meet the staff

Joe Urcavich
Lead Pastor
Alignment, responsibility, tension, relationship. If you hang around Joe for any period of time, you’re bound to hear him use these words. Born and raised in Muskegon, Michigan, Joe worked in various fields (as a mason, teacher, basketball player/coach and a community leader) while pursuing his education. He’s a graduate of Tennessee Temple College, Multnomah Seminary and Oxford Graduate School. Prior to joining FHCC, Joe served as the senior pastor of Green Bay Community Church in Green Bay, Wisconsin, for 26 years. His reputation in the community brought unique opportunities his way over the years. Joe served as chaplain for the Green Bay Packers NFL team for nine seasons—a position that has opened some doors for him to work closely with chaplains in the U.S. military.

What does Joe do for fun? Golf, travel, read a good book and enjoy his friends and family. He has been married to his college sweetheart, Arlis, for 39 years. Joe’s son and daughter also live in the Memphis area with their spouses and children.

Allison Tubbs
Creative Arts Director
Allison has always been fascinated by communication and the way people receive messages. She was raised in Jackson, Tennessee and stayed close to home for her undergraduate studies, earning a BS in Speech Pathology from Jackson’s Lambuth University. For graduate school, Allison moved 78 miles west to complete her MS in the same field at the University of Memphis. This schooling supplemented Allison’s natural talents in a creative aspect of communication — music. Piano, songwriting and vocals. Expression through music is how Allison has shared her heart with Forest Hill and the greater Memphis community since 1999. Allison released her first CD, Stay in 2008 – her story about learning to wait for God’s timing in her life. Now Creative Arts Director at FHCC, Allison rounds out the management team with her eye for programming, her knack for administration and her ear for excellence.
 
Allison is married to Jeremy Tubbs, also an amazing musician and assistant professor in the Entertainment and Music Industry department at Lambuth University. They have a daughter, London, and a son, Liam.

Rayden Hollis
Community Life Director
Rayden Hollis jokingly refers to Dr. Pepper – his very favorite drink – as “holy water.” He also enjoys golfing, playing basketball and cheering on the Oklahoma State Cowboys. But if you spend just a few minutes with Rayden, you’ll quickly see what he’s most passionate about: loving God and loving people.

Rayden was born in Oklahoma. He attended Southwest Baptist University in Bolivar, Missouri, where he started as a business major and ended with a B.A. in religious education. While in college, he also met his wife Sarah. On the ninth time our relentless pastor asked Sarah out, she finally said yes, and they married 18 months later. While in Missouri, Rayden served as the pastor of youth and education at First Baptist Wentzville, then became the student pastor at First Baptist Arnold. Rayden came on staff at FHCC in 2005, just three weeks after his second child was born. Today, Rayden and Sarah have three children: Kaleb, Nathan and Aubri. Take a look at Rayden’s blog.


Nikki McVay
Community Life Director
Nikki McVay is committed to Forest Hill Community Church. After all, her family was among the first six who founded our church in 1996. An extreme Disney fan who visits Orlando every single year, Nikki also knows a thing or two about having fun. When you combine this love of church and fun with Nikki’s spirit, faith and passion, what you get is one unstoppable woman.

Nikki grew up in Memphis and married her high school sweetheart, Bryan. She earned her teaching degree in elementary education from The University of Memphis. Nikki and Bryan are the proud parents of two young boys, Jacob and Caden. Nikki originally intended to be a stay-at-home mom, but God had other plans. In 2004, He inspired Nikki to head up FHCC’s Kids’ Day Out (KDO) program. Under her leadership, KDO has flourished and hundreds of children have learned about the love of God. We expanded Nikki’s role in 2009 to director of community life.

Karen Tamer
Elementary Director
“I just love kids,” gushed Karen Tamer, when we asked why she took on the challenge of being our elementary director. They love her, too. Walk into the church and you’ll probably see a red streak fly by as Karen hurries to make sure our children are well taken care of. Whether it’s organizing the curriculum, bandaging a boo-boo or cutting out giant Astro turf crocodiles for Vacation Bible School, Karen does it all with excellence.

A New England native, Karen moved to Memphis as an adult to live closer to her sister. She worked as a KDO teacher for four years before being promoted to her current position. Karen and her husband, Christopher, have two children: Max and Abby. They also have two dogs, a cat and two sugar gliders. (What’s a sugar glider?) Christopher’s job requires extended international travel, so when he’s away, the family stays connected through Skype and Blackberry chat. Karen enjoys swimming, crafts, photography and playing video games with her kids.


Kimberly Higdon
Administrative Support
Talk to Kimberly for five minutes and you’ll feel like you’ve known her all of your life. Armed with lip liner, a fierce sense of humor, a can of corn (her favorite snack) and empathy for days, Kimberly brings personality and perspective to her position as Forest Hill’s administrative support person.

Kimberly’s childhood was spent in Mobile, Alabama and Denver, Colorado before her family settled in Memphis. For college, she headed north to Missouri’s Evangel University for a few years and then returned home to complete her education degree at The University of Memphis. Kimberly’s love for people and natural bent for logistics, communication and efficiency can be seen in every career decision she has made – from her time as a teacher in Memphis City Schools to her current work in our church office. Keep an eye out for Kimberly on Sunday mornings, when she puts her creative talents to use as a vocalist and actor in our Arts ministry.

Kimberly has been married to Cliff Higdon for 19 years. Together they have a beautiful teenage daughter, Caroline.

Lindsey Whaley
Kids Day Out Director
If you call Lindsey Whaley, chances are, you’ll hear the telltale sounds of a squirt bottle in the background. That’s because she’s a self-admitted clean freak. We love that about her. As the director of our Kids’ Day Out (KDO) program, Lindsey dishes out love, hugs and encouragement to the babies, preschoolers and teachers in her care, while also managing to keep things organized and sanitized.

Lindsey grew up in Collierville and attended The University of Memphis, where she majored in criminal justice and criminology. She married Richie in 2002, and they have two sons: Luke and Jackson. After three years as a KDO teacher, Lindsey was well-prepared to step in as the program’s director. What else does this active lady enjoy doing? Running, biking, sewing and going to the beach. She and Richie also lead a small group in their home for high school students. As Lindsey puts it, her ministry is with “the really little kids and the really big kids” at our church.


Terri O’Connor
Financial Administrator
When was the last time you ran 8 miles? Terri O’Connor, FHCC’s newest staff member, does this every morning. Running does more than prep Terri for an upcoming marathon – it epitomizes the way she drives strength and stability in every aspect of her life. Born and raised in Memphis, Terri graduated from Southwest Tennessee Community College with a degree in computer accounting. As the financial administrator at Forest Hill, Terri oversees payroll and ensures that FHCC is financially responsible. This money management is also a skill that she uses in her community service. Terri serves as president of the Collierville Education Foundation, a non-profit that distributes $50,000 in grants per year.

When Terri’s not deep in a spreadsheet or working out, she’s hanging out with her family. Terri and her husband of 19 years, Peter, both came to their marriage with children and refer to themselves as a Brady Bunch of sorts. Their blended family consists of Christopher (Peter’s son), Jennifer and Sarah (Terri’s daughters), a daughter they had together (Kristen) and four grandchildren.


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