Mill City Church Deep Dive

We know getting to know a new community can be daunting so this page is designed so that no one needs to feel like an outsider! We even have a glossary of terms for those who find it helpful: MCC Glossary

Mill City Church is a multi-generational, Jesus-centered church in Northeast Minneapolis. “Mill City” is one of the oldest nicknames for the city of Minneapolis. Our mission at MCC is to love our community in the name of Jesus.

Everything that we do is about being able to live out that mission together. Our hope is that everyone in our community, from our young kids on up will be equipped to participate with God in their everyday spaces. The documentary linked below shares more of the Mill City Church culture.

Together we discover what God is up to in our neighborhoods, workplaces, schools, and families. We desire to join in what God is already doing in those spaces and love others in the name of Jesus.

Our purpose is to: To be a church that reproduces missional disciples by equipping people to follow The Way of Jesus.

A missional disciple is one who follows Jesus by continually learning to participate in God’s mission in the world through every aspect of their life. Disciples that love God, live like Jesus, and are led by the Spirit.

Mill City began with a few people in Northeast in 2008 as a new church planted by Woodridge Church when a group of people felt called by God to start a new church in this specific part of the city. Mill City is a part of the Converge North Central movement of churches.

In 2019 Mill City helped launch North City Church across the river in North Minneapolis. We are now a family of three churches as we have added Espíritu Santo Iglesia a predominantly Spanish speaking church which lunched in the Spring of 2021. Together we form the City Church Network.

In 2022 Mill City voted to adopt Elim Church after members of both churches voted over 90% approval. In January 2023 Elim Church members joined Mill City and after a short renovation the combined community moved to 13th and Madison where Elim had worshipped since the late 1800s.

Mill City is honored to have key partners in Northeast Minneapolis and we are proud to be the founding church for Every Meal, fighting child hunger in the Twin Cities.

Another key partner is Hope Ave Twin Cities, an outreach ministry serving those experiencing homelessness started by Elim Church in 2006.

One of our newest projects focuses on affordable housing: IMBYMN.COM. You can see our complete list of key partners here.

We own the Mill City Commons, which is a meeting and Event Space at 3023 Randolph Street NE, Minneapolis. We worship every Sunday at 9 and 10:45am at 685 13th Ave NE, the site of Historic Elim Church – this building houses our sanctuary, community life space as well as our coworking space the Northeast Collaborative. We currently have 8 faith communities worshipping between our two properties and multiple non-profits who lease space including Elim Preschool which started in 1961.

Community is between 750-800 people with an average weekly attendance of 400-550. Mill City is leadership team led, and below you can see our pastors and staff. We also have a preaching team comprised of staff and members of the community.

Those who become a Covenant Member of Mill City learn about our community and can read our membership documents here: Mill City Membership Site

Pastors

Stephanie O’Brien

Lead Pastor

Pastor Stephanie co-founded Mill City Church in 2008 She has a degree in Psychology from Bethel University and a Master of Divinity from Bethel Seminary. Stephanie serves on the Executive Team of the National Board of Overseers of Converge Worldwide. She is also on the Board of Trustees for Bethel University and teaches the preaching courses at Bethel Seminary. She leads the staff team at Mill City and shares 50% of the pulpit with the Mill City Preaching Team.

She lives in Northeast Minneapolis with her husband JD who works at Bethel University in marketing.

Aashish Baskaran

Pastor of Worship and Teaching

Pastor Aashish has been on the team at Mill City since 2016. He has a degree in Psychology from Bethel University and his Master of Divinity from Denver Seminary. Aashish is a sought after worship leader who is given the opportunity to lead at conferences and gatherings in the region. Aashish leads our worship teams and tech teams made up of over 50 volunteers. He preaches most regularly in addition to Pastor Stephanie.

Aashish lives with his wife Anna in Northeast Minneapolis. Anna is a teacher focusing on children with special education needs.

Tony Ducklow

Executive Director of Operations

Tony has been in ministry for over 15 years in various capacities. In addition to his work at Mill City he leads an evangelistic camp for middle and high school students called Summer Festival and provides coaching and consulting to churches in the area of youth ministry. He has a degree in Youth Ministry from Bethel University. He oversees operations at MCC including HR, communication, facilities management, and supports the Leadership Team with the church finances.

Tony Lives in Maple Grove with his wife Lacey who is a social worker and their young daughter.

Donna Johnson

Pastor of Care

Pastor Donna has been the Pastor of Care at Mill City since 2019. She has her Master of Theology from Luther Seminary and her Doctor of Ministry at Bethel Seminary. In addition to serving at Mill City, she is also the director of Internships and Placement at Bethel Seminary. Donna leads our prayer team, and our various care teams and provides one on one pastoral care to our community. Pastor Donna lends her voice to the preaching team a few times a year.

She lives in Shoreview with her husband Herb. They have two adult children. Herb is professor of performance piano at Bethel University.

Sharon Rundell

Family Life Pastor

Pastor Sharon has been working in Family Life ministry for 15 years. She regularly coaches family life leaders throughout the country online. She is passionate about kids knowing Jesus and knowing they are loved by him. She has her degree in education from Oral Roberts University and she has many certifications in ministry including Trauma Informed Kids Ministry.

She lives in Plymouth with her husband Andrew who is in sales. They have three adult children.

Adaobi Nduka

Community Impact and Operations Pastor

Pastor Adaobi has multiple degrees in engineering and healthcare. She has her Master of Theology from Bethel Seminary – She has served several churches and has been on staff with Mill City since 2019. She oversees the area of Community Impact for our church – we use this term to describe efforts focused on deepening our commitment and support of our local community partners. Adaobi also lends her voice to the teaching team occasionally throughout the year.

She lives in Northeast Minneapolis with her 4 children.

Becky Hanson

Care Pastor

Pastor Becky has her Master of Divinity from Bethel Seminary – She had served on staff at Elim church for 24 years prior to the adoption by Mill City. Becky is also the Director of Hope Ave Twin Cities, a ministry to those experiencing homelessness in the Twin Cities. She leads multiple care ministries including care to seniors and those facing health challenges.

She lives in Ostego and has three adult children.