Leadership

Ryan Ahlgrim believes in the church. For all its flaws and foibles, the church is what provides us with a community of love, support, mutual discernment, and faith. Being a Christian is not something we do alone; it is what we do together: fostering healing for the world. For Ryan, no calling could be more meaningful or important than facilitating the wellbeing and mission of the church.

Ryan became the pastor of First Mennonite Church of Richmond on August 1, 2014.

He began his ministry straight out of college as a youth minister in his home congregation, Lombard Mennonite Church, near Chicago. While attending seminary in Elkhart, Indiana, he worked for two years as an assistant minister at Dunlap United Methodist Church. After graduating, he helped plant Peoria-North Mennonite Church in Illinois. Eleven years later, he became lead pastor of First Mennonite Church in Indianapolis, where he served for nineteen years and taught communication courses at Ivy Tech Community College before moving to Richmond, Virginia. In 2023 he became the Eastern District Minister of the Virginia Mennonite Conference, overseeing four other congregations.

Ryan holds a B.A. degree in English from Goshen College, an M.Div. degree from Anabaptist Mennonite Biblical Seminary (including a semester at Princeton Theological Seminary), and a D.Min. degree from McCormick Theological Seminary through the Association of Chicago Theological Schools Doctor of Ministry in Preaching Program.

Ryan has authored three books: Not as the Scribes: Jesus as a Model for Prophetic Preaching (Herald Press, 2002); Sick Religion or Healthy Faith? Beliefs and Practices for Healing Christian Communities (Wipf & Stock, 2016); and Spying on Jesus: A Novella (Resource Publications, 2025). He maintains a website of essays, stories, articles, videos, dramas and more at www.ryanahlgrim.com.

Ryan is married to Laurie (Silver) Ahlgrim, a retired school nurse. They have two grown children: Garrett and Savannah.

Pastor Ryan can be reached by email at:
pastor@firstmennonitechurch.org