WHO WE ARE
We know that the journey with God is an adventure that never ends.
Come join the journey with us!
Come join the journey with us!
Who We Are
We know that the journey with God is an adventure that never ends.
Come join the journey with us!
Come join the journey with us!
Our Values
Welcoming
No matter who you are, where you come from, or where you are on your faith journey, you are welcome here. Everyone belongs; we strive to be inclusive.
Christ-Centered
We invite Christ’s love to transform us, our neighborhoods, and our world through worship and serving others.
Safe
Physical, emotional, and spiritual well-being are nurtured and protected.
Grace-Filled
We find our identity in Christ and work to remove the barriers that separate us from one another.
Vibrant
Hope, compassion, encouragement, generosity, service, and fun are marks of our life together.
Relevant
The gospel engages with our current culture and guides our actions in our families, workplaces, and communities.
Our Mission
To connect people with God, build relationships, and together serve the community and the world.
What We Believe
Who is God?
- God is love, and that God loves all people unconditionally.
- The Bible is God's word to us and provides answers for all the challenges of our lives.
- God's love is revealed to us in the life and death, and resurrection of Jesus.
- The teachings of Jesus are timeless; that means that they are relevant for all people, at all times, and in all circumstances.
Who are humans?
- We are all one people of God.
- Each person is wonderfully and perfectly made in the image of God and, because of this, is intimately known by God.
- Each person falls short of living the life God intends us to live.
- Jesus offers his love and grace and invites us to be forgiven, transformed and renewed.
- Each person is called to love our neighbors as ourselves.
Who are we?
- We are called, as individuals and as a church, to respond with joy to God’s love for us.
- Growing in our faith helps us address the challenges we face in our families, our relationships, our work, and in our broader social context.
- We are guided by the Holy Spirit as we serve others and seek healing of our relationships with God and with humanity.
- We are called to be faithful allies to those affected by social inequities, injustice and exclusion.
Past + Present
Founded in 1926, burlpres (First Presbyterian Church of Burlingame) is a Christ-centered, Bible-based Presbyterian church that loves God and people everywhere. We are a member of The Presbytery of San Francisco, which has over 50 churches across the San Francisco bay area.
burlpres Leaders
Rev. Dr. Graham Baird
Lead Pastor
About Rev. Dr. Graham Baird
Graham is passionate about helping people who do not know God, to become connected with God. He finds joy in helping people understand that Christianity isn’t a perfect faith system, and certainly Christians aren’t perfect people, but that through Christ, we can all be made perfect. Graham believes in the importance of creating worship experiences that help connect people with God, and that our hearts are vessels which constantly need nourishment. Graham has a musical background himself and you’ll frequently find him sitting down at the piano or singing a song during a Sunday service.
2020 marked his 20th year as an ordained Presbyterian minister, and also his 20-year anniversary with his wife Star. He says he married his wife and the church in the same year! Earlier in Graham’s life journey, he wasn’t sure he wanted to follow in the family tradition (he’s a 4th generation pastor), but God had a plan. He got started in ministry as a professor of religion at a small boarding school in central Utah (Wasatch Academy). There, he learned that he loved teaching people about God, and that kicked off his journey to becoming a pastor. Graham has started three new churches in his career, the most successful of these was Highlands Church in Paso Robles. He also served as Lead Pastor at First Presbyterian Church in Colorado Springs.
Graham’s role as Dad to his three wonderful kids, Haley, Sheena and Ewan, is the most rewarding, important and challenging current role in his life. When he’s not at burlpres, you can find him working as “horse lesson chauffeur, laundry folder, dance lesson picker-upper, and lego builder.” But when he has time, he also enjoys playing the bagpipes, singing, playing piano, reading, and doing home improvement work on his 100 year old house!
Contact Graham at gbaird@burlpres.org.
2020 marked his 20th year as an ordained Presbyterian minister, and also his 20-year anniversary with his wife Star. He says he married his wife and the church in the same year! Earlier in Graham’s life journey, he wasn’t sure he wanted to follow in the family tradition (he’s a 4th generation pastor), but God had a plan. He got started in ministry as a professor of religion at a small boarding school in central Utah (Wasatch Academy). There, he learned that he loved teaching people about God, and that kicked off his journey to becoming a pastor. Graham has started three new churches in his career, the most successful of these was Highlands Church in Paso Robles. He also served as Lead Pastor at First Presbyterian Church in Colorado Springs.
