Six new trustees were elected to the Presbyterian Foundation’s Board of Trustees by the 226^th General Assembly meeting in Salt Lake City, Utah, June 29 to July 4, 2024. During their meeting prior to the Assembly, trustees elected George Philips as Chair and Paul Baldasare as Vice Chair of the Board.

Information on the new members of the Board of Trustees follows.

Linda Jacobsen

Linda Jacobsen retired in 2023 as Executive Vice President of The Board of Pensions of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) after spending more than 40 years working in banking, benefits, and consulting. Focused on the customer experience, she has lead sales, relationship management and marketing teams across multiple domestic and international markets and products.

She has a demonstrated record of deep commitment to both the national and local church and its ministries. She is currently a member of Third, Scots & Mariners Presbyterian Church  (Old Pine) in Philadelphia where she has served as Elder, Finance Committee Chair, and co-Chair of an earlier Capital Campaign. She has also served as a Director of the Old Pine Community Center and on the Budget Review Committee of the Philadelphia Presbytery. Linda currently serves as a Director, member of the Executive Committee and Finance Committee Chair of The Clay Studio , an organization supporting the expression and learning in the ceramic arts in Philadelphia and nationally.

Linda holds a B.S. in Finance from Lehigh University. She currently resides in Philadelphia (when she’s not following her passion to travel across the US and world).

Jim Koon

Jim Koon serves as the Financial Services Director for the Synod of Lakes and Prairies of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.).

He is passionate about promoting justice, addressing national inequalities, and contributing to collective thriving.  He is involved as a program advocate within Restorative Actions. He currently serves as Synod Treasurer and participates in monthly Finance Committee meetings among eight presbyteries for whom the Synod provides guidance and financial reporting. He is also a trustee and serves on the executive committee of Stillman College. He is a Ruling Elder and a member of Oak Grove Presbyterian Church in Bloomington, MN. He has chaired finance committees at two churches and served more than 18 years as a middle school teacher at both Presbyterian and Methodist churches.

Prior to his work in church life, Jim spent many years working in leadership roles in banking and finance. Among other positions, he was Director of Product Management at Bank of America and Chief Operating Officer at TCF Bank. He received a bachelor’s degree in economics from Claremont McKenna College and an MBA from Duke University.

Shurjeel Paul

Shurjeel Paul is a Senior Manager at American Express in Salt Lake City and has extensive experience in banking, regulatory areas, lending and credit, with an international and multi-cultural perspective in business. He is a dedicated member of Cottonwood Presbyterian Church and a key leader in the Indo-Asian community in his region.

Van Meter Pettit

Van Meter Pettit is a practicing architect in Lexington, KY, and a member and ruling elder at First Presbyterian Church. Van Meter studied art and art history at Princeton University and received a master’s degree in architecture from the University of Texas at Austin.

After stints in Senegal and Thailand, Van Meter returned to Kentucky and interned as an architect and founded a local 501-c-3 nonprofit, Town Branch Trail, Inc. Currently this public/private financed project is on track to become a $100 million 8-mile system of greenspaces and bike-pedestrian trails.

In addition to practicing architecture, Van Meter has created multiple small businesses to expand the work from design, Van Meter Pettit, Architect, LLC., to construction, Pettit Affordable Housing, LLC, and into development, V&M Developments, LLC.

Van Meter has also provided pro bono design and construction work for First Presbyterian Church, and for the Friends of Gratz Park Recovery Groups Meetinghouse, and for the Voices of Hope recovery facility, all in Lexington.

Rev. Jonah So

Rev. Jonah So has served as the Executive Pastor at Fifth Avenue Presbyterian Church since June 2021. Before the move back to New York, Jonah served as the Pastor of Arcola Covenant Community in New Jersey from August 2019 to May 2021. Prior to that, for almost 18 years, Jonah served his first call as an Associate Pastor at The Korean Presbyterian Church of Westchester, NJ, from December 2002 to June 2019. His career in ministry began as the Youth Director at the Korean Presbyterian Church of Hackensack, NJ, from June 1999 to September 2002.

Jonah has a Bachelor of Arts from New York University (1999), a Master of Divinity from Princeton Theological Seminary (2002), and a Doctor of Ministry from Pittsburgh Theological Seminary (2016). He has been an Executive Trustee with the Confluence Institute since 2018 serving as the Director of Development. Jonah previously served as a Minister of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion from 2018 to 2022.

Rev. Ayana Teter

Rev. Ayana Teter is the Associate Dean for Students and Formation at Pittsburgh Theological Seminary in Highland Park, PA. As a congregational consultant Ayana also works to equip non-profit organizations to live more faithfully into their God-given mission through coaching, spiritual directing, strategic planning and visioning.

Ayana has a passion for ballet, musical expression and life-long learning, currently completing her Doctor of Ministry degree with a focus on Christian Spirituality.