Meet our Staff

Meet the dedicated members of our Staff at Desert Palms Church, PCA.  You are welcome to contact our pastor, elders, deacons or staff by calling our church office at 480-422-2499.

Kelley R. Hand
Senior Pastor

Pastor Kelley is a graduate of Southern Illinois University.  He completed his theological training at Covenant Theological Seminary and received the Master of Divinity degree.  While at CTS in St. Louis, he met Vicki and they married before their last year of seminary.  While in seminary Pastor Kelley completed two summer internships with an Orthodox Presbyterian Church congregation.  Before coming to Desert Palms Church he was Associate Pastor of Covenant Presbyterian Church in Little Rock, Arkansas.  Kelley and Vicki have two sons and a daughter.  As a family they were drawn to the West, and the Valley in particular, because of the many opportunities to be a part of the expansion of God's kingdom.  The Hands enjoy the outdoors and regularly explore the many hiking trails that Arizona has to offer. 

David Farbishel
Teaching Associate

David Farbishel is a graduate of Pennsylvania State University where he received his Bachelor of Science degree in Civil Engineering.  After working a number of years as a structural engineer in Pittsburgh and Chicago he attended Trinity Evangelical Divinity School and graduated in 1991 with a Master of Divinity degree.  He then was called to Texas where he served in the pastoral ministry for ten years.  Later in 2005 he completed his Doctor of Ministry degree from Covenant Theological Seminary.  David is the headmaster at Providence Classical School in Mesa.

Dave Lambert
Ruling Elder

Dave was born and raised in Cincinnati, Ohio.  He attended the University of Cincinnati completing a Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering.  Moving to Chandler, Arizona to pursue a career in manufacturing integrated circuits, he met his wife Carol and they were married in 1982.  Having grown up in a Presbyterian Church, Dave joined Desert Palms Church, PCA in 1995, is a member of Session and is currently serving along with his wife Carol, on the Board of the Center for Arizona Policy (CAP).

Ken Kaye
Ruling Elder

Ken was born and raised in New Bedford, Massachusetts and attended the University of Massachusetts where he was involved with the Navigator Ministry on campus.  He graduated in 1980 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Mechanical Eengineering.  Having met his wife Kathy in 1983 during a Navigator training program, they married in 1984 and now enjoy their six children.  Ken moved to Arizona in 1999 and began serving as an Elder at Desert Palms Church in 2000.

Gene Lee
Ruling Elder

Gene Lee was born and raised in West Des Moines, Iowa.  He holds a BA in Religion from the University of Iowa, a BS in Metallurgy from Iowa State and attended Princeton Theological Seminary.  Gene has been blissfully wedded to Mary since 1988 and they have two girls together.  While living in Connecticut, they joined the PCA in 2002.  Gene became a member of the Desert Palms Session in 2009.

Mike Finley
Ruling Elder

Mike grew up in Marysville, California and went to school at UC Berkeley where he graduated with a BS in Chemical Engineering in 1980.  After graduation he came to Chandler to work for the Intel Corporation.  He is currently the Factory Manager for Microchip Technology's Tempe fabrication facility.  He and his wife Jacqueline have three daughters, Morgan, Emma and Molly.

Peter Kaal
Deacon - Mercy & Missions Ministries

Peter was born in Pretoria, South Africa.  Due to his excelling in athletics in high school, he received a full scholarship to attend Oklahoma State University and so came to the USA in 1968 where he graduated with a BS in Marketing and MS in PE.  He met his wife Julie, married in 1981 and they have three sons, JP, Michael and Matthew.  They moved to Arizona in 1996 and joined DPC that year.  Peter now works at BE Aerospace in Tempe.

Jesse Galloway
Deacon - Building Ministry

Jesse has been a Deacon at DPC since 2006.  He is actively involved in the educational programs and has taught Sunday School for elementary, junior and senior high students.  He is currently the facility deacon responsible for the upkeep and additions to our facility.  His interests include biblical archeology and creation research.  In his spare time, Jesse enjoys hiking with his wife Tina and three children.

Rob Hood
Deacon

Rob grew up in Montgomery, Alabama, and after attending Auburn University joined the U.S. Navy's Submarine Force.  After retiring from the U.S. Navy in 2006, Rob and his wife Wendy, moved to Chandler where he works for a local defense contractor.  An avid automobile enthusiast, he also enjoys playing golf, traveling, and staying in the Word.

Bill Lambert
Deacon

Bill Lambert was born and raised in Chandler, Arizona, where he started attending DPC with his family in 1996.  Bill studied Electrical Engineering at Rochester Institute of Technology, where he met his wife Elizabeth, and later Arizona State University, where he received his PhD in 2008. He currently lives and works in Chandler with his wife Elizabeth and two daughters.

Denise Sutherland
Church Office Administrator

Denise was born in Ontario, Canada and grew up in Tucson, Arizona.  She attended the University of Arizona where she received a BA in Elementary Education and an MA in Library Science.  She taught elementary school for 8 years before she and her husband, David, began raising their family of two children.  Her hobbies include scrapbooking, card making and children's literature.

Curtis & Darlene Hoekstra
Custodial Team

One of the best custodial teams in Chandler, Curt and Darlene put in a team effort to help keep the DPC facility, both inside and outside, in top form.  Curtis came to Arizona from North Dakota, and Darlene from Florida.  They both enjoy the fellowship, love and warmth of their DPC church family and we are very blessed to have such a great team working for the church.