Pastor Biographies
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The Rev. Gil Fauber

Gil makes his home in northern Kentucky with Brenda. They will celebrate their 40th wedding anniversary in 2008. Keli, their daughter, lives nearby with the beloved grandchildren.

Gil comes to us with deep experience in intentional interim ministry. Most recently, Gil served his seventh interim as the Interim Senior Pastor at Shadow Rock UCC in Phoenix, Arizona. He has also served as Interim Senior Pastor at UCC congregations in Crystal Lake, Illinois; Oberlin & Amherst, Ohio and Ralston, Nebraska in addition to being the Interim Conference Minister in Nebraska. Gil is currently President of the Association of United Church of Christ Interim Ministers. 

Coming originally from the Baptist tradition, Gil successfully served as Pastor of First Baptist Church in Fort Thomas, Kentucky for fifteen years.

Gil takes seriously both the study and practice of ministry. He holds a B.A. in Psychology, a Master of Divinity from Duke Divinity School with further study in theology and preaching, and a Doctor of Ministry from United Theological Seminary, Dayton, Ohio. His major area of study was Choice/Theory Reality Therapy and Theodicy (the attempt to justify the goodness of God in the face of manifold suffering present in the world). Gil also holds Advanced Certification in Mediation and has extensive experience in the field.

Quiet and unassuming are words Gil and others have used to describe his leadership style. Gil believes a congregation is a group of people with basic needs and his role is to help create the atmosphere where people meet their own needs. His preaching contains lots of content delivered in a conversational style. Gil likes to incorporate drama and the arts in worship. He anticipates working closely with our Pilgrim staff to support them in carrying out their ministries. Gil also looks forward to assisting us in completing the Five Developmental Tasks of the interim period.

 The Rev. Patrick Nicolino

Patrick started at Pilgrim as the Deaconess Foundation Urban Ministry Intern, and he is now the Pastor for Outreach and Diversity. Patrick is a life long resident of Northeastern Ohio and comes to the UCC from the Roman Catholic tradition. He was ordained a Catholic Priest in 1983 and served the Cleveland Diocese until 1989. Patrick has Bachelor of Arts degrees in History and Philosophy from the University of Akron, and a Master's in Divinity from St. Mary’s Seminary as well as an M.A. in Counseling from John Carroll University. He has completed all but his dissertation for a Ph.D. in Psychology. Over the past seventeen years Patrick has worked as the Clinical Coordinator for the Cuyahoga County Victim Assistance program. He is also an adjunct faculty member at John Carroll University, teaching such classes as social justice, cultural diversity, and victimology.

Patrick is also active in the Western Reserve Association Lay School. He is the Dean of the Lay school and teaches the New Testament class for the Lay school. Patrick has deep convictions to the Social Gospel and the ongoing struggles of the marginalized. Patrick had his standing transferred to the UCC and has Privilege of Call with the UCC. Patrick is completely blind, having lost his sight at age eighteen to congenital glaucoma. He sees his blindness as a gift and believes that his heart sees what his eyes can not. Patrick is available for pastoral counseling and crisis intervention services. Patrick resides in Ohio City with his partner and their four children.

The Rev. Tricia Gilbert

Tricia Gilbert, our Associate Pastor, grew up in York, Pennsylvania.

She is a graduate of Luther Seminary in St. Paul, Minnesota. She was ordained into the Lutheran Church (ELCA) in 1995. Following seminary she served a 3 point parish in Minnesota and also served in the Minnesota National Guard as a Chaplain. She then entered Active Duty in the U.S. Army serving at Aberdeen Proving Ground in Maryland. Upon completion of her military service she entered into a Clinical Pastoral Education Residency at Florida Hospital and served as a Hospital Chaplain in a Brain Injury Rehabilitation Center. She is currently a Hospice Chaplain at In-House Hospice Solutions. Tricia transferred her standing from the Lutheran church to the UCC in 2006 and holds Privilege of Call Status within the UCC. She is also a Licensed Massage Therapist, believing in the strong connection between Mind, Body and Spirit.

Tricia resides in Lakewood with her partner, Barb and their cat Gizmo.

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