Here's some of the faces you'll see around the Bellevue First United Methodist Church community. If you have any questions, or would like to speak with a staff member or leader, please call the church office or send us an email!
Staff & Leaders
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Rev. Phil Antilla
Lead Pastor
Rev. Phil Antilla joined our church in the summer of 2017. Ordained in 2014, he previously served as the Lead Pastor for Ashland First UMC in Ashland, Oregon and as the Pastor for Young Adults at Church of the Resurrection in Kansas City. Phil has a B.A. in Christian Theology, a Master of Divinity, and a Graduate Certificate in Christian Spirituality. When he's not at church, you can find him watching soccer or basketball, in a local coffee shop reading poetry, or cooking up a mess in the kitchen.
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Director of catalyst Ministries
A lifelong Methodist, except for a brief teenage Presbyterian rebellion, Laurie has been on staff at Bellevue United since 2011. Before that she had a varied career as an ESL teacher and higher education administrator. When she's not at church you can find her hiking, behind a sewing machine, or travelling far and wide. Three awesome daughters and a wonderful husband, and dog Keeva, keep her busy, too!
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Aya Sato
Office ADMINISTRATOR
Thriving on checklists and planning, Aya enjoys having a diversity of tasks to work on throughout her day. Her prior experience has been in project management and customer relations management. Aya holds a BFA in Graphic Design and Multimedia and has been running her own photography and design business for the past 14 years. Aya loves looking at cat photos (she is allergic to real cats), coordinating the Seattle chapter for Progressive Asian American Christians, and planning her next trip.
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Abby duke eagleson
Worship Leader
Abby grew up here at Bellevue First UMC where she began leading worship at age 12. Since then she received her BFA in musical theatre and directing, performed in New York and Seattle, teaches acting/singing/piano lessons, and directs or music directs theatre. She went back to school to receive her BS and then Master's in Medical Speech Language Pathology. Abby loves to bring together all aspects of her life; using music, singing and theatre to connect God to our every day life and find ways to create communication for all. She believes in collaboration, empathy, asking questions, abstract discussions, and creative worship. Abby also loves learning, cooking for people with dietary restrictions, eating along the vegan to pescatarian spectrum, working in the wine industry, at-home yoga, laughing, and Harry Potter.
