The Iowa-Missouri Conference of Seventh-day Adventists Executive Committee has elected Pastor Jeffrey Fender as the conference’s new Youth Director. Fender, an ordained minister who has served as Camp Heritage Assistant Director since 2017, will oversee the conference’s summer camp programming and provide support to the area coordinators for Adventurer and Pathfinder club ministries.
“We are glad to welcome Jeff to our team and are excited about the vision and leadership he brings to this role,” said Melissa Morris, conference executive secretary. “I look forward to working together as he builds and ministers to the youth of our conference through our summer camp and club ministries.”
A Deep Connection to Camp Heritage
Fender brings nearly a decade of hands-on experience at Camp Heritage, where he has supported the Youth Director in ministering to camp staff and campers each summer. His connection to the camp runs even deeper — both he and his wife, Misty, attended Camp Heritage as campers and later chose to be married there. The couple has four children.
A Focus on Safety
Conference President Lee Rochholz expressed confidence in Fender’s ability to maintain the high safety standards that families expect. “It goes without saying that summer camp tends to carry the most risk for any conference,” Rochholz said. “Jeff has demonstrated, as assistant director, an emphasis on staff and camper safety. I believe he will continue to carry the torch that Camp Heritage is a safe place for parents to send children.”
Education and Ministry Experience
Beyond his camp ministry experience, Fender has served as a pastor in the Iowa-Missouri Conference since 2018 and was ordained in June 2023. He holds a Master of Pastoral Ministry from Andrews University, completed cum laude in 2023, and a bachelor’s degree in Information Technology Service Management from Missouri State University.
A Family Devoted to Youth Ministry
The Fenders have devoted their lives to youth ministry in the conference. Both are certified Pathfinder Master Guides, and together they have served with eight different Adventurer and Pathfinder clubs — five of which they started themselves.
Fender has served on the Conference Executive Committee since March 2022. Earlier in his ministry journey, he spent a year as a missionary volunteer in Palau, teaching elementary and junior high students through the Guam-Micronesia Mission.
