About Us

Barrington Baptist Church was first gathered in 1952 at Peck Hall in West Barrington. After 70 years, we continue to follow Jesus and lead others to Him. Today the church building sits on 8 acres along Old County Road, west of the Wampanoag Trail, in Barrington. In addition to the traditional church building, several buildings dot the property. The historic Cedar Hall is a log cabin-style building that sits in the center of the campus. While it once welcomed Billy Graham, it now serves as a gym for the Barrington Christian Academy during the school year and as home-base for Camp Cedarwood during the summer time. The Madeira Center, named after the church's long-serving first pastor and his wife, serves as a guest house for visiting missionaries and as a biblical training center for lay leaders. The Barrington Christian Academy, founded by the church in 1979 (now an independent school), serves families all over Rhode Island and nearby Massachusetts as a Christian K-12th grade college preparatory school.

Our mission.

God has called His church to follow Jesus and lead others to Him. That's what we are all about. Our mission is that thing we must do... that task God has called us to. Our mission focuses our attention and energy on fulfilling that call.


Several Scriptures inform our mission. First, Matthew 28:16-28 tells of Jesus calling His disciples to make disciples everywhere they go. Secondly, Mark 1:16-18 shows us the simplicity of Jesus' call to follow Him. Finally, Mark 12:28-31 reminds us how we should go about fulfilling this call: it is not enough to speak the truth if it is not accompanied by godly love. The truth is that God receives the sinner, but He is not willing to leave us in our sin. We believe the truth that God's grace is sufficient; and God's grace is informed by the truth of God's Word.


What does it mean to follow Jesus? Following Jesus means relying on and honoring God in every area of our lives. It means being devoted in our worship, being directed by His Word, being dependent through prayer, and being deliberate in loving Him and others. Following Jesus starts with believing He is who He says He is and trusting in what Jesus has accomplished on your behalf. But following Jesus also means growing to become more like Him and fulfilling the mission He has given us.


What does it mean to lead others to Him? Leading others to Jesus is a faithful, obedient effort on our part to do what God has called us to do. Living lives that are a witness to the grace of God, being intentional about communicating the Gospel, and inviting others to trust in Jesus are at the heart of it. While God is the one who draws us to Jesus (John 6:44), we are expected to fulfill His call to make disciples.

Staff Team

Our staff team serves together faithfully and joyfully to help us achieve our vision!

  • EDDIE CRONAN DEACON

    STEWARDSHIP TEAM

    Eddie serves as a Deacon with the Stewardship Team until January 2026. He is a retired school counselor having served at East Providence Senior High School for 30 years and at LaSalle Academy for 15 years. Married to Mary-Ellen, he currently transports 5 granddaughters to and from school!

  • AURELINO CRUZ SUPERVISOR

    BUILDINGS & GROUNDS TEAM

    Aurelino has served with BBC since 2004, initially as a church planter and missionary for Ethnic Churches with the Conservative Baptist Association's Missions Door (CBA/MD). In 2013, Pastor Cruz took on his current role and recently earned certification as a Professional Maintenance Manager. Married to Isabel, they have two adult daughters. An ordained pastor since 1998, he has a Bachelors degree in Theology & Urban Ministry, and he currently serves as International Minister/Church Networker for Mission Northeast.

  • BECKY KLASSEN DEACON

    CHRISTIAN EDUCATION TEAM

    Becky serves as a Deacon with the Christian Education Team until January 2026. Becky is multi-lingual and has taught Spanish for many years. Today, Becky works as the Coordinator of World Languages and Biliteracy in the Providence Public Schools. Becky also leads our Kids' Worship program on Sunday mornings. Becky is married to Pastor Dan, and they have a daughter in college.

  • DAN KLASSEN ASSOCIATE PASTOR

    WORSHIP & DISCIPLESHIP

    Dan began serving as Associate Pastor in April 2018 and focuses on leading our worship and discipleship teams. In addition to working as a Lead Pastor in Paraguay, he has also served as a district-wide youth coordinator, youth director, and assistant pastor of youth and children. Pastor Dan is married to Becky, and they have a daughter in college.

