Our Past Ministers
We are interdenominational and use a cadre of ministers and lay preachers to provide the message to the faithful at Hedges Chapel. Some of our ministers have assumed interm preaching roles full-time for other congregations.
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Currently Reverends Cushwa, Gladwell, Manning and Yost are preaching full-time elsewhere.
Reverend John Cushwa
John W. Cushwa was born and raised in Berkeley County, West Virginia. He grew up on a dairy farm west of Martinsburg. After graduating from Shepherd College, he taught for one year in Pendleton County, West Virginia. In August of 1970 he married his wife Jeanie, who is now retired from teaching. In 1971 he returned to Berkeley County to become the band director at Hedgesville High School.
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After teaching for several years, John returned to manage the family farm and orchard. In 1982 he purchased the Martinsburg Printing Company, which he operated until 2002 when he entered Wesley Theological Seminary from which he graduated in May of 2005.
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In March of 2006 he was called to the historic Falling Waters Presbyterian Church, where he served as pastor retiring in September of 2013.
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John is Past Moderator of Shenandoah Presbytery and serves on several Presbytery Committees. John and Jeanie are the parents of three sons and ten grandchildren.
Reverend Penelope "Penny" Gladwell
Reverend Penelope "Penny" Gladwell was born and raised in Burlington County, New Jersey and began her faith journey in the Baptist church. While attending a Billy Graham crusade when she was 8 years old, she felt a clear call to follow Jesus and was baptized shortly thereafter.
In Pittsburgh, Penny attended the Baptist church where she met Dave Gladwell. After graduation from Chatham College, Penny and Dave were married and moved to Ashland KY where she taught 1st and 2nd grade in a four room rural school. When their daughter Jennifer was born in 1971, Penny no longer taught but volunteered in their local congregation (now United Methodist) and worked on a Masters Degree.
Over the next several decades Penny moved back to Pittsburgh where Dave had a new job and she found volunteer work in their church until she became convinced that women could be ministers and that she could go to seminary! Penny graduated from Pittsburgh Theological Seminary; received her Doctor of Ministry degree from Wesley Seminary; and, served churches in the Western Pennsylvania area. Penny accepted a conference staff position for the United Methodist Church in Binghamton NY while Dave continued to live and work in Pittsburgh until his retirement. Penny was offered a position with Chesapeake Consulting Company in Severna Park MD, where she led process improvement projects in non-profits, government agencies, and manufacturing companies across the U.S.
In 2006 Penny and Dave moved to The Woods and joined Hedges Chapel soon afterward. Penny and Dave both retired and enjoy opportunities to volunteer their time and talents here.
Reverend Ben "Chuck" Manning
Reverend Ben “Chuck” Manning has been a minister among Disciples of Christ churches for 50 years. 27 of those years were spent as a U.S. Army Chaplain serving in ministries around the world. He has served civilian pastorates in Kansas, Indiana, Illinois, New York, and Maryland.
In July 2007 Chuck retired from the full time ministry at Heritage Christian Church in Silver Spring, MD where he had spent 13 years. He now resides in a resort community accessible to Maryland, Northern Virginia and DC.
Chuck received his BA from Manhattan Christian College, M.Div from Christian Theological Seminary, Th.M from Princeton Theological Seminary and doctoral (D.Min. in Pastoral Counseling) studies at Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary. While an Army Chaplain, he taught seven years at the postgraduate level at the U.S. Army Chaplain Center and School -- courses in leadership and Ethics. He was considered the Chaplaincy’s subject matter expert in Ethics during this time. Reverend Manning received training in all areas of the Church's pastoral and administrative life. In addition he has been a Confinement Facility Chaplain and Family Life Chaplain and Hospital Chaplain.
Reverend Manning left retirement in 2008 to work as volunteer Chaplain for Hospice of the Eastern Panhandle, later did several Interim Ministries in Hyattstown and later Hagerstown, MD and eventually was called to a congregation in Martinsburg where he is serving full time as Senior Minister at Winchester Avenue Christian Church (Disciples of Christ).
Reverend Manning is married to Carolyn and they have five children and two grandchildren.
Reverend John R. Yost
John R. Yost has been a United Methodist pastor since his first appointment in 1982, retiring from active service in 2017. John has served six appointments in the Baltimore-Washington Conference, primarily in West Virginia. John is a second-career pastor, having first been a college Librarian and Instructor of Library Science, most recently at Shepherd College (now Shepherd University). John is a graduate of Wesley Theological Seminary in Washington, D.C., class of 1985.
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John grew up in West Virginia. He has lived in Berkeley Springs, Martinsburg, Fairmont, Lexington (Kentucky), Williamson, Turkey Creek (Kentucky), Naugatuck, Shenandoah Junction, and Hagerstown (Maryland). John has been married to Geneva (Napier) for 43 years. They have three beautiful daughters, nine grandchildren, and three strong sons-in-law. He has one sister, Mary Lynn Flenner, who resides near Martinsburg.
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The theme of John’s life has been God’s Grace, from early childhood to the present. Sometimes God’s Grace has been like a gentle yet powerful wind; sometimes a swift kick when he needed it.
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John is a T’ai chi chu’an practitioner, having taught classes since 2006. John is anticipating what God is calling him to do next, and how he should spend the remaining years of his life in this world.