Pastoral Team
Rev. Rebecca Stringer
Lead Pastor
Rebecca has been part of the Wellspring Covenant Church ʻohana since 2018 and serves as lead pastor, guiding the community with a heart for spiritual formation, honest questions, and the sacred, messy work of becoming more whole together.
Raised in the Philippines as a missionary kid, Rebecca brings a cross-cultural imagination and a deep trust that God shows up—especially in overlooked places and people. She studied at Christ for the Nations Institute in Dallas, earned a Bachelor of Music from Wheaton College, and later completed her Master of Divinity at Fuller Theological Seminary. She’s journeyed through deconstruction and reconstruction in her faith and completed five units of hospital chaplaincy training (CPE).
Ordained in the Evangelical Covenant Church, her theology is shaped by the God who hears our cries and stays near to the brokenhearted, inviting us into a story of liberation, healing, and hope—not just someday, but here and now. She believes the church should be a place where people bring their whole selves—whether holding onto faith by a thread, recovering from burnout, or just curious.
Rebecca loves preaching, guiding leaders, and helping people notice the quiet, transforming presence of God in daily life. Her hidden talents include speaking conversational Tagalog and making pork adobo that tastes like home.
She is married to Dan, also an ordained Covenant pastor and campus minister with InterVarsity at UH’s graduate schools. They’re parents to three beloved children—two on earth and one in heaven after a devastating cancer diagnosis— and each continue to teach them about wonder, grief, and grace. As a family, they love the ocean (but not the sand), dim sum, and field trips that remind them the world is still full of beauty.
Pastor Cheryl Takabayashi-Foo
Pastor of Community Life and Care
Born and raised in Hawaii, Cheryl graduated from Punahou School and went on to pursue undergraduate studies at the University of Washington in Seattle, completing a Double Degree in Political Science and Japanese Language and Literature. She then went on to Santa Clara University School of Law, receiving her Juris Doctorate, and thereafter returned home to Hawaii to help aging family members and raise her own family. Her interest in people and emotionally and spiritually healthy relationships led her to pursue a Master’s Degree in Marriage and Family Therapy from Argosy University while she practiced law. While serving on the pastoral team, Cheryl felt called to pursue formal training and received her Master of Arts in Christian Formation from North Park Seminary, which has been life giving and life changing for her in all areas of her life.
Currently, Cheryl is bi-vocational, practicing law, specializing in Estate Planning, as well as serving on the Pastor Team here at Wellspring, with a heart for nurturing emotionally and spiritually healthy relationships. She continues to be open to deeply meaningful ways to serve and be present to her church family and the community.
Cheryl is married to Nathan Foo, and they have three daughters and one son (Bethany, Jessica, Rylan & Jensen). Cheryl enjoys spending time with family and friends, reading, good conversations over food or coffee, traveling, and continuing to learn and grow.
Educational Experience: University of Washington, Seattle Washington, 1983-88.(Bachelor of Arts Double Degree, Japanese Language & Literature; Political Science). Santa Clara University School of Law, Santa Clara, California, 1988-1991 (Juris Doctorate). Argosy University, Honolulu, Hawaii, 2009-2012 (Masters Degree, Marriage & Family Therapy). North Park Seminary, Chicago, Illinois, 2021-2025 (Master of Arts in Christian Formation).
Rev. Dan Stringer
Pastor of Theological Formation
Dan is Wellspring’s Pastor of Theological Formation (volunteer), where he loves helping others engage theology in ways that are both meaningful and practical. Whether it’s teaching Wavemakers, guiding Wayfinders discussions, encouraging men’s ministry, serving on the preaching team, or occasionally jumping behind the drums on the worship team—Dan’s heart is to see faith come alive in community.
