Our pastor was born in Warner Robins, Georgia. The family was transferred to West Lafayette, Indiana (age 1-3) and then to the Dayton, Ohio area when Fred was age 3. While growing up, he went to Beavercreek City Schools from Kindergarten through 12th grade. He also went to East Dayton Baptist Church, where at age 6 he was saved and later baptized. He sang in children’s choir and youth choir, going to music camp several years throughout this time.
Some interesting tidbits about our pastor include a couple of nicknames he has had. While playing pee-wee football, he earned the nickname “Big Bad Brown.” While playing 9th-grade baseball, he was nicknamed “Downtown Freddy Brown” (he was a hard-hitting batter to make up for his slow running!). Our pastor played the saxophone from 5th grade until 11th grade in the public schools. He also took photography classes in Junior High and High School. He still has a love for music and photography to this day.
Pastor Fred has been married to Rachel Gaby since 1989. Rachel teaches art and special education in local public schools. They have two children, Derrick and Beth. Derrick is in the Army, is married, and has two children. Beth is an art education major at Herron School of Art at IUPUI.
Our pastor has been with us since 2006. He is passionate about preaching and teaching God’s Word, encouraging us to live in and share Christ, and helping us to worship the Lord every day (not just on Sundays). He and his wife have served the Lord together in the ministry all of their married lives. Fred has been a youth minister, an associate pastor of music and youth, a mission pastor, and is now serving as our senior pastor.
His education includes K-12 at Beavercreek, a One Year Diploma from Word of Life Bible Institute, a Bachelor Degree in Business Administration from Cedarville College in Ohio, and a Master of Divinity from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, Texas. Pastor Fred appreciates these educational experiences but says that he has learned so much more from experience and being around the people in churches he has served.