Pastor
Cole Breit
Cole Breit is the Lead Pastor at Bethany United Methodist Church. He is originally from the Outer Banks and earned a bachelor’s degree in Music with a minor in Religious Studies from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro and later received a Master of Divinity at Duke University. Cole is passionate about Christian discipleship as a personal, relational and intentional way of bringing the Good News of Christ Jesus to everyone. He believes all people have sacred worth and that God can use even the most broken people to bring about the most radical kind of divine love. Cole is seeking to live into God’s calling in his own life and he also wants to journey beside others in that process as they seek their calling. When not at the church, Cole can likely be found spending time with his wife Casey, walking his dogs “Bean” and “Garbanzo”, binging the latest tv show with Casey, playing games with friends, fiddling around on the piano/guitar or cooking a delicious meal taken from a family recipe or the internet.
Music Minister
Jeff Hood
Jeff Hood was born and raised in North Carolina. His fondness for music traces back to the age of 6 when he began the study of piano. Especially interested in liturgical music after participating in a Scout Sunday service, Jeff extended his focus to learning organ, patiently awaiting to develop his skills once his feet could reach the pedals. He began his study of choral conducting around the age of 12 when he was tasked to play, accompany, and direct a church service at his home Catholic church. He has continuously served as a church musician in some capacity since that time, taking a brief break for a couple of years.
While attending the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Jeff studied dual vocations in business and music (performance and theory) supporting college through serving as organist and choir director at various denominational churches throughout the area. During the summers, Jeff enjoyed attending workshops focusing on choral conducting, congregational accompaniment, organ performance, and handbell conducting and performance.
Although classically trained as a church musician, Jeff’s focus is to integrate various musical styles and mediums, enhancing the worship experience at Bethany UMC. He sees music as an opportunity to constantly learn, grow, and share with others. His desire is to share this love of music through the choir and congregation of Bethany UMC, as witnesses of God reaching their musical spirits together.
In Jeff’s free time, he loves making new memories traveling and seeing new places with his spouse Michael and son Canaan. He loves to cook, dine out with friends, and enjoy area music concerts/recitals, of all types. Ultimately focusing on business in graduate school, Jeff now owns and operates an accounting firm based in Durham serving clients across the country.
Handbell Director
Heather Fisher
Heather Fisher (she/her) started as the handbell director at Bethany United Methodist Church in August 2024. She also works part time as Operations Manager for Johnson Service Corps, a small, justice and service oriented service year program for young adults in Durham. Heather is originally from New Jersey, but has lived in Durham since 2013. She played handbells in her childhood church from 3rd grade through high school. She was blessed to be able to travel to Norway, California, and London with the advanced high school group. After a 15 year break from playing handbells, she happened to notice the “handbell ringers needed” sign outside of Bethany in October 2023, and the rest is history! After a long history of playing bells, this is her first time directing. She has two kids who keep life fun, busy, and loud. In her spare time, she loves short hikes and adventures with the kids, working in her vegetable garden, and canning everything possible so it does not go to waste.