an a cappella,
four-part harmony group, was founded during the 1996 holiday season
by Starbucks partners (employees) as a way to philanthropically
support the Seattle community. Today,
the Starbucks Chorus has grown to more than forty Starbucks partners
who share a passion for music.
It has raised over $470,000 benefitting thousands of low
income people ages 55 and older (over half of whom are homeless) &
people of all ages who face hunger in Seattle.
Under Hing’s leadership, the Starbucks Chorus achieved
several milestone events, including a special performance in 2012 on
ABC’s “Good Morning America”, and in 2013 on NBC’s “The Voice”.
Hing’s early training was as a classical pianist.
His music career began in 1982 at Sacred Heart Church, Tribes
Hill, New York, where at age 14, he became an organist!
In addition to his multi-denominational church
music ministry, Hing’s major music accomplishments include
performing Miss Behavin’
alongside Tony Award winner Nell Carter at the 20th Anniversary
celebration of the Turtle Creek Chorale in Dallas, Texas.
His international debut was in 2002 at the renowned Opera
House in Sydney, Australia, as part of the 600-voice International
Cultural Arts Festival Choir.
This was followed by a 2003 debut at Carnegie Hall in New
York as part of the Dallas based 225-voice men’s chorus, the Turtle
Creek Chorale. He has
since performed three times at Carnegie Hall.
Hing has recorded nine choral CD’s, including a 2013
recording of “Will The Circle
Be Unbroken,” which is available on iTunes.
His theatre credits include
Oliver Twist, Music Man, Sound
of Music, Showboat, and
Harvey.