Who We Are
We have an exceptional team of leaders and teachers
who are ready to invest in you.
David McNitzky
David became Senior Pastor of Manchaca UMC in June 2019. Prior to that he was Senior Pastor of Alamo Heights UMC for 24 years. He has also served pastorates in Boerne, Helotes and Los Fresnos. David loves to teach and preach from Scriptures for everyday life. Multiple trips to Israel have also encouraged him to try to understand better the Hebraic roots of Jesus. David wants to read the Bible the way Jesus would have read it. He is also interested in the art and practice of leadership. David sees his main mission in life as the development of leaders through teaching and mentoring so that they can discern and live out God’s call on their lives. To that end he mentors a number of pastors, though he learns more from them than they learn from him! He is excited about discovering the new places where God is taking the church. David is a graduate of Southwestern University and also has an M.Div from Duke University. He earned his doctorate from Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary in 1987.
David is married to Pam, who is a retired neonatal nurse practitioner. They are proud parents of three adult sons and even prouder grandparents of three grandchildren. David’s main passion outside of his family and the church is following Duke basketball.
Scott Heare
Scott Heare was the founder and visionary leader for Quarry Kingdom Development in 2014. He has served over the last 7 years as a part of the staff as well as served on the board. In this next season, Scott will serve as the Executive Director of QKD. He is a community builder as well as a catalyst for new ministry and mission.
Scott became Senior Pastor of Lake Travis United Methodist Church in 2018 and prior to that appointment served as Senior Pastor at Riverside Community Church in Bulverde, Texas.
Scott grew up in Austin, Texas, and felt the call to ministry while attending Concordia Lutheran University. He graduated from Perkins School of Theology, SMU in 1994, and entered into the Methodist itineracy as an ordained pastor. While at his first appointment, (Alamo Heights United Methodist Church, San Antonio) Scott was introduced to studying God’s word from a Hebraic perspective. After attending an Israel-in-Depth Study Tour, he returned with a passion for teaching God’s word in this context.
Through prayer, Scott, along with his wife, Cathi, and their 4 children, lived in Jerusalem where Scott studied at Jerusalem University College. Scott has been leading yearly trips to Israel ever since. This approach to understanding the Jewishness of Jesus and the first century church has transformed Scott’s ministry. His passion for God’s word and unapologetic belief that we are called to live out God’s commands in community are a central part of his leadership.
Scott and his wife, Cathi, have four children – Ryan, who started A&M in the fall of 2018, Emily, Ethan, and Kylen.
John Hinkebein
John served at Riverside Community Church since 2006. He has served in the student ministry, as the community pastor and now serves as the lead pastor. John is married to his wife Christi and they have two girls: Rhyan and Maggie. John’s sweet spot is neighborhood evangelism and discipleship.
Karen Horan
Rev. Karen Horan is currently the Director of Creating / Vitalizing Congregations and Developing Leaders of the Rio Texas Conference. Her work includes planting new congregations and Fresh Expressions of church, vitalizing existing congregations, developing lay and clergy leaders and oversight to campus ministries. Prior to this appointment, Karen was the founding pastor of Gruene UMC in New Braunfels, TX. She served there for the first 11 years of that plant and grew the congregation to over 700 in weekly attendance. She was a teacher prior to ministry and got to rekindle that love as an adjunct professor at Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary teaching New Church Development. Karen is married to her husband, Bill. They have two adult children and two grandsons.
Ray Altman
Ray has been a United Methodist Elder since 2008. He was appointed to build and nurture a multiplying network of neighborhood-based faith communities who live out transformational discipleship, tight-knit community, and risk-taking mission in Leander, TX. This initiative is called The New Wine Skin Initiative. Ray received his MDiv from Union Theological Seminary.
Linda Marceau
Linda has served in different areas of ministry for the last 20 years. She is currently an ordained pastor and serves at Riverside Community Church along with Quarry Kingdom Development. She is married to Randy and they have 3 children and 4 grandchildren.