Who We Are
Hope Center Tab
• ekklesia •
A body of faithful people, and the whole body of the faithful.
What to Expect
Tribe • /trīb/ • שֵׁבֶט
We are a creative community of believers, passionately in love with Jesus. We are committed to serving Him & each other by creating a community of love, sound biblical teaching, & discipleship. The goal? For each person to reach their maximum potential in Christ. We believe it is the job of the Church to promote Godly & revolutionary change in our neighborhoods, our schools, & our government.
SENIOR PASTORS
Mario & Leigh Gonzalez
Mario & Leigh González are the lead pastors and founders of Hope Center Tabernacle. Throughout nearly 30 years of ministry, they have fostered a tribe of believers that are passionate about Jesus and creative about how they communicate His love to their community. Mario and Leigh are committed to presenting the uncompromised Gospel without concern for political correctness, believing that the truth will provoke people to change.
In addition to pastoring, Mario is an attorney licensed in N.Y. and N.J. and a coffee aficionado known to say that he can exist solely on Jesus and coffee. He is a lover of classical, jazz and rock music, and is himself an accomplished musician (guitarist and bassist). Leigh, formally educated as an accountant, is an accomplished pianist and clarinetist. She heads up the church’s pivotal worship arts ministry, and is the President and CEO of Hope Center Arts, a premiere non-profit community arts center and academy servicing Hudson County and northern New Jersey’s children and families.
They have been married for over four decades and are the proud parents to two beautiful daughters, Stephanie Leigh and Sarah Elizabeth, and the new grandparents of one beautiful baby boy, Liam Jude Bolano Gonzalez. They also have two crazy cats, Shiloh and Sheila who are a virtual fountain of unending sermon illustrations.
Save the Lost, Heal the Saved,
Train the Healed, Send the Trained.
Pastoral Staff
Carlos López
Pastor, Gen. Spanish & Marriage Ministries
Sam López
Pastor, Gen. English & Student Ministries
Nelson & Karina Philip
Pastors, Campus Development, HTown Campus Pastors
Board
Leigh Piatt-Gonzalez
Senior Co-Pastor
Gloria Rivera-López
Elder
Jeanne Garroway
Elder
Renny Jagdeo
Pastor, Administration
Derek Stanton
Deacon
Suleiman Yahaya
Deacon
Our Beliefs
Hope Center Tabernacle is a group of like-minded believers passionately in love with Jesus and committed to serve Him and each other in a trusting, loving environment.