Full Staff Biographies



Pastor Jennifer M. Kopacz
Pastor Jennifer M. Kopacz, better known as, Pastor Jenn, was born in Philadelphia, PA – her dad was attending the Lutheran Theological Seminary in Philadelphia, at the time. As you may have guessed, her father was a Lutheran pastor. Her mother was a nurse. Both are now retired and enjoying it.
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​She received her undergraduate degree in Psychology from Elmira College in 1997, and worked in social services for ten years before answering the call to Ordained Ministry. She attended Trinity Lutheran Seminary in Columbus, OH, and received her Master of Divinity in 2011. Before coming to Tallahassee, she served as pastor of a three-point parish in rural Pennsylvania. Sundays were hectic, but is was also a beautiful place to become a pastor, and to learn and grow into her calling.
​Pastor Jenn came to Grace in 2015, and she feels blessed to be here. In addition to leading worship and presiding over Communion, she gets to walk with the people of Grace as they make their faith journey. From Baptisms, Confirmations, and First Communions, to Weddings and Funerals, she gets to participate in the lives of our congregation. It is a privilege to be present in each of these moments, these milestones, in the life of this congregation and her members.
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What Pastor Jenn enjoys most about her position here is the wonderful Grace Community. She says, “It is amazing how they care for one another here, and how they care for me! Many of our members have been a part of Grace from the beginning – they know the history and the stories of how we became who we are today. And they love one another – and this community – deeply and truly. But they also welcome those who are new to our area or new to Grace – wanting them to feel that sense of community as well. In addition, this community serves the wider community of Tallahassee in so many ways – Manna on Meridian; Meals on Wheels; Habitat for Humanity; Relay for Life, as well as all the ways individuals from the congregation serve our community. – the list goes on and on. They are a blessing to one another, to our neighbors here and around the world, and to me.”
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Pastor Jenn and her husband, Rob, both grew up in Upstate New York, and are avid Bufalo Bills fans. They enjoy traveling and visiting historic sites, and are always on the look out for new places to go and things to see. She also enjoys reading and working on her family tree (she is the family historian of sorts). Together, they also like to go to the movies and to spend time with family and friends. A quiet night at home is always nice, as well.
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Grace Lutheran is so thankful to have Pastor Jennifer M. Kopacz as our faithful leader and we hope that many of you plan to come visit our church, meet her and all the people of Grace.

Dr. Leslie Heffner, Music Program Coordinator
A native of Ohio, Dr. Leslie Heffner completed her Bachelor of Music Education degree at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas and her Master of Music degree from Bowling Green State University. Dr. Heffner is an alumna of Florida State University where she earned her Doctor of Music in Vocal Performance and also a certificate in Arts Administration.
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Dr. Heffner is the Artistic Director and Conductor of the Tallahassee Civic Chorale. Prior to moving to Tallahassee, she served as the Director of The Creative Arts Program at Bowling Green State University in Bowling Green, OH.
Leslie came to Grace Lutheran Church in 2013 as the Director for the Chancel Choir. She also maintains the choral library and assists the music director with the children’s hand bell activities. Leslie is thrilled to be involved with a church that has such a deep love, appreciation, and commitment to music making.

Dr. Cheryl Pieskee, Organ, Keyboard, Piano Player
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Cheryl Metzger-Peiskee received her Bachelors degree in piano performance from Texas Christian University (TCU) where she studied with Dr. Tamás Ungár. Cheryl received her Masters in piano performance, with an emphasis in pedagogy, from the University of North Texas (UNT), where she studied with Dr. Steven Harlos and professor Adam Wodnicki. During her time at UNT, she taught group piano to undergrad music and non-music majors. Cheryl recently received her doctorate of music in piano performance from FSU. During her studies at FSU she studied with Dr. Read Gainsford and taught class piano as a TA. ​
Cheryl enjoys mixing work and travel, and has performed as a soloist both in the United States and abroad. She’s played recitals in places as close as her home state of Alabama, and as far as Bulgaria. Cheryl also enjoys collaborating with string players, and accompanies a number of local Tallahassee string festivals and recitals.
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Before moving to Tallahassee, Cheryl taught privately in Fort Worth, TX, and was also a teacher for TCU’s Piano Preparatory division. She currently teaches from her home in Tallahassee, where five of her children are part of her studio.

J. Frank Pate, Contemporary Song Leader
J. Frank Pate, a native of Tallahassee, earned degrees in sacred music from Florida State University and Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, and a basic cantor’s certificate from the National Association of Pastoral Musicians. He has worked in public health with the state of Florida for 25 years, currently with the Agency for Health Care Administration in Medicaid programs for persons with developmental disabilities. He has been a professed member of the Secular Franciscan Order since 2009. He believes singing is praying twice (St. Augustine), and prayer is our greatest privilege as God’s children.

Lisa Rubin, Church Office Administrator
Lisa has a Master of Science Degree in Administration with a specialization in Public Administration from the University of West Florida, a Bachelor of Science degree in Philosophy from Florida State University, and an Associate in Arts degree in Theatre from Tallahassee Community College. Her master's program emphasis included executive management in the public, private, and non-profit sectors, while the focus of her studies and research included Administrative Law, Human Resource Management, Conflict Resolution, Ethics, and Organizational Structure.
Lisa came to Grace Lutheran Church after a more than 25-year public service career with the State of Florida. More than 20 of those years were spent working at Florida State University, primarily as a Personnel/Human Resources Representative in the Office of the Dean of the Faculties and Deputy Provost. But, she says that probably the most fun employment she has ever had was as a competitive twirling coach for 4 years when she was in high school and college.
Lisa came to Grace Lutheran in 2004 as she began devoting more of her time to her own children's classrooms and extracurricular activities to compliment her career. She is responsible for the business operations of the church, which require the wearing of many different hats in order to keep the church office running day to day.