Phil Thorne is our Lead Pastor. He is married to the former Amy Hanson of Owensburg, IN and they are the proud parents of two daughters and a son. Their oldest is Lindsey, a student at Purdue University, and their second child is Abby, a student at Indiana University. Their youngest son is Caleb, a student at Bedford-North Lawrence High School. The Thorne children are all involved in school activities and athletics.

The Thorne family is active in the Lawrence County community. Phil has served as a Chaplain for the Lawrence County Sheriffs Department since 1992 and both he and Amy serve on the board of the Marriage and Family Alliance of Lawrence County. Phil is a member of the Bedford-North Lawrence and the Mitchell Ministerial Associations.

Phil was born in September of 1965 in Bedford and was raised in a Christian home. He came to faith in Christ at the young age of eight and at the age of 17 felt the call of God on his life to enter the ministry. He began filling the pulpit of area churches when he was 18 and ultimately served on the staff of another church for over 20 years. In 2007, God led Phil and Amy to become church planters and on April 1, 2007 River’s Edge began having services. In 2008, Phil was named church planter of the year by the State Convention of Baptists in Indiana and in 2009 was certified as a presenter of Basic Training for Church Planters.

It is Phil’s passion to see River’s Edge fulfill the vision God has given this church. He is excited about seeing new believers come into the Kingdom as well as those who have drifted away to come back. He would like to invite you to be his guest and join River’s Edge in worship this week.

Zach was called to River’s Edge in 2010. He was raised in the Mitchell area and after graduating from Mitchell High School went on to study and graduate from Indiana Wesleyan University with a degree in Worship and Christian Ministries. He has served in various ministry capacities and brings a unique perspective to the staff of REFC. Zach has a real passion for worship and a burden for reaching students with the love of Christ and strives to display this not just in teaching but in his lifestyle as well. He relates great to teens and developes strong relationships with them enabling him to be able to minister in an extremely effective way.

In Aprill of 2011 Zach married Niki Haddix in Ohio. Niki is also an Indiana Wesleyan graduate and works with her husband in all aspects of the ministry. She has been a worship minister at a church in Ohio and was raised in a Pastor’s home. Niki has an awesome voice and is a very talented musician as well as being gifted in relating to teenage girls. We are fortunate to have Niki as a part of our team here at River’s Edge.