Leadership & Staff

Email: rob@ccturlock.org

Rob Monroe was raised in the little town of Winton, California by two dedicated Christian parents. After sensing a strong conviction of the Lord, Rob made a decision for Christ as a boy and was discipled by the teaching and example of his parents. When he was about eleven years old his dad became an interim pastor for a small church in Snelling, California. “I never dreamed of going into the ministry personally," Rob said, "but I look back now and realize that God was using those years to prepare me for the pastorate.”
Rob swam, wrestled, and played water polo for Atwater high school, and then played varsity water polo for the United States Naval Academy. He was commissioned in the Marine Corps and flew F-18s for nine years.  During that time, he married Tamara, and they now have four grown children who are all serving the Lord faithfully. After the Marine Corps, Rob flew for United Airlines 26 years and then retired to go full-time into the ministry.
“As newlyweds in Southern California, my wife and I found the ministry of Calvary Chapel Costa Mesa. We attended that church for two years and we grew to love the line by line and verse by verse teaching of Chuck Smith. We landed at Calvary Chapel Modesto for several years where I was equipped and sent by them in 2008 to become the pastor of Calvary Chapel Turlock. My wife and I love Central California, and we have a heart for the people here. We love seeing new people coming to Christ and growing in the Lord at Calvary Chapel Turlock.”

Rod Smith grew up on a farm in Eureka, Nevada until the age of 13 when his family moved to Turlock, California. Rod was raised in a Christian home by two loving parents, along with two older sisters.  The family never missed church, even when they had to drive 111 miles one way to be there, while living in Nevada. Rod sought a relationship with the Lord at a young age.
He enjoyed growing up on a farm, even though most of what they did centered around work. They worked hard together as a family, instilling in Rod a strong work ethic and determination to finish what you start.
Rod went to Turlock Christian High School and joined the family business along the way.  He met Paula and they were married in 1986. A few years later, they struck out in business for themselves. After selling that business, Rod became very interested in the investment world and pursued a career as an investment advisor.  “37 years later, we look back on the blessings the Lord has poured into our lives.  We are grateful to have discovered Calvary Chapel Turlock, to serve here and to be under the teaching of Pastor Rob Monroe. We thoroughly love the line-by-line and verse-by-verse teaching as well as the commitment to teach the truth of God’s word, even when it’s not popular”.

Tom was born in 1946 in Merced, California and grew up with his parents, and three brothers.  His father was a farmer who mainly grew sweet potatoes. Tom was drafted into the Army as a young man and served for almost 11 months as an airplane mechanic in Viet Nam. After he served his stint, he returned home, where he met his future wife, Jennifer Emmert.
He married his beautiful bride, Jenny, on Feb 15, 1970.   They have two children (Noah and Sarah), and four grandchildren (Daniel, Heidi, Benjamin and Vera). 
Tom was born again on October 7, 1980 (six weeks after his wife was saved), and they have been walking with the Lord ever since.  The Lord has made a monumental difference in their lives, they truly repented and changed direction from the way they were going. 
After college, Tom worked as a Vineyard Manager for 27 years in Sonoma County, and then in 2001, he went on staff at Calvary Chapel Petaluma from January 2001 until January 31, 2019. Over the years, he served as an Assistant Pastor there and the highlight for him was directing the Missions Program.  He, and sometimes Jenny as well, did many mission trips to various countries: Sudan, Kenya, Afghanistan, Dominican Republic, China, Brazil, and Mexico. Often, they would take teams to Kenya and Mexico.  This was truly a blessed time!
Tom, along with his wife, moved to Turlock in February 2019, to care for his wife’s mother, who has since graduated to glory.
“We began attending Calvary Chapel Turlock in February 2019 and are very blessed to be part of the church body here!”

