Our Staff
Chris Ekins
Lead Pastor & Mission
Chris Ekins is married to Sharon, and they have three kids (Caleb, Hannah and Chloe). He loves Jesus, teaching the Bible and fishing. Chris finished his Bachelor of Theology at Moore Theological College in 1996; served on the staff of St Faith's Anglican Church at Narrabeen from 1996-2008, and moved to Forster in 2009 with some mates to plant CoastEC in 2009. Chris leads our staff team and oversees our purpose area of Mission. Chris' passion is to see more people come to know Jesus and to grow in their love for him as they encounter Him in God's Word. His vision is for CoastEC to start several more churches on the Mid-North Coast of NSW.
Chris’ day off is Tuesday.
Dev Blair
MATURITY & MINISTRY pastor
Dev Blair joined the team in Jan 2013. He's married to AJ, and they have four kids (Kaylee, Judah, Summer and Crosby). Before moving to Forster, Dev worked in Christian camping ministry for 10 years focusing on leadership development and team dynamics. Dev then completed his Bachelor of Theology at SMBC. He oversees our purpose areas of Maturity, where he is responsible for looking after our Coast Group community and their leaders, and also Ministry, where he oversees, equips and trains our serving teams. He also leads our focus areas of Mens' Ministry, Youth Ministry and our GAP Year and MAP Programs. His desire is to see every member of CoastEC growing in Christlikeness and deepening their love for God and His beautiful Word! He loves rugby, meat and looking like Brad Pitt.....or Ryan Gosling, depending on the angle.
Dev’s day off is Saturday.
Heather Fitzhardinge
office manager
Heather joined the team in March 2015. She is married to Dave and they have 3 kids (Jackson, Ethan and Toby). She loves the beach and good coffee. Before moving to Forster in 2003, Heather was the office manager at Open Doors Australia. Heather is our Office Manager and works in the office 2 days a week trying to keep everyone organised!
Heather works Wednesdays and Fridays
Meg Graham
MAP & Membership
Meg moved up to Forster at the beginning of 2021 to do Coast EC’s Gospel Apprenticeship Program (GAP). Having lived in Wagga Wagga all her life, she has loved the coastal change (even though Wagga’s “beach” was named the 9th best in Australia…) and getting involved in various ministries at Coast, which have enabled her to deepen her faith and love for the Lord. Meg is currently in the midst of her third year of our Ministry Apprenticeship Program (MAP), which is a wonderful opportunity to dip her toes into full-time ministry. She is predominantly working alongside Chris in overseeing the Membership purpose area. Meg’s desire is for more people in our region to come to know their saviour and the joy that is found in following Him. She loves running, chai lattes, smoothie bowls and meeting new people!
Meg’s days off are Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday.
Cooper Sweeney
MAP & MINISTRY
Cooper is joining the team in January 2025. He is a local guy, born and bred in Forster, even before it was cool. He loves playing the guitar, scoring goals in soccer and hanging out with his mates around town. After graduating high school in 2019, Cooper began 2020 by doing Coast EC’s Gospel Apprenticeship Program (GAP) and has since recently begun studying for his Bachelor of Theology at SMBC. Cooper is currently in his first year of our Ministry Apprenticeship Program (MAP), which is a great way for him to deepen in his relationship with the Lord, whilst also experiencing what full time vocational ministry is like within the local church. He will mainly be working alongside Dev in the ‘Ministry’ purpose area at Coast, as well as leading the teams at our Youth Group (Riptide) and young adult settings. His desire is to make the good news of Jesus known to everyone in our region that they may know the God who made them and walk in fellowship with him through Christ.
He also likes cheeseburgers and accepts any cheeseburger donations that come his way.
Cooper’s days off are Mondays and Saturdays.