Leadership

Pastors David and Gretchen founded Gate Church eight years ago in Marana, Arizona.  Before church planting, David was the Business Director for the Assemblies of God in Arizona, helping pastors and churches around the state with their business needs. David also had a successful business career that took his family around the United States before being called into full-time ministry. Part of his business projects included running a $600 million bond program as the Financial Director for the Austin Independent School District, where they renovated 130 schools over five years. He also holds an MBA and was CFO for an international security company in New York City. Currently, Pastor David serves as chaplain for the Avra Valley Fire District and serves on the Marana School Board. Gretchen homeschooled the four Willard children through high school and is an integral part of the Gate leadership team. She enjoys teaching the Word of God behind the pulpit and in small groups. David and Gretchen have been married for 30 years and have four children that participate in church: Georgia, Savannah, Oran, and Truman. 

Pastor Jesse Morrison is the associate pastor at Gate Church, along with leading the youth/young adults ministries with his wife Savannah. Jesse has a passion for reaching younger generations with the gospel and loves to preach God’s truth. Jesse currently holds a Masters degree in organizational leadership from Crown College. In Jesse's free time, he loves to BBQ and get together with family and friends.

From a young age, Pastor Savannah has had a talent and passion for music.  She earned a vocal performance degree from Pima College and a music/business degree from Liberty University.  Savannah leads worship at Gate Church and is the youth/young adults' pastor with her husband Jesse Morrison. She also works as an orchestra and elementary music teacher in the Marana School District. In her spare time, she loves to try new recipes and do house projects.

Pastor Georgia Morrison has a heart for building relationships with people and helping them come to a deeper understanding of Scripture to realize their identity in Christ. Georgia graduated with her masters in International Community Development and loves to bring people together in every community she is a part of. At Gate Church, Georgia runs the behind-the-screens work, calendars, and anything organizational that needs to be done. In 2022, she and her husband Garrett welcomed their first baby named Gwaine into the family. For fun, Georgia and her family love to travel, play board games, read, be outdoors, and relax with their cats.

Kyle and Ashley Lutzelberger have both been involved in ministry for many years. Ashley was raised in the church and grew up teaching in the children’s ministry and singing on the worship team. Kyle, who has a background in all things technical, leads the Sunday morning and event tech teams and creates the graphics. Ashley is super excited to lead the children at Gate Church and God has given her a heart for showing kids what it looks like to love God. Kyle and Ashley, along with Kyle’s dad also own and manage a successful local asphalt maintenance business. Kyle enjoys woodworking in his free time, while Ashley enjoys all sorts of crafting. Together, they both enjoy spending time together going to museums and exploring new places!

Andy and Amber Riggs are the Team Leaders for Encouragers Nursery. They have been married for 25 years and have two sons, Andrew and Jason. Both Arizona natives, Andy and Amber moved to Tucson in 2018 and joined The Gate Church. Andy has been a corrosion technician for the past 14 years and currently works for Kinder Morgan Pipelines. A great outdoorsman, he loves to fish, hunt, camp, and target shoot. Amber teaches Drama and Biology for students at Encouragers Co-op, a group of 40 homeschool families. Amber also enjoys serving with the Drama ministry, combining her love for Jesus and her passion for theatre. Andy and Amber are dedicated to encouraging our parents to raise their children to know the love of Jesus, to have our team pray Bible verses over each child on Sunday, and to help each child build a foundation of biblical knowledge.