Our Leadership

Let’s introduce ourselves, I’m David Mojica and my wife’s name is Ylva. We are tasked with the responsibility to start this new church that we call Ignite!

Ylva and I have had a discernable sense of God’s calling to serve in ministry at an early age, and have since embraced this passion to serve. For Ylva, I guess the passion began to unfold at the age of eleven, and for me, perhaps as early as eight years old growing up in The Bronx. I am the product of parents with a passion to serve people and am the second youngest of ten siblings. Ylva and I have been honored to serve in various leadership capacities in and out of church life, whether it was leading youth groups to working in government to volunteering in organizations fighting poverty and homelessness. We both studied in respective Bible Schools and studied Engineering.

Ylva holds a B.S. in Systems Engineering, came to the U.S. in 2000 from the Dominican Republic and is in pursuit of a Masters in Child Education. As for me, I’ve worked in NYC governance from Director of Bronx Community Boards for the County Executive to District Manager of a Community District of 140,000 residents, and for Non-Profit organizations for more than ten years. I completed a Masters of Science program in Organizational Leadership, and am currently pursuing a Masters of Divinity at New Brunswick Theological Seminary (NBTS).

In November 1997, I visited the Dominican Republic for the first time only to find the love of my life, Ylva, who I married three months later. I often joke that I went on a “mission” to the Dominican Republic and I add, “what a mission with three daughters later.” We have three precious girls, Esther, 7 going on 16, Sarah, 5, and Ruth, who is 3.

Before relocating our family to central NJ in mid-September of 2007, Ylva and I were members at Fordham Manor Reformed Church in the Bronx, and have since partnered with North Branch Reformed Church (NBRC), Bridgewater, NJ, the parenting and supporting church for this new church plant. Since the outset we’ve embarked on an intentional track to recruit prospective core team members, particularly 20-and-30-somethings, launch small groups, and equip prospective leaders to facilitate these groups.

Our philosophy is grounded in the fact that ‘authentic living’ takes root in small group gatherings, and that people would grow both spiritually and relationally in these settings. To that end, our core strategy is to start dozens of small groups that result in greater spiritual connections, the building of meaningful relationships with one another, and that leads to a greater embrace of the works of justice in a broken world.

We are committed to love and accept all who are in need of fellowship and enduring restoration, regardless of their theological persuasion or where they may find themselves on their spiritual journey. Our burning desire is to love people and to help make spiritual connections. We are thrilled that we can dedicate ourselves to full-time ministry and be part of God’s passion to see people who are not yet committed to Christ or fed up with church discover and be ignited by His love.
We pray that Ignite! Church truly and boldly speaks to the issues of the day, and makes genuine connections with people fed up with archaic religious formulas.

We thank you for the opportunity to introduce ourselves and are at the ready to be of service to you.

Your friends,
David and Ylva Mojica