We are delighted to Welcome our New Pastor April Sousa starting July 1, 2026.
(from Elk Grove United Methodist Church Website)
April Sousa started her pastoral ministry journey in 2015, saying yes to a nudge that had been present for a while. She started by becoming a Certified Lay Minister (CLM) and serving the Church of the Joyful Healer from 2016-2023, first as a CLM for four years, followed as a Licensed Local Pastor for 3 years. Pastor April attended Claremont School of Theology from August 2019 to December 2022 and graduated with a Master of Divinity degree in May 2023. In June of 2023, she was commissioned toward ordination in the United Methodist Church.
While at the Church of the Joyful Healer, she began the Saturday Gathering, an outreach ministry for the unhoused. As an advocate and ally, she walked with the Joyful Healer Church to become a reconciling ministry church in 2018.
In 2022, Pastor April served the California-Nevada Annual Conference as the Interim Associate Director of Certified Lay Ministry and Lay Church Planting. She continues to serve the Department of Leadership Development for the CA-NV Annual Conference as a member of the CLM Advisory Committee and the Lay Leadership Development Board. She fully believes that the laity is the lifeblood and future of the church, and chooses to invest her time in empowering and mentoring laity leaders.
Pastor April began her appointment with Elk Grove United Methodist Church on July 1, 2023. She and her spouse, Justin, have two adult children, Quinn and Xavier, and a menagerie of pets (as of her 2023 appointment, this includes 1 dog, 3 cats, and 2 bunnies).
We welcome and include everyone regardless of race, ethnicity, culture, age, economic status, disability, sexual orientation, or gender identity. Through our actions, we encourage the community to do the same. Our doors are open. Our love is unconditional.
We minister to the whole person to nurture a faith that works in real life through worship, education, fellowship, service, and justice. We walk with each other on our journeys with God and in following the way of Jesus.
We create a spirit of belonging through Christian care-giving, fellowship, and service. We foster collaboration both within our congregation and throughout our greater community.
We work, educate, and advocate for social justice locally and globally through our actions, prayers, and financial resources.
We use our time, labor, and other resources to respond to the needs of our local, national, and global communities. We encourage everyone to serve.