The Rev. Rowe had previously worked for WABC radio and WABC-TV in New York before becoming the new minister at Hope Church.
By: Lea Kahn
Growing up in Yardley, Pa., David Rowe never considered becoming a minister.
Last month, the Rev. Rowe, 46, was appointed as minister of the 70-member Presbyterian Church in America-affiliated Hope Church, on Denow Road.
It’s a far cry from what he really wanted to become when he was a child.
"I wanted to go into broadcasting," said the Rev. Rowe, who lives on Bergen Street with his wife, Awilda, and their 6-year-old twins, Ethan and Olivia.
"My goal (in selecting a college) was to be able to touch the equipment as a college freshman," he said. "I went to Ithaca College, which has a strong program in broadcasting."
The Rev. Rowe said that as a youth, he listened to the radio late into the night. An invitation to appear on the former WHWH-AM public affairs radio show, "Youth Speaks Up," whetted his appetite.
As a college senior, the Rev. Rowe won an internship that eventually led him to a job with WABC-AM in New York City. The radio station’s format had just turned from Top-40 music to talk-show format when he began work in 1982.
The producer for numerous talk shows, the Rev. Rowe said he took care of all the details booking guests, ensuring the show is promoted, and making certain the radio show host has everything he needs, right down to a cup of coffee.
"There is something a little magical about radio," he said. "It’s intimate. You can talk directly to people. All you need is a microphone and a telephone line."
After seven years, the Rev. Rowe moved over to WABC’s television arm, Channel 7 in New York, working on several different series.
"I loved New York City," he said. "I took full advantage of everything it had to offer to a single male. Don’t commit to anything, because there is something better around the corner. (But) it was very unfulfilling."
As a single male in New York City, the Rev. Rowe forged romantic relationships with women, he said. But soon after one relationship ended, a friend from his Ithaca College days invited him to attend church with her.
"After the 20th time, I accepted," he said.
He began attending the Redeemer Presbyterian Church in New York City, and slowly became more involved in the church and its activities, becoming a lay leader in one of the many small groups in the congregation.
At one point, the Rev. Rowe helped someone in his group work through the grief of losing her mother. It was an "energizing" experience for him because she needed someone to be with her as she dealt with her emotions, he said.
"Everybody needs someone to be with them," the Rev. Rowe said. "I was that person that night. She called on me. I was not trained pastorally, but I was the face of the church to her. It gave me a taste of what the ministry could be. I felt the Lord was calling me to do something else. That’s not to say that a Christian can’t honor God working in television."
The Rev. Rowe began considering his options. If he wanted to advance his career in the television industry, it would likely have required moving to Hollywood. At the same time, the church was growing in importance in his life.
Several factors entered into his decision to give up broadcasting for the ministry. A small snafu at the television network could cost an employee his or her job, the Rev. Rowe said. People spent most of their waking hours at work, where they were reduced to being a number and their value was dependent on the amount of work they produced, he said.
"The church was powerful," the Rev. Rowe said. "Someone was showing me who I really was. I had a lot invested in being an able, competent New Yorker. The church was showing me my shame, but that I was also accepted and loved. There was a new master for me."
The Rev. Rowe decided to give up his career in the television industry. At 34, he moved back home to Yardley and entered the Westminster Theological Seminary in Philadelphia, Pa. As a seminary student, he began attending worship services at Hope Church.
During his final year at the seminary, the Rev. Rowe held an internship at the Westerly Road Church in Princeton Township. After graduation, he accepted the post of associate minister for congregant care at the independent, evangelical church for five years.
"I had my heart set on (becoming the minister at) the Hope Church when I was in the seminary," he said. "I loved the Westerly Road Church, but there came a time when I was ready (to move on)."
The Rev. Rowe said that in an urban environment, sin is "fire engine red." People step over a homeless person to get to their job, he said. There is poverty and racism "in Technicolor" in the city, he said.
While there is a lot of loneliness in the city, there is loneliness in the suburbs, too, he said. Every time people add technology to the suburbs, they put more distance between themselves. There are very few places where people cross each other’s paths; the soccer field has become the crossroads, where people meet and interact, he said.
"This is a great job to reach out to people and to find people who are suffering, isolated, lonely and depressed," the Rev. Rowe said. "To me, it’s like being a kid in a candy store. The church is an opportunity to bring people together."

