Meet Our Pastor

Our pastor, Neal Letteney, was born in Japan on a US Air Force Base and as a toddler, spent his daytime hours with a Japanese “Mama-san” who was his nanny in the fishing village outside of Fukuoka. That area has since become a thriving metropolitan area, and the former Itazuke Air Force Base was reborn as Fukuoka International Airport many years ago. When his family returned to the states, they settled in at Scott Air Force Base, across the Mississippi River from St. Louis at the time that the famous “Gateway Arch” was being built. Neal and his family were among the first visitors to ride the internal tram to the top of the arch.
Sadly, when Neal was still a small boy, his Father abandoned his family, leaving a wife and two young boys who would grow up without ever knowing their Dad. Their Mom was a Milwaukee native, and she took her small broken family back home to be near their few remaining relatives. And so Neal and his older brother Scott grew up in the suburbs of Milwaukee. It wasn’t until Neal was in his 30’s that he was finally able to re-establish contact with his Dad – and happily, he maintained a relationship with him until his death in 2001. Neal’s Mom had earlier succumbed to cancer in 1993.
A gifted musician, making music has always been one of Neal’s great passions. He took up the drums at the age of 8, followed by guitar at age 10 – fashioning his style after the great singer/songwriters of that era such as James Taylor, Neil Young and Jim Croce. Inspired, Neal pursued greater and greater musical accomplishment, adding multiple instruments to his “toolbox” along the way. While in school he won many awards for his skills, and eventually attended Butler University to study music. Early in his Freshman year, at the age of 18, he was honored to receive an invitation to join the Indianapolis Opera Company. Thereafter, his weekends were spent either performing professional opera or entertaining patrons in local restaurants and night clubs. Over his lifetime, Neal has been a part of many bands and performing groups, including the critically acclaimed professional Christian band, BlueGrace, which he and his wife Sherry joined in 2003. During their tenure with the band, BlueGrace was featured live in concert with Randy Travis and Josh Turner, among others. Neal and Sherry can be heard on BlueGrace’s third and fourth CDs – the last of which, “Sweet River,” features some of Neal’s original compositions.
Neal’s education includes a Bachelor of Business Administration and a Master of Divinity. His ministry positions have to date been bi-vocational, and his other field is the management of Financial Advisors. With 25 years experience in that field, Neal is a licensed insurance agent, a General Securities Representative, a Registered Investment Advisor, a Certified Senior Advisor, and is Certified in Long Term Care.
Neal has had a passion for ministry since the age of 19. He began as a worship leader – a natural fit for him – and continued by developing skills in preaching, teaching, counseling and evangelization. He has served in previous roles as Director of Music and Worship Arts and as Associate Pastor. With a strong heart for missions, Neal has been on numerous short-term mission trips to Central America, Spain and London (where there is an ongoing outreach among the growing Muslim community). One of his great experiences was to “get up on the ladder” at Speakers Corner in London’s Hyde Park for theological debate with Muslims.
Neal brings to New Day Church the desire to see the North American church walk out its mission in the world – to forsake the model of the “Christian Social Club” and to be about God’s work. He feels that our lives should be directed by the “Two Great Bookends” of the teachings which Jesus gave to us: the Great Commandment and the Great Commission. Toward that end, New Day Church strives to become an ever more intimate and committed family of believers, abounding in love toward one another, and to be a people who live out the example of Jesus Christ as His ambassadors to a lost and broken world.
Neal and Sherry have six children and, to date, nine grandchildren. They are thrilled to have joined the ministry of New Day Church and look forward to wonderful, God-ordained things ahead.