Greg Austen, DMin

President

A mission-driven executive leader with more than 35 years of experience, Greg is passionate about listening conversations, training and empowering fresh generations, and a compassionate and intellectually rigorous pro-life movement that is reconnected to character, civility, and the beauty of a holistic understanding of human life rooted in the Imago Dei.

Recently, and coinciding with his work as a church-planter for the Evangelical Presbyterian Church (EPC), Greg spent 6.5 years as Care Net’s Executive Director of Church Outreach and Engagement, providing leadership, messaging, and strategy for a national seven-member team that equipped pregnancy centers and churches to offer compassion, hope, and help to women and men facing pregnancy decisions. Serving in this role, he was the primary author and editor of Care Net’s main ministry resource for churches, Making Life Disciples 2.0, as well as numerous articles.

Prior to that, Greg served for 11 years at the National Fatherhood Initiative (NFI), where he was Senior Director of National Programming, leading a highly successful, multi-year initiative funded by the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA). (You can view some of the work associated with this project by watching the 8-minute inspiring story of Troy and Xavier Gaines here.)

Besides strengthening fathers and families, Greg also has a special heart for those who’ve been hurt by the church or are deconstructing their faith. He writes a regular blog at carpentertheologian.com and is the author of several books, including How I Became a Christian Despite the Church, Christian Nationalism: A Constructive Conversation, and Irreplaceable: Recovering God’s Heart for Dads.

A seasoned communicator, pastor, and community strategist who has worked with a variety of denominations, Greg is licensed Teaching Elder in the Evangelical Presbyterian Church and holds a Doctor of Ministry from Westminster Theological Seminary, a Master of Divinity from The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, a Bachelor of Science from Cairn University, and a certificate from Cornell University in Financial Sustainability for Nonprofits.

Greg lives in the Greater Philadelphia area with his wife, Pam, near their three children and eight grandchildren. His hobbies include walking, cycling, reading, writing, exploring new towns with Pam, their black lab, Domino, making playlists on Spotify, and scuba-diving.