  • SCOTTY NEASBITT SENIOR PASTOR

    Scotty began serving as Senior Pastor in September 2016 and focuses on leading and teaching. Prior to coming to BBC, Pastor Scotty led a church he planted with a great team of people in Connecticut for over 10 years. Before that, he earned a BA in Psychology and a Master of Theology degree and worked as a communications manager in a diverse set of industries. Real partners in marriage and ministry, he and Wendy have been married for more than 25 years and are blessed with three children, two in high school and one in college.

  • TOM ROGERS DEACON

    BUILDINGS & GROUNDS TEAM

    Tom serves as a Deacon with the Buildings & Grounds Team until January 2026. Tom served as Team Leader of the B&G Team many years ago. More recently, Tom was the manager of the church's men's softball team leading them to many victories over the years. Tom is married to Karen, and they have 2 adult daughters and 3 grandchildren.

  • SHELLEY SWALLOW TREASURER

    Shelley has worshiped with BBC since 1965 and began serving as Treasurer in 2021. She recently retired from her job as Payroll Manager after 34 years with Blount Fine Foods. In addition to running the Treasurer's office, Shelley coordinates our annual Angel Tree Christmas outreach through Prison Fellowship and serves as a Deacon of the Table with her husband, Richie. They have two daughters, two sons in-law, and four grandchildren!

  • SHERYL VALLOIS DEACON

    MISSIONS TEAM

    Sheryl serves as a Deacon with the Missions Team until January 2024. Sheryl’s first mission experience was at age 16 when she went on a short-term trip to Melbourne, Australia. In college she minored in cross-cultural ministries and had the opportunity to spend a 3-month summer sojourn in Western Africa living with a national family and studying the language and culture of the area. After graduating, she lived in Europe for 10 years. Sheryl and her two sons have been worshiping with BBC since 2010. In her time here she has used her lifelong love of missions to serve with a short-term missions team in Honduras to support and see first-hand our missionaries there.

  • CAROL WESTBERG CHURCH ADMINISTRATOR

    Carol has worshiped with BBC since 1972 and served as Administrative Secretary from 1990 to 2020. Today, as Church Administrator, Carol keeps all things connected and running! She and her husband, David, volunteered with YoungLife Rhode Island for many years.

Elder Team

The Elder Team consists of these elders and the Senior Pastor who, together, have responsibility for the oversight of the church body and the shepherding of its members.

  • JOHN MENTUS

    ELDER (CHAIR)

    John serves as an elder and the Chair of the Elder Team through January 2028. He and his wife, Joyce, are blessed with 3 adult daughters, 2 sons-in-law, and 5 grandchildren. As a Promise Keepers Ambassador, National Coalition Men's Ministry Coach, and President of Rhode Island Men of Hope, John serves as a seminar leader, trainer, and speaker. For the last 10 years he has worked in the RI Dept of Corrections with the Men's Fraternity program in 3 facilities fulfilling his call to assist men in being godly fathers, husbands, and employees.

  • JEAN SAINRISTIL

    ELDER

    Jean serves as an elder through January 2026. He joined BBC in 2016 after serving as a Sunday School teacher, deacon, and treasurer for over 15 years at a French-speaking Baptist church in Rhode Island. More recently at BBC, he served as Deacon of the Buildings & Ground Team for 3 years. He and his wife, Marjorie, have five children who also worship with BBC.

  • DAVID STOTT

    ELDER (VICE CHAIR)

    David serves as an elder and the Vice Chair of the Elder Team through January 2026. Since coming to BBC David has taught Adult Sunday School classes and served as Deacon of the Stewardship Team. He and his wife, Maureen, have 3 adult children and 8 grandchildren. After a 40+ year career in the finance field, in addition to eldership, David volunteers with the Converge International mission organization.

Resources

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