Pastor Janet Saddel
The Reverend Janet L. Saddel, Elder in the Eastern Pennsylvania Conference of the UMC, began her appointment at the Church of the Good Shepherd on July 1, 2021. We are very excited for Pastor Janet to lead our congregation and to see what the Lord has in store for COGS under her leadership.
Janet grew up in Blue Bell and was raised at Calvary UMC in Ambler, PA where she was very active in the church through choirs, serving on boards, leading the Sunday School worship, teaching the Senior High Sunday School and serving as the volunteer Youth Director for 11 years. With a BA in Philosophy from West Chester University, she worked as a full-charge bookkeeper for a paper company before receiving a call to serve as a missionary for one year to Novosibirsk in Siberia, Russia. While in Russia she recognized God’s call to fulltime ministry and entered seminary, obtaining a Master’s of Divinity degree. As a seminary student, she participated in a two-week mission project to Sombrerete, Mexico, and participated in a student trip to Israel and Palestine, with visits to refugee camps in Bethlehem and the Gaza Strip. Her mission service has also included ASP mission trips.
Her first appointment was as an Associate Pastor for two years in a large church in Springfield, PA. She was then appointed as the first full-time pastor of East Bangor UMC where she served for 8 years. Her next appointment was in Warrington PA as the Senior Pastor of St. Paul’s UMC, serving for 7 years. She was then to First UMC in Lancaster, PA, a large downtown church where she serves in partnership with the Lead Pastor.