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Rich Noble

Noble-Rich.jpg“The CCO got me thinking more deeply about connecting my faith to all areas of my life,” says Rich Noble. “These things were not just taught in the classroom; they were shown to me by example.”

As a freshman at Geneva College, it soon became clear to Rich that the CCO’s influence was everywhere on campus. His residence hall director was a CCO staff member, as were some of his professors. As an upperclassman, Rich served as a resident assistant and was mentored and supervised by CCO RDs. He participated in a weekly fellowship group, Bible studies, served as a mentor to younger students and attended the Jubilee conference. And through it all, the Christian faith he had been raised in matured and expanded in significant ways.

“The CCO’s ministry helped me to better integrate my faith into my learning experience,” Rich says. “I remember the concept being built into us as we read the book All of Life Redeemed, understanding that our relationship with Christ is a part of every aspect of life. It’s hard to distinguish what was more CCO and what was more Geneva—they were so aligned. That whole integration of faith and learning, faith and vocation, faith and life was something that CCO staff, and particularly Brad Frey, drilled in and helped me and countless others to understand. That call still rings out today on campus.”

Today, Rich counts his former mentor Brad Frey as a colleague, as he works at Geneva College as an adjunct faculty member. Besides teaching introduction to communications classes and bridge courses in Geneva’s degree completion program, Rich serves as Senior Pastor of Washington Union Alliance Church in New Castle, Pennsylvania, where he lives with his wife, Amy, and their four children. Their oldest daughter just completed her sophomore year at Geneva, and their second-born will be a freshman at Geneva in the fall.

For many reasons, Rich continues to be grateful for his own Geneva College undergraduate experience. “If I hadn’t gone to Geneva, my life would be extremely different,” he says. “I wouldn’t have met Amy, and if I didn’t have both Geneva and CCO voices in my life, I don’t think I would have been as prepared for life and ministry as I’ve experienced it.”

Rich approaches his work as a pastor and a professor with this foundation of an integrated Christian worldview. “This approach to ministry, whether doing it professionally or just living out life with your neighbors, was taught by word and by example. It’s how I share my faith: in words and actions, being intentional about building relationships with people, seeing that we’re all in the process of coming to know Christ, and recognizing that I’m not the one who does the converting and changes people. That’s God’s job.”

Rich approaches his pastoral work by seeking to understand both the church and community context. “I’ve been here almost three years now, and I want to do things with intent, with wisdom and vision from the Lord. As a resident of the community and as a church, we need to be relevant to the community. The church building offers a community center, allowing various groups to meet.”

And Rich continues to draw on what he learned about life and ministry when he was in college. “Little did I know at the time how much I would reflect on the things I gleaned inside and outside the classroom—experiences, hanging out with CCO staff—that have played out in current ministry experiences and discussions. That’s true on the pastoral side and in the classroom. I go back and pull out the same kinds of things I learned and pass them on to my students and church members. I see that as invaluable.”