Graham’s role as Dad to his three wonderful kids, Haley, Sheena and Ewan, is the most rewarding, important and challenging current role in his life. When he’s not at burlpres, you can find him working as “horse lesson chauffeur, laundry folder, dance lesson picker-upper, and lego builder.” But when he has time, he also enjoys playing the bagpipes, singing, playing piano, reading, and doing home improvement work on his 100 year old house!
Contact Graham at gbaird@burlpres.org.
Rev. Jane Doty Mackenzie
Associate Pastor of Community Care
About Rev. Jane Doty Mackenzie
Jane is passionate about caring for individuals during times of crisis, loss, or major life transitions. As a pastor, chaplain and spiritual director, she seeks to create invitational spaces for others so they can hear God’s voice in the midst of these wilderness experiences. Jane retired early from a full career in business when she discerned a call to ministry. One of the unintended gifts of attending seminary at a later stage in life was getting to hang out and learn from the next generation. Jane joined the staff at burlpres in 2019. She enjoys running, hiking, and long bike rides through the California hills and backroads with her husband and two daughters (whenever they are free to come along).
Contact Jane at jmackenzie@burlpres.org.
Contact Jane at jmackenzie@burlpres.org.
Rev. Dr. Elizabeth Frykberg
Associate Pastor - Adults + Families
About Rev. Dr. Elizabeth Frykberg
Ordained in 1977, before most of the world knew women could be ministers, Beth has served as a pastor here at burlpres and previously Westminster Presbyterian Church in Pasadena, CA. She holds a B.A. in physics from UC Davis, an M.Div. from Fuller Theological Seminary, and a Th.M and Ph.D. from Princeton Theological Seminary. In 2016 she published a book called "The Jesus Fractal," where she wrote about the genius of divine creation, human community, and a strategy for progress in personal character. Beth is passionate about sharing God’s love with every person she meets and feels called to create community experiences that help others encounter God’s unconditional and never ending love.
Contact Beth at bfrykberg@burlpres.org.
Contact Beth at bfrykberg@burlpres.org.
Rev. Cynthia Purvis
NextGen Pastor
About Cynthia Purvis
Cynthia is passionate about empowering students to live out their faith with integrity and love for others. As a youth pastor, she has over ten years of experience developing programs and strategies for children, youth and young adults to engage in worship, Bible study, and missional service. Her goal for ministry is to develop resilient disciples of Christ. Cynthia firmly believes we are all being formed and re-formed by things in our lives.
To help students in their formation as Christ followers, Cynthia focuses on three key areas of development: identity, belonging, and service. With these three areas in mind, she cultivates an atmosphere within our program that reminds students who they belong to, where they belong, and what they were created for.
In her free time, she loves taking her nephew and niece to the zoo to see the hippos. On a Saturday afternoon, you can find her hiking the beautiful trails around town and satisfying her sweet tooth with plenty of baked goods. Cynthia loves to play board and card games and is always down to teach others how to play games.
To help students in their formation as Christ followers, Cynthia focuses on three key areas of development: identity, belonging, and service. With these three areas in mind, she cultivates an atmosphere within our program that reminds students who they belong to, where they belong, and what they were created for.
In her free time, she loves taking her nephew and niece to the zoo to see the hippos. On a Saturday afternoon, you can find her hiking the beautiful trails around town and satisfying her sweet tooth with plenty of baked goods. Cynthia loves to play board and card games and is always down to teach others how to play games.
Stephen Koh
Commissioned Lay Pastor
Mandarin-Taiwanese Congregation
About Stephen Koh
Stephen is passionate about helping people in our Chinese communities come to Christ through preaching, teaching, music and developing new worship groups. Stephen joined burlpres in 2014 as an elder and music director of the Mandarin Taiwanese Ministry and then became a Commissioned Lay Pastor in 2018. Stephen also leads activities for PC(USA) related to ethnic churches, serves on the San Francisco Presbytery NWC committee, is Moderator of the National Chinese Presbyterian Caucus, and serves as Treasurer for the National Asian Presbyterian Caucus. In his spare time, he enjoys traveling, reading and music, especially going to concert halls, museums and galleries. He’s a dedicated fan of the San Francisco Giants and Golden State Warriors, and enjoys many of these activities with his loving wife Amelia. His twin daughters and two grandchildren live in Redondo Beach.
Contact Stephen at skoh@burlpres.org.
Contact Stephen at skoh@burlpres.org.
