NMEPC

Meet Our Leadership Team

Moderator: Mirna Wasef

Mirna Wasef is an Egyptian-American born in Alexandria, Egypt and raised in San Diego, Ca. She worships in a multicultural church in San Diego where she served as an elder and currently serves with her husband, George, as a musician in the Arabic Worship team. She is active in a grassroots mission that provides services to communities in the Middle East and North Africa. She is finishing her PhD in Middle East History at the University of California, San Diego where she explores gender, colonialism, nationalism, and transnational encounters in 20th century Egypt through the history of American Missionary girls’ schools.

Vice Moderator: Rev. Georges Bitar

The Rev. Georges Bitar, a fifth generation Presbyterian from Syria, is an ordained pastor in the Presbyterian Church (USA) having transferred into the denomination after fleeing Lebanon, where he was serving 2 congregations in North Lebanon. Georges is the Organizing pastor of Middle Eastern presbyterian Fellowship and part time congregational care pastor at Northminster Presbyterian Church, Tucson.

Treasurer: Rev. Nagy Ramzy Shaker Hanna

I was ordained a pastor at the evangelical church in Kom Baddaar in Sohag presbytery in upper Egypt on April 14th, 1994

 I continued to serve with my family in sohag until we immigrated to the United States in August of 2011. We settled in Milltown, NJ where we started an unofficial service at our home until we joined the Presbytery of Central Jersey in 2016. In September of 2017 the lord has blessed us and with the help of the presbytery we were able to have a place in Milltown where we started the Evangelical Arabic Church in Milltown.

Secretary: Silva Haroutiounian

My name is Silva Haroutiounian I live in Phoenix-AZ with my husband Rev. Estawri and two daughters Gloria and Grace. I am a graduate of Near East school of Theology (NEST) with Bachelor of Theology in Christian Education. I serve in the Evangelical Arabic church of Phoenix as a Sunday school and women’s ministry director. Also, I’m an inquirer at PC(USA). As a profession I work at Dear Valley Unified School District.

Member: Lucy Janjigian

I am of Armenian heritage born in Jerusalem, Palestine. Attended Mission schools in Jerusalem and Beirut where I got my teacher training. BA from Heidelberg University, Tiffin OH, majored in Biology. MS from Emory University,Atlanta, GA - majored in Plant Ecology. Married to the late Edward Janjigian who was very active in the Presbyterian Church’s Jinishian Memorial Program.

Began painting career while a mother of three children. Paintings’ subjects are mostly Biblical and about Uprooted and Homelesshumanity. Have had professional DVDs made of four series of my paintings. All available on YouTube. Have had commissions and one person exhibitions in the USA and in France.

I am on the nominating committee of IPMN. I was on the board of NMEPC when it was first established and am on it now, and am on the board of PCAP. I was on the Church Wide coordinating team where I represented Middle East Women. I travelled with the PW Global Exchange Program in 2011 to India. Travelled with the Presbyterian Peacemaking to Madagascar in 2017 and in 2019 to Rwanda.

Member: Nada Hanna

Nada Hanna is a 22 year old Egyptian living in New Jersey. She grew up in Egypt in a Presbyterian family and has been a member of the Presbyterian church throughout her life.

She is currently a student majoring in psychology with minors in global and international studies and french. She serves in a new worshipping community Christ-centered around supporting, challenging and nurturing young people in North Jersey.