Dwayne Sommersell
Associate Pastor of Student Ministries
I was born in the Caribbean Island of Trinidad and moved to Brooklyn, NY at the age of 4. I grew up in a Christian home where every Sunday morning I went to church. At a young age I prayed to receive Jesus, but I prayed that prayer many times because I wasn’t sure if it was enough. I was trusting in the prayer rather in Jesus. As I grew older, my desire to learn God’s word grew. I was given various preaching and teaching opportunities in the church and I wanted to grow in my understanding of the Bible. After talking to my pastor, I decided to go to Bible College. It was there that God truly humbled me. In my years prior, I was longing for acceptance and approval from people. I wanted the spotlight. I would elevate myself above others so that I could feel better about myself. Through my professors, the study of the Word and other good Christian books, I began to realize that God saved me not because I was a good and moral person (because I’m not), but because he wanted to for his own glory. Jesus died to save me from my sin so that I can live for him.
In 2015, while I was still in Bible college, I was given an opportunity to do an internship at a church in Chicago. It was that summer that I met my beautiful wife Mariah and we got married in August of 2016. Through God’s providence and kindness I was offered a position to serve on staff at the same church as a pastoral resident in 2017 where my understanding of the local church really grew. God blessed Mariah and I with Jeremiah in June of 2017, Josiah in January of 2019 and Aliyah in August of 2020 and Joshua in April of 2022. I am grateful that God granted me this position here at ABC to serve the students and I am excited to see Christ being formed in them.
My family and I are thankful that we can be a part of ABC and enjoy living in Cedarburg. In our free time we love to laugh, watch movies and explore the neighborhood!