Email: garrick@ccturlock.org

Garrick is the Executive Administrator for Calvary Chapel Turlock. He was born in Southern California and raised in Honolulu, Hawaii. Garrick possesses a Bachelor of Arts degree in Public Administration  and a Master of Science degree in Military Science and Occupational Art (International Security).
Prior to his arrival at Calvary Chapel Turlock, Garrick had a military career spanning over 30 years. Two years after graduating from high school, Garrick enlisted into the United States Air Force. His first assignment was at Vandenberg Air Force Base in Santa Barbara County and then served two consecutive overseas tours. Garrick subsequently received his commission as a Cyber Operations Officer. He retired from the Air Force in 2017 as a Lieutenant Colonel following numerous command and staff assignments.  He and is a veteran of Operation Enduring Freedom (Afghanistan) and Operation New Dawn (Kuwait).
Garrick and his wife Yvonne met while working together as college volunteers serving with Youth for Christ and attending church in Hawaii. They’ve been married since 1986 and have two grown sons and a daughter. Their oldest (Gabe) is a real estate sales manager in Hawaii, their second (Garrick Jr.) is on active duty “pumping gas,” a KC-135 pilot with the United States Air Force. Garrick and Yvonne’s daughter (Gianna) attends college in Texas and is competitive shooter on an NCAA rifle team.

Tamara was born and raised in the beautiful metropolis of Winton, California. A farmer’s daughter, she grew up in the midst of almond and peach orchards, driving tractors, riding horses, and spending summers playing in the pool.
After graduating from Fresno State, she married Pastor Rob, moved to Hawaii and enjoyed her first year of marriage teaching 1st graders during the week and spending time at the beach on weekends. Rob’s transition from military to civilian aviation brought her back to the Central Valley where she faithfully home schooled her four children and assisted Rob as he developed a Young Marrieds Ministry at Calvary Chapel Modesto. It was an exciting day when the Lord called them into the ministry.
The year 2008 was pivotal for the Monroe family, as they whole-heartedly jumped into God’s work at Calvary Chapel Turlock. Rob was called into the pastorate, Tamara to Women’s and Children’s Ministry, and the kids into being active servants in both the worship ministry and children’s ministry. In 2019, she was called into full-time ministry as church administrator, and in 2023 was able to refocus her time exclusively on Women’s and Children’s ministries.
Through the consistent influence of her grandmother, Tamara came to Christ at a youth camp when she was 10 years old. But it wasn’t until her young adult years that her knowledge of Christ transformed into a meaningful and fruitful relationship. Proverbs 3:5-6 has been a guiding portion of scripture her entire adult life.
She gains great satisfaction watching the Lord open hearts and change lives as the women and children she interacts with are introduced to the Truth, both written and living!
Tamara’s greatest joy has been to serve the Lord, her wonderful husband, and her family…including sweet Ruth, her precious granddaughter! She considers herself most blessed among women, in every respect.

Email: tamara@ccturlock.org

Ben was born in Indianapolis to a family of 7 boys and two faithful Christian parents. In 2010, his family moved to Turlock, CA to take care of his grandfather, who has since gone to be with the Lord. He has attended Calvary Chapel Turlock ever since the move.
While a young teen, Ben accepted Christ into his life as Lord and Savior and made up his mind to serve Him unreservedly all the days of his life. In his senior year of high school, he sensed God’s call to ministry at a missions conference and made plans to attend the School of Mission at Calvary Chapel Bible College Europe in Budapest, Hungary.
He graduated the school of mission in 2019 and returned to Turlock, where he came on staff at Calvary Chapel Turlock as the facilities manager. He met Hailee Baldwin in 2020, and together, they began planning events and Bible studies for the Young Adults fellowship. They were married in the summer of 2022.
In addition to maintaining the facilities, Ben leads the Young Adults ministry, and maintains our website and app.
“My desire is for God’s people to be edified, and for His name to be glorified. I love leading the Young Adults ministry here, because to me, there is nothing more satisfying than when people are stirred up to adoration and praise of the Lord and strengthened in their walk with Him.”

Email: ben@ccturlock.org

Email: emily@ccturlock.org

Emily was born to loving, Christian parents and had a wonderful childhood growing up alongside her younger sister, Jill.  She accepted Christ when she was 5 years old after watching a cartoon that depicted the Easter Story.  She knew then that if Christ loved her enough to die on the cross for her sins, then she wanted to follow Him for the rest of eternity. 
She moved to Idaho with her family when she was 5 years old.

She met her husband Kurt while studying Vocal Music Education at the University of Idaho and they were married the summer after her graduation.  They have two beautiful kids, an obese cat, and an attention-loving dog.

In 2013, the Lord moved them from southern Idaho to Turlock, CA. They started attending Calvary Chapel Turlock in 2014 and have been so blessed by the friendships and Godly teaching they have found here.

In addition to working in the church office, Emily also leads Sunday School worship and directs the Children’s Choir, where she loves teaching kids not only how to sing, but the blessing that comes from singing for the Lord.