REV. NATHAN D. STANTON has served as senior pastor at Pleasant Valley United Methodist Church since January 2007. He and his wife, Brenda, have been married 17 years and are the parents of three boys -- Noah, 11; Isaac, 9; and Eli, 4. Pastor Stanton was born in Salina, Kansas, and received his B.A. from Kansas Wesleyan University, also in Salina.  He earned a Master of Divinity Degree from Saint Paul’s School of Theology, Kansas City, Missouri, in 1996.  He also received an M.A. from Kansas State University’s school of Speech Communication, Theatre and Dance, graduating with honors in 1999.

Pastor Stanton is an ordained elder in the United Methodist Church, and a member of the Kansas West Annual Conference. In 1999, he was appointed associate pastor at Saint Mark United Methodist Church in Wichita.  Three years later he moved to western Kansas to pastor the United Methodist churches in Plains and Kismet. In 2003, Pastor Stanton was appointed senior pastor at the Anthony United Methodist Church.

Since coming to Pleasant Valley UMC,  Pastor Stanton has welcomed more than 130  new members into the church. The congregation has experienced a time of sacrificial generosity, with a $1.2 millon building debt significantly reduced. The church is developing new avenues of ministry and outreach, including to the Hispanic community, as well as expanding its staff and volunteer base to better make disciples of Jesus Christ. The membership of Pleasant Valley United Methodist Church is approximately 600, and the church's vision is to welcome the next generation of new Christians.