Thomas S. Warren II, known as “Sam,” was born in Jacksonville, Fla., in 1953. He is married to Michele Ann Kellogg of Rutland, VT. Sam & Shelly have two adult sons, Jared and Darrick. He completed a 17-year pastorate of the West Jacksonville Advent Christian Church in Jax, Fla., before accepting the position of Director of Nurture for the Advent Christian General Conference in Charlotte, N.C in 2006. He has previously pastored churches in Oregon, Massachusetts and Connecticut. For a period of five years, Sam served as the Dean of Students for Berkshire Christian College in Lenox, Mass.

He is a graduate of Berkshire Christian College (1975) with a B.A. in Theology, a Masters of Divinity from Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary (1982), and a Doctorate of Ministry from Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary (1993). Sam has been active as a certified Sonlife trainer and in 2016 became certified to teach the 4 Chair Discipling Training Seminar. In 2014, Sam completed the Arrow Leadership program for advanced training in leading non-profit organizations (2013). He serves as an online trainer for the Great Commandment Network and facilitates the course, "Moving from an Institutional Church to a Missional Church.”  In 2024 Sam began serving as a Leadership Partner for the  Arrow Leadership organization which allows him to mentor two up and coming leaders.  In 2025, Sam was asked to participate in the program called Taste of Arrow, a program that seeks to introduce potential Arrow leaders in the ministry of Arrow Leadership.

Sam has written and published three books, “The Alexander Antidote: Turning Conflict into a Prescription of Wholeness for the Local Church” which has been updated and re-published with a workbook for church leaders and “Dead Men Talking: What Dying Teaches Us about Living,”  which teaches the basic elements of the Advent Christian distinctive doctrines.  Sam is an avid reader: loves to play golf, and his gifts include leadership, administration and teaching.  Sam published his third book in 2020 entitled, "A Motley Crew: How Jesus turned Ordinary Men into Dynamic Disciples.”  This book can serve as a great introduction to anyone, especially pastors and church leaders on how to begin a discipleship movement within their church He is available to teach and train on this very important topic.

In 2017, Dr. Warren founded a Christian non-profit ministry called Far More Consulting, Inc. for the purpose of Encouraging, Equipping and Resourcing local churches for Effective Ministry. In 2018, FMC entered into a partnership with the Florida Conference of Advent Christian churches to pursue this purpose. Presently, Dr, Warren serves as a consultant to the Advent Christian churches of the Florida Conference of Advent Christian churches and serves on their board,

Dr. Warren and his wife Shelly live in Jacksonville, FL and have been married for 47 years. They have two grown sons, Jared, a Philosophy professor at Stanford University and Darrick who works as a full-time roofer in Jacksonville, FL

Steve Evans has been serving the local church for many years. He was raised by a godly and gifted mother (Gaye Martin) who made a lasting impression on his life which is seen in the way he lives his life.

Perhaps this is the reason Steve is committed to the church. His love for it, extends beyond a beautiful building and the other things usually associated with a local church. His passion is seen in his service for many years as the chairman of the board for the West Jacksonville Advent Christian Church, at which time he continually urged the church to put their faith into action, especially in the community.

For years, Steve spearheaded the annual Back to School Bash, which connected to thousands of people within the church community. He and his wife, Jan Evans, (a Veterinarian) are committed to missions and leadership development in and outside of the church.

Steve, now retired,  has worked for Sprint Communications for years as a Senior Network Analyst and in recent years formed a business called Priced-Rite Services that he uses to provide for himself and serve others.

Paul Gibbs has been a long-time friend. He came to faith during my (Sam Warren) pastorate in Jacksonville, FL (West Jax). Since that time, Paul has faithfully guided his family toward faith in Christ. He is married to Beth and has three children (Liza, Drew and Lillie).

For much of Paul's life, he has worked in the roofing and sheet metal industry. Presently, he works as the Vice President and part owner of Childers Roofing and Sheetmetal in Jacksonville, FL. and has 34 years of experience in the roofing industry.

His expertise lies in operation management and managing the field employees. His duties include estimating, quality control, personal supervision, and ensuring all projects meet company standards.

Paul has a deep commitment to the local church and has a desire to see it be healthy, both inside and outside of the church community. This means that he is interested in discipleship/disciple-making and outreach. In the past, he has served as an Elder for the West Jax Advent Christian Church. Presently, he lives in Fernandina Beach, FL and is involved in the men's ministry of the Celebration Church.

Phil Dougherty has been a resident of Jacksonville, FL for 45 years and came to know Jesus as his personal Lord and Savior in a foster home at the age of 12. He has been married to Sara (Sally) Dougherty for 25 years and has a teenage daughter named Georgia. He was an active member of the West Jacksonville Advent Christian Church for over 10 years where he served as a deacon and sang in the Praise team with his daughter. In 2018, he began attending Christ's Church in Mandarin, FL so his teenage daughter could attend Christ's Church Academy and his family could attend a church closer to their home. He continues to serve his local church where he now serves as a volunteer leader with high school youth.

Phil worked in retail management and retail sales in his early career and is currently employed as Senior Tax (business) analyst for the Internal Revenue Service where he has worked for 31 years.

He strives to live a godly life and lives by the belief that no matter a person's station in life, they have something to offer and we can always learn something if we love others, accept people for who they are and treat them with respect (Mark 12:30-31, & Matthew 7:1-2).