Dr. Deborah Concklin
Commissioned Lay Pastor
About Dr. Deborah Concklin
Deb is passionate about discovering ways for people to live out the Christian faith in church, family, and community. She first came to know Christ at a Billy Graham Crusade at the age of 13, but it was later in her mid 20s when she heard her primary calling and she started getting involved in mission work and caring ministries. In her career with Pan Am, she was able to work with foreign missionaries, orphanages, and hospitals throughout the world, primarily in Brazil, Guatemala, and Hong Kong. After retiring, mission and outreach became her focus in church ministry. She served as Elder of Mission with burlpres and began two separate church homeless shelters (one homegrown and one operated through the Home and Hope program). She was also involved in outreach to Cameroon, Africa, which became the Orphan Compassion program, and created a weekly faith study program called Women Together. She enjoyed attending seminary, and holds both Master of Arts in Teaching and Master of Divinity degrees. When she’s not at burlpres, she enjoys reading, traveling, cooking, hiking, skiing, and spending time with her family.
Contact Deb at dconcklin@burlpres.org.
Contact Deb at dconcklin@burlpres.org.
Steven Hall
Worship Arts Director
About Steven Hall
Steven enjoys connecting with people on a spiritual level through music and the arts. His life motto is aligned with Micah 6:8 which includes “to act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.” Steven grew up in the church and his entire family is made up of singers and musicians. Steven sings and plays guitar, percussion and keyboard and has been involved in music ministry for over 13 years, including being Director of Contemporary Arts at Pleasant Grove UMC and Assistant Worship Leader at FPC Winston-Salem. Steven has also directed music for many church conferences, retreats and camps across the US. When Steven is not at church doing music, he enjoys traveling, enjoying the outdoors with his dog (Sprout) and partner (Jess), as well as cycling and throwing a frisbee (but not at the same time!).
Contact Steven at shall@burlpres.org.
Contact Steven at shall@burlpres.org.
Carolyn Richardson
Finance Manager
About Carolyn Richardson
Carolyn is passionate about helping others and serving those in the community. Numbers have always come naturally for her, and as such, she has been called to use her accounting skills throughout her entire career. Involved in ministry for over 20 years, Carolyn seeks to bring a personal touch to the world of numbers. Landing at burlpres and being involved in the community has been a blessing allowing her to integrate her values of integrity, customer service and a commitment to others. In her free time, she loves nothing more than gathering family and friends around the table. Combining purpose and passion for serving others is the secret ingredient in the recipe for being a vessel for God’s use.
Contact Carolyn at crichardson@burlpres.org.
Contact Carolyn at crichardson@burlpres.org.
Astrid Barrientos
NextGen Associate
About Astrid Barrientos
Astrid is excited to provide a fun, safe and enriching environment and witness each child's growth. She feels passionate about creating a space where children can sense the presence of God, in an environment that is fun, safe, and loving for them to build a relationship with God as well as lasting friendships. She finds joy when she talks with children and learns about their daily discoveries and concerns about life and their understanding of God.
Astrid believes in nurturing, creating, showing kindness toward each other and appreciating the world that God creating for his children. She has a BA in Legal Studies and graduated from San Francisco State as an Interpreter. Prior to her calling to work with children, she worked for the California Supreme Court in San Francisco as a paralegal and has served as an Interpreter in court trials.
Astrid truly believes that service is a privilege, and she enjoys serving her community as well as traveling to other countries in missions as an interpreter.
Lupe Rodriguez Office and Human Resources Coordinator
About Lupe Rodriguez
Lupe keeps everyone informed and organized at burlpres. She has four adult children and is blessed with 11 grandchildren! Prior to working at burlpres, she worked as an office manager with another church. She is passionate about teaching children and has 28 years of experience in children’s ministry. Prior to her church-oriented work, she had a 30+ year career in the corporate world with a financial institution in the area of Government, Education & Nonprofit. She believes that the skills and experience she developed in the corporate world have helped her serve God and the church in many ways.
Contact Lupe at lrodriguez@burlpres.org.
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Contact Lupe at lrodriguez@burlpres.org.
