Our Leaders - Wollongong Baptist Church

Rod Bayley

Senior Pastor and Multiplication Pastor

Rod is married to Christine and they have three children. He studied at Sydney Missionary and Bible College (SMBC) and Morling College, and has been at Wollongong Baptist Church since 2007. As Senior Pastor, Rod’s role is to provide leadership to the church and its eldership team as well overseer the multiplication pursuit. He likes playing tennis, cricket and soccer, and enjoys following the Sea Eagles in the NRL. However, he is more passionate about Christ-centred preaching and gospel-centred ministry, and the raising up of other gospel workers who share that passion.

Learn more about Rod in our “Meet the Leaders” blog series.

Mark Roberts

Worship and Service Pastor

Mark has been a pastor at Wollonngong Baptist Church since 2016. His role is to oversee the worship and service pursuits and their associated teams. He is married to Katherine and together they have two children. Mark studied at SMBC and Morling College before moving to Wollongong at the start of 2016. When he’s looking to relax, Mark loves a good exercise, a good coffee, or a good movie. Above all, Mark loves knowing that his sins have been washed away at the Cross, and he longs for others to know that freedom too.

Learn more about Mark in our “Meet the Leaders” blog series.

Ken Davies

Community Pastor

Ken joined Wollongong Baptist Church in 2019. His role is to oversee the community pursuit and associated teams.

Paul Chan

Chinese Pastor

Paul studied at Hong Kong Baptist Seminary and graduated with a Master in Divinity in 1985. He has been a Chinese church minister for about 25 years. Paul is challenging the Chinese congregation to follow Jesus Christ in a fellowship marked by love and respect for each other. He wants them to nurture and strengthen their Christian faith through prayer, bible study and worship, and to serve the community. Paul’s wife, Cheryl, works in the health sector and her interest is in design. Paul is very grateful for her wisdom and support of his ministry, and that she demonstrates kindness and support for all people.

Learn more about Paul in our “Meet the Leaders” blog series.

Heidi Wood

Ministry Intern

Heidi joined the team at WBC in January 2020 as a Ministry Intern, and has also continued her work part-time as a Physiotherapist at Wollongong Hospital. Heidi moved to Wollongong from Newcastle in 2017 and has been attending WBC since. This year Heidi has been focusing on evangelism, 1:1 discipleship and improving her ability to teach God’s Word to women – in particular through Home Group studies and speaking opportunities. A love for pulling apart God’s word with fellow Christians has led Heidi to prayerfully consider attending Bible College and pursuing full-time ministry after finishing her internship at WBC.

Grace Jones

Ministry Intern

Grace is married to Tim. They moved from Sydney to the Illawarra six years ago and have been coming along to WBC for the past 4 years. Grace’s background is in high school teaching, however she is considering moving into full time ministry. She enjoys theatre and writing and is exploring more of how the arts can be harnessed for the gospel. As an intern she has been working under the pursuit of ‘worship’ and has also enjoyed reading the Bible 1-1 with women at our church.

Hannah Kuschel

Office & Communications Coordinator

Hannah grew up in the Southern Highlands in a loving family of six. In 2009 she moved to Wollongong for university where she met her husband Ed at a WBC Home Group. In 2017 Hannah joined the staff team to coordinate our office volunteers and our church communications.

Learn more about Hannah in our “Meet the Leaders” blog series.