Rev. Charles Teixeira
Pastor Charles was called to be the pastor of First Presbyterian Church of Albert Lea in 2021. Charles’ passion is to see those who feel far from God, for whatever reason, brought near to Him by faith in Christ.
Charles grew up in Dighton, Massachusetts, about an hour south of Boston. At a small Christian camp in 2005, Charles put his trust in Christ as his Lord and Savior. He was later baptized in 2006.
Charles’s undergraduate years were spent at the University of Connecticut and then later Gordon College (Wenham, MA). Upon graduating in 2010 with a degree in Biblical and Theological Studies with a concentration in Jewish Studies, Charles began to serve his community at a local group home serving teenagers who had been displaced from their homes. He would also study addiction therapy (University of Massachusetts, Boston) and work with men experiencing sexual addictions through the parachurch ministry XXXChurch (Las Vegas, NV).
Realizing a deep desire to work in the local church, Charles began attending Bethel Seminary (San Diego and Minneapolis) and graduated with a Master of Divinity degree with a concentration in Missional Church Leadership in 2018. During seminary, he served as a pastoral intern under Corey Widmer at Third Church in Richmond, Virginia (ECO Presbyterian). He was later ordained for pastoral ministry under ECO in 2018. From 2018 to 2021, Charles served as the Associate Pastor of Congregational Life at First Presbyterian Church of Midland, Texas (ECO).
Charles is married to his wife Elizabeth, a career social worker with a passion for the underprivileged and underrepresented. She currently serves as a social worker at Mayo Clinic in Austin, MN. Together, they have two elementary-age sons, AJ and Isaac. The Teixeiras enjoy hosting friends for meals, exploring the outdoors, kitchen dance parties, and playing with their dog Juneau and cat Ginny Weasley.