Born on O‘ahu and raised in Mililani, as well as in DR Congo, Nepal, and the Philippines (thanks to his parents’ work as medical missionaries), Dan has always had a global perspective on faith and life. He studied at Wheaton College (BA), Fuller Seminary (M.Div), and UH Mānoa (Master of Social Work), and is ordained in the Evangelical Covenant Church. During the week, he serves as Team Leader for InterVarsity Graduate and Faculty Ministries (GFM) in Hawai‘i. If you're a grad student or college faculty/staff at any campus in the islands, he'd genuinely love to connect—coffee's on him.
Dan is the author of Struggling with Evangelicalism: Why I Want to Leave and What It Takes to Stay (IVP, 2021), a book that explores how to make sense of complicated experiences with church and helps readers locate themselves on the broader map of Christianity. (Fun fact: less than 3% of the world’s Christians are white American evangelicals!)
When he’s not writing or teaching, Dan enjoys collecting sports cards, strumming the ukulele, and having deep, one-sided conversations with Squeaky, the family cat.
Rev. Yumiko Nakagawa
Pastor of Kingdom Connections
Born and raised in Japan, Yumiko became a Christian in Japan and was baptized at Suita Gospel Church, Osaka in her early 20s. After finishing Doshisha University, Kyoto, Yumiko continued her studies at Amherst College, MA, and then moved to Hawaii to work at a foreign policy think tank in Honolulu. After a few years in Japan and central Asia, she moved back to Boston for schooling at Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, where she discovered her joy in serving at a Christian Church. After earning Master of Divinity at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, Yumiko made a lifetime commitment to serve as an ordained minister of the Evangelical Covenant Church. She joined Wellspring Covenant Church in 2020 and has been grateful to serve and grow with this community ever since.
Staff
Val Arakaki
Operations Manager
Val grew up in Manoa and graduated from Punahou School. She completed her undergraduate degree at the University of Washington with a double major in Zoology and Psychology. She then moved to California to earn a Master's degree in Early Childhood Special Education at San Francisco State University and a teaching credential from Santa Clara University. She worked her way through graduate school as a barista at Starbucks, sparking her joy of connecting with people over a cup of coffee or afternoon tea.
After returning to Hawaii, Val earned her MBA from the University of Hawaii at Manoa. She has been part of the Wellspring community since 2006 and prior to joining the Wellspring staff, was a Marketing and Communications Manager and a Project Manager in the Healthcare and Information Technology sectors. She is also a certified Project Management Professional. In her role as Operations Manager, Val implements and manages initiatives that support Wellspring’s operational and community needs.
Val enjoys traveling, supporting local businesses, cheering for her sports teams and watching home organization shows. One of her goals is to organize her home using the Home Edit system, which occasionally conflicts with her hobby of collecting Starbucks, Disney and sports teams memorabilia.
Patrick Pai
Director of Media and Technology
Pat was born and raised on various parts of Oahu, from Hawaii Kai to Waipahu. He graduated from Iolani School and studied electrical engineering and computer science at the University of Washington, U.C. Berkeley (B.S.), and UCLA (M.S., Ph.D.), specializing in integrated circuit design and digital communication systems. During and after his studies, he’s worked at Silicon Systems, Western Digital Corporation, and Broadcom Corporation in California.
Since returning to Hawaii in 2002, Pat has been involved in photography, independent films, and digital media. He’s worked with crews in the US, Canada, Europe, and Africa. Pat has been a member of Wellspring Covenant Church since 2002, and he has served on staff for technical and audio/video support, as well as a member of the Servant Leadership Council.
Pat is married to Donna Pai, and between them they have five children who are loved very much. He has a passion for endurance sports, training and racing in triathlons and marathons. Pat and Donna love to travel and are regularly dreaming of their next trip together.
Servant Leadership Council
This elected group of servant leaders is responsible for building, maintaining, and overseeing the spiritual welfare of Wellspring, as well as for directing and overseeing all her ministries and business affairs. The SLC works with the Pastoral Team to co-create the mission and vision of Wellspring.
Current Members
Carin Iha - Chair
Stacey Breshears - Secretary
T.J. Breshears - Financial Officer
Faye Furutomo
Debbi Hazama
Jonathan Mather
Keith Sawamura