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Danny Navarrete-Estassi
Associate Director of Classic Worship (Chancel Choir)
About Danny Navarrete-Estassi
Danny is passionate about music and its power to deliver the beautiful message of God’s word. He is currently pursuing his Bachelor’s Degree in Music Education at san Jose State University where he is one of the conductors of the award winning SJSU Opera Theater and leads the Tenor Bass a cappella group, “Pitch Please.” In addition to conducting, Danny is an active soloist and performer in various musical theater and opera productions. He has performed as the Judge from Sweeney Todd and scenes from Le Nozze di Figaro as Figaro, from Don Giovanni as Leporello and from Cosi fan tutte as Don Alfonso. He is committed to facilitating faith, love, and understanding of God and those around us through music. When he is not doing music, he enjoys playing with his dog, Luke, hanging out with his younger brother, Alexander, and playing card and board games with his family. Danny also enjoys exploring cultures through language and of course food.
Casey Fowler
Technical Director
About Casey Fowler
Casey is passionate about building volunteer teams and using technology as a tool to help others on their faith journey. Casey grew up in the church and comes from a musical family He has been involved in ministry for the last 13 years, previously at Menlo Church, and Congregational Church of San Mateo. When Casey is not at church, he enjoys going to concerts and sporting events.
Contact Casey at cfowler@burlpres.org.
Peter Bassford
Organist
About Peter Bassford
Throughout my life music and church were always connected. I have spent the better part of the past six decades doing music in churches. Growing up I started at age 6 singing in the "Cherub Choir", then taking piano lessons along with starting clarinet through the public school music program. After college, I worked full-time for Bank of America while pursuing music in my free time. I was always some kind of church musician whether as a pianist, choir director, organist, singer or handbell ringer and I joined the American Guild of Organists. I can't remember a time when I wasn't doing music for a church. But along with church, I was also involved in Community Theater directing amateur productions of Broadway Musicals (Showboat, Oliver, Anything Goes, Brigadoon, Guys and Dolls) and many others. After my time with Bank of America, I started accompanying the elementary choirs in the Burlingame schools. I got my teaching credential and taught elementary instrumental and choral music in the Burlingame School Disctict for nearly twenty years. While working on my credential, I was on the substitute organ circuit for several years having the opportunity to play many of the finest organs in churches on the peninsula. Since 2007, I have been the organist and occasional interim choir director here at First Presbyterian Church of Burlingame. I have Bachelor degrees in Music Education and Piano Performance from San Francisco State University. Since 2007, I have been the organist at First Presbyterian Church of Burlingame and I'm also an accompanist for the Ragazzi Boys Choir.
Contact Peter at pbassford@burlpres.org.
Contact Peter at pbassford@burlpres.org.
Onkar Sharma
Custodian
About Onkar Sharma
Onkar believes in spreading happiness to everyone he meets, and he’s met just about everyone in the burlpres community over the years since he started working here in 1998. Onkar is married to our wonderful facilities coordinator, Sonu, and for their family burlpres feels like a second home. Onkar loves fixing things and actively looks for anything at the church and at home that could use his magic touch. He also enjoys watching football and you can often find him in the garage working on cars (he loves fixing them too!).
Julie Corpuz
Preschool Director
About Julie Corpuz
Julie is passionate about creating an environment that is God-centered, fun, safe, and a loving place to build lasting friendships among children, parents, teachers and the church community. She finds joy when she talks to children and learns about their daily discoveries. She believes in nurturing creativity, showing kindness towards each other and appreciating the world that God created for His children.
She has 15 years of experience as a preschool educator and leader in early childhood education in Burlingame. Prior to finding her calling as an educator, she worked at SaRonix and Levi Strauss as a Technologist. She holds a Master’s in Business Administration from Golden Gate University. She joined the burlpres team in 2021. Julie looks forward to traveling more with her husband Vill and her three young adult children to other countries and cities within the United States. She enjoys visiting museums, creating watercolor paintings, watching plays and playing the piano. She plays tennis and walks by the beach to recharge.
Contact Julie jcorpuz@burlpres.org.
Contact Julie jcorpuz@burlpres.org.
Sonu Sharma
Facilities Supervisor and Services Coordinator
About Sonu Sharma
Sonu is passionate about helping people any way she can, all the time. Because of this, her service touches nearly all of our burlpres ministries in some way. Her life revolves around the church and she wouldn’t have it any other way. She has worked at burlpres since 2005, is married to our wonderful custodian, Onkar, and both of her children grew up in burlpres community. She enjoys cooking, both as part of her work at church, as well as exploring or creating new recipes at home. She also enjoys the outdoors, especially biking and hiking.
Contact Sonu at ssharma@burlpres.org.
Contact Sonu at ssharma@burlpres.org.