Meet the team

They help put the Faith and Love into Action

Rev. Ken Timmerman

Pastor Ken, our Senior Minister, came to John Wesley UMC in July, 2020, marking his 38^th year serving churches in the SC Annual Conference. A native of Graniteville, SC, he graduated from the University of South Carolina. Prior to his current appointment, Ken was pastor of the Lexington United Methodist Church.

After getting his degree in history, he later graduated from Lutheran Seminary with an M.Div. John Wesley is his first church in the Charleston District. Over the years, he has served churches in Greeleyville and Lane, Fairfax, Gramling, Myrtle Beach, Greenwood, Cheraw and Lexington. He has one son who is a student at the College of Charleston. Pastor Ken’s interest include sports, golf and reading.

Margaret Downs

Margaret Downs, our Director of Music Ministries, is a native of Charleston. She graduated from Middleton High School in 1986 and then pursued a Bachelor of Music Education degree from Converse College in Spartanburg, South Carolina.

After earning a Bachelor of Music Education degree, Margaret returned to Charleston to teach chorus in the county school district for 8 years before joining the John Wesley team as organist and in 1993 she became Director of Music. Margaret directs the Chancel Choir, 4 handbell choirs, 2 youth choirs, and 3 children’s choirs in addition to the Ladies’, Men’s and Senior Adult Ensembles.

Margaret and her husband, John Upshaw Downs, Jr., have a son, Johnny, born in 1998, and a daughter, Charlotte, born in 2000.

Hope Murphy

Our Director of Children’s Ministries Hope Murphy is a lifelong Methodist, raised in Hampton, SC. Having graduated from College of Charleston with a BA in English, Hope taught in Charleston County Schools for ten years.

After several years of volunteering Hope joined the staff of John Wesley UMC in June of 2002 as Director of Children’s Ministries. Her duties include coordinating programs for children and integrating the children of the congregation into the body of Christ.

Hope and her husband, Michael, have two sons, Sam, born in 1997, and Andrew, born in 2000.

David Boudolf

Director of Youth Ministries David Boudolf grew up in John Wesley UMC. After graduating from Clemson University, David relocated to Atlanta as the Director of Activities Ministry. In 2002 David followed God’s call to St. Andrew By-The-Sea UMC on Hilton Head Island as Director of Youth and Relational Ministry.

In 2007 David joined the John Wesley UMC staff as Director of Youth Ministry. David and his wife, Christy, were married in 2000 and have a son, Noah, born in 2005, and a daughter, Molly, born in July of 2010.

Cindy Covington

Office Administrator Cindy Covington, who joined the staff in 2020, came to us from Atlanta, GA. She is the smiling face you will see upon entering our office suite. In addition to Cindy’s recent experience as an office administrator with a Presbyterian Church in Atlanta, she taught elementary school for 15 years in both Georgia and South Carolina.

Earlier in her career, she worked in a variety of office managerial jobs while following her husband around the world as he served in the U. S. Army. Cindy also had the experience of growing up as a preacher’s kid. She and her husband, Frank, moved to Charleston (Johns Island) in late 2018. They have two grown children — Chelsea and Logan — who have continued the military family tradition with their spouses. Since becoming “empty-nesters,” Cindy and Frank have adopted an adorable Boykin Spaniel named Max.

Dawn Ackerman

Dawn joined the staff at John Wesley UMC as Financial Administrator in the summer of 2024.

When asked where Dawn is from, she is likely to say South Carolina. She was born in Kinder, Louisiana, lived in multiple locations with her father’s Air Force career, spending her teenage & young adult years in South Carolina.

She found Charleston, SC, her “happy place” and calls Charleston home.

A NASA professional career took Dawn & her family to Texas and Florida where she lived and worked until recently returning to South Carolina. An invitation by a friend brought her to church at St. Andrew UMC in Titusville, FL where she attended and worked for many years within the Florida Methodist Conference.

She now happily works as our church Financial Administrator. Dawn loves spending time with her four grandchildren, being outdoors in her yard, reading, & traveling.

Missy Cario

Director of Christian Education Missy Cario, a lifelong member of John Wesley UMC, has spent her entire career in education.

A graduate of St. Andrew’s High School in Charleston, she completed a Bachelor of Arts in English from Winthrop University and a Masters in the Arts of Teaching from The Citadel.

During her 30 years of employment with Charleston County School District, Missy first taught high school English teacher and then served as a school district administrator. Upon retirement from Charleston County School District, Missy accepted the position with John Wesley UMC.

Missy attends John Wesley UMC with her sons, Gabriel Parrish and Caleb Parrish.

Shannon Carosone

Day School Director Shannon Carosone is always smiling as she greets parents and children at our Day School and in her role as Nursery Supervisor during worship services. She leads a team of teachers and helpers who love children believe in learning through play. She has served as Director of the Day School since August 2021. You can learn more about the Day School at their website.

Jocelyn Lawton

Jocelyn Lawton joined the John Wesley staff in 2019 and has tackled the tough job of keeping the church clean during the pandemic. “You’ve got to be careful in cleaning,” she says. She regularly puts on a backpack and sprayer to sanitize the classrooms, bathrooms and other areas, paying special attention to the places where children stay.

She grew up on a farm in Walterboro and attended a Baptist church where her grandfather was a deacon. Jocelyn also learned sign language from her mother, who is deaf. With two grown daughters and a third who is a student at Burke High School, Jocelyn stays busy. In addition to keeping things clean at John Wesley, she also works at Ashley Hall School where she has been a custodian for many years.

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Meet the Team