Our Team
Rev. Dan Olson
Lead Pastor
Dan is responsible for the overall leadership of New Hope Church, teaching and shepherding. He has been in pastoral ministry since 1996 and has been following the Lord Jesus Christ for many years. He loves helping others understand the gospel and follow Jesus and get connected to the church.Dan and Kristen have lived in the Chicago land area and Long Island. They have a son, Gordon, and a daughter, Katherine. He serves as chaplain for the New Hyde Park Fire Department and enjoys hanging out with friends, shooting, reading all kinds of books, and sniffing out good restaurants.The Olsons moved to Long Island in November 2000 to serve in pastoral ministry. Before that, Dan provided leadership in the area of adult ministries for four years at a church in Wheaton, Illinois. Education: Bachelor of Arts in Sociology and Biblical Studies from Wheaton College (Illinois); Masters of Divinity from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School in Deerfield, Illinois.
Rev. John Amandola
Associate Pastor
John is a native Long Islander and has been married to Caryn since 1985. They have three adult boys. John has been a church planter and pastor for 25 years, as well as a ministry coach for the Missionary Church, working with a very diverse group of pastors of immigrant churches. Recently, John and Caryn launched No Harbor, a project in which they provide mentoring for “ex-vangelicals” to help them deconstruct their faith in a way that helps them to reconstruct a life-giving faith in Jesus. John also works as a construction project administrator. He holds an MDiv from Phoenix Seminary, and a Doctor of Ministry from Palmer Seminary in Philadelphia. He enjoys playing his guitar and reading seafaring novels; and together with Caryn, birdwatching, nature walks, and fine wine.
Karen Muntzenberger
Children's Ministries
Vacation Bible School
Karen has been involved in children’s ministry ever since she was in it as a kid! She has always had a passion to see children develop a lifelong relationship with Jesus and has worked in many capacities to help achieve that goal. Karen came to New Hope in 2015 to serve as Children’s Ministry Director. Before then she had always had a love and vested interest in New Hope as she has been friends with the Olson family since her oldest daughter was 6 months old at MOPS. She would help get their VBS programs started and VBS continues to be a passion for her as we have seen the program grow from 20 to over 70 kids last year. She is so happy that she and her family have joined New Hope and truly feel like they have found a spiritual family here. Karen has a BA in Early Childhood Education, an MS in Elementary Environmental Science and a Professional Certificate in School Administration and Supervision. She is currently also working as a PreK teacher in the NYC school system and is a trainer for Group Publishing.Karen is married to Mike and they have 3 children. When not volunteering at the church, the Muntzenberger family enjoys vacations, especially to Disney. You may also find her snuggling her 3 dogs or playing games with her kids.
Philip Alba
Elder
Phil is a natural-born leader whose love for Jesus is lived out in the real world. A friend of many, Phil relates well with people from various backgrounds. He is a head football coach, fueling his passion to develop young men on and off the football field. He enjoys coaching the game along with his son James. Phil owns a real estate firm where he helps families enjoy new beginnings. In ministry, Phil has served since his early 20s, beginning as a Sunday school teacher, a men's ministry leader, deacon, and now Elder. He has known and loved the Olson family for over 20 years. Married to his supportive wife Marianne for over 25 years, his daughter Leah, and Joe, the Albas share their gift of hospitality, and Phil's love of cooking.
Sarun Thomas
Elder
Sarun was born in India (family is from Kerala), grew up in Commack. Happily married to Rubeena since 2009, Sarun and Rubeena have 2 wonderful kids. Sarun Graduated from Muhlenberg college and eventually found himself back home in NY after lots of schooling and training. He enjoys walks, reading, wrestling with his son Caleb and staring at his daughter Esther, cooking, eating, and traveling to new places. He believes the church's role in bettering the community and that loving your neighbor is meant to be taken literally!
Robbie Prevete
Worship Team Music Leader
Robbie Prevete is a guitarist from Plainview, New York. He is graduate of Five Towns College where he is studying Jazz/Commercial music and audio. He started attending New Hope Church when Pastor Dan’s son Gordon Olsen asked him to play guitar at the church. He has been playing on the worship team ever since and is currently one of the worship leaders. He plays guitar and bass for local artists on Long Island. He also regularly performs with his band GYCO, a local fusion band.