Meet Our Staff
Steve Cone
Lead Minister
Steve grew up in Salem, IL. He now lives in Bloomington with his wife, Villy, and daughters, Anna and Stella. Steve joined Northside as Senior Minister in 2024. Before that, he was Professor of Theology at Lincoln Christian Seminary. He also served as a missionary in the Czech Republic and the Republic of Ireland. Steve loves cooking, reading (especially fiction), walking in the great outdoors, and music (especially classic rock, jazz, and classical).
Gary Gawlik
Associate Minister
Gary attended a Bible study as a student at Illinois State University and gave his life to Christ in 1986. He worked at Northside from 1988-1997 then joined the staff again in 2015.
He is married to Sandy and they have three adult children, two of them are married.
Gary loves to fish and play all kinds of games.
Melissa Knotts
Administrative Assistant
Melissa has been working part-time as Northside’s Administrative Assistant since September 1997. She has been married to Jim Knotts since 1981 and they have two grown children, Samantha (Michael) Hovar and Joey (Yue) Knotts, and two grandsons: Alex and Nathan. Melissa enjoys singing, sewing, watching live theater and visiting with friends.
Maci Hart
Youth and Family Minister
Maci grew up in Decatur, IL, and has attended church regularly her entire life. She went to college at Greenville University, followed by getting her Masters at Emmanuel Christian Seminary in Johnson City, TN. Maci and her husband Greg have been married since May of 2024 and have a sweet dog named Mabel. She started at Northside in January of 2026. Maci loves reading, baking, watching sitcoms, all things Disney, and is an avid listener of music.
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