Staff

Pastor John C. Allen

Senior Pastor
Pastor John C. Allen received his bachelor’s degree from Hyles-Anderson College in 1986 and a Master of Ministry degree from Bob Jones University in 2000. He has been married to his wife Cyndi since 1986, and they have two adult sons.

In 1992, Pastor John was called to be the pastor of the Emmanuel Baptist Church of South Haven. Under his leadership, the church has grown from 50 people to an average attendance of over 200, with high days of over 400. The church has added property, expanded and increased its ministries, and founded Emmanuel Baptist Academy in 2000. He has served on the board of the Indiana Association of Christian Schools since 2009. In 2014, he was added to the board of the Indiana Fundamental Baptist Fellowship.

Mr. Charles Lail

Church & Academy Administrator, Music Director
Charles Lail has lived in Indiana all of his life and graduated from Hyles-Anderson College (BS) where he met his wife, Kristina, a native of Minnesota. Upon graduation, he entered full-time ministry in 1994. He earned his master’s degree from Pensacola Christian College (MA) where he studied under Dr. Frank Garlock. Charles and Kristina have two sons, Charles III and Zachary.

Charles came to EBC in 1999 and has served full time since 2000. In 2000, Charles started Emmanuel Baptist Academy, a traditional Christian school, and served as its first administrator. He currently serves as the Church Administrator, Music Director, and Academy Administrator.

Pastor Brian Berkowitch

Assistant Pastor

Pastor Brian was led to the Lord by his parents at home when he was five years old. He grew up in a Christian home and was called to preach when he was 19 years old. He enrolled in Bible college in 1997, and graduated in 2002 with a Bachelor of Science in Pastoral Theology. He served in full time ministry at his alma mater for ten years, working in print media and graphic design.

Brian and his wife Miriam have four sons. God led the Berkowitch family to Emmanuel in the fall of 2022, and Brian has been serving as Assistant Pastor since Summer 2023.

Evangelist Matthew Barber

Staff Evangelist
Matthew had the privilege of growing up in a pastor’s home, and as a child of seven he placed his faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Matt felt God’s call upon his life and surrendered to the Gospel ministry as a teenager. After graduating from Bible college with a degree in Bible and pastoral leadership, Matt married his wife Chelsey, whom he had known since high school. God has blessed them with five children: Melody, Matt Jr, Timothy, Evelynn and Andrew

Bro. Barber was the pastor of Woodridge Baptist Church in Woodridge, IL for 13 years until God called him into full-time evangelism in August of 2021. In January of 2022, Matthew became Staff Evangelist at Emmanuel Baptist Church. You can follow his ministry and travels at www.matthewdbarber.com