Meet the New Pastor!
We are delighted to welcome Rev. Heather Rodrigues as Pleasant Grove United Methodist Church’s new pastor in July 2026. We look forward to beginning this new chapter together and trusting the Lord’s guidance for the journey ahead.
Rev. Heather Rodrigues has been in pastoral ministry in the United Methodist Church for over 15 years. After graduating from Duke Divinity in 2009, she was appointed as the associate pastor of Millbrook UMC in Raleigh, where she served for 7 years, before being appointed as the Lead Pastor of Duke Memorial in 2014.
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Her call to ministry came through her work as a youth minister at Kitty Hawk United Methodist Church and from her years of service and leadership in her home church, Harrisonburg Mennonite Church, in Virginia.
In the midst of so much transition, Heather is grateful for the support of Bishop Connie Shelton and District Superintendent David Joyner in allowing her own discernment for her new appointment at Pleasant Grove. She is excited to come alongside what God is already doing through PGUMC and looks forward to spending her first months getting to know each of you. She will be working with SPRC to set up gatherings of 10-12 people, in homes, this Fall so that everyone has a small group opportunity to get to know her and share their hopes and prayers for PGUMC.
Heather has two children, Eli and Sarah. Eli graduates in May from NC State as he begins work on a graduate degree in Material Science in Engineering. Sarah graduates from Durham School of the Arts in June and leaves for Vanderbilt in August.
