Donald Miller, 36, is the bestselling author of Blue Like Jazz: Nonreligious Thoughts on Christian Spirituality; Searching for God Knows What; To Own a Dragon; Through Painted Deserts; and most recently, A Million Miles in a Thousand Years: What I Learned While Editing My Life. His candid, often hilarious writing on life, faith and meaning has attracted a devoted cult following.
Miller grew up in Houston, the only boy in a family of women. His father took off when he was two. He examines how his father's absence shaped his life in his book, To Own a Dragon, offering the benefit of his experience to other young men growing up without fathers. After writing this piece, Miller launched The Mentoring Project to provide support for single mothers and mentors for fatherless children.
Miller's writing often tackles what it means to be human; the deceptive messages of American consumer culture; redemption; doubt; and community. He finds spiritual insights everywhere from nature documentaries to Romeo and Juliet. His ability to use his life, friends, and foibles to illuminate universal questions has invited comparisons to Anne Lamott as well as to Douglas Coupland and David Sedaris.
A sought-after speaker, Don has delivered lectures to a wide-range of audiences including the Women of Faith Conference, the Veritas Forum at Harvard University and the Veritas Forum at Cal Poly. In 2008, Don was asked to deliver the closing prayer on Monday night at the Democratic National Convention in Denver, Colorado.
Blog: www.donmilleris.com
Twitter: www.twitter.com/donmilleris
Recognized as a hip-hop pioneer, Rev Run is best known for being one-third of the legendary rap group Run-D.M.C. The group formed in 1983 in Hollis, Queens, and has sold more than 30 million albums and scored several hits. Members Run, D.M.C. and Jam Master Jay left an indelible mark on the hip-hop genre. But when Jay was murdered in 2002, Run and D.M.C. retired the group.
In 2005, Rev Run rose from the ashes and welcomed MTV into his home, where TV audiences have truly gotten to know him and his family while filming the hit show, Run's House. There have been plenty of laughs - and even a few tears - as fans have watched Run and his clan navigate through the perils of sibling rivalry, birthday parties, video games, tattoos and everything in between.
Rev Run became a born-again preacher in the early 1990's and has used his influence to promote messages of healthy yet realistic marriage and family life. He is also the author of Take Back Your Family: A Challenge to America¡¦s Parents, along with his wife, Justine Simmons and Chris Morrow.
Twitter: www.twitter.com/revrunwisdom
Reggie Joiner is the founder and CEO of the reThink Group, a nonprofit organization providing resources and training to help churches maximize their influence on the spiritual growth of the next generation. The reThink Group (www.reThinkGroup.org) provides innovative curriculum, resources and training for leaders who work with preschoolers, children, families and students. They have partners throughout the United States and eight other countries. The reThink Group is also the architect and primary sponsor of the Orange Conference (www.TheOrangeConference.com) and the Orange Tour (www.OrangeTour.org) which provide national training opportunities for senior pastors, church leaders, and ministry volunteers.
Reggie is also one of the founding pastors, along with Andy Stanley, of North Point Community Church in Alpharetta, Georgia. In his role as the executive director of Family Ministry, Reggie developed the concepts of ministry for preschoolers, children, students, and married adults over the course of his eleven years with the church. During his time with North Point Ministries, Reggie created KidStuf, a weekly environment where kids bring their parents to learn about God, as well as Grow Up, an international conference to encourage and equip churches to create relevant, effective environments for children, families, and teenagers.
Reggie is the co-author of Seven Practices of Effective Ministries (Multnomah, with Lane Jones and Andy Stanley) and the author of Think Orange: Imagine the Impact When Church and Family Collide (David C. Cook). Think Orange encapsulates Joiner's philosophy and practice of family ministry, combining the strengths of family and church to capture the hearts and minds of the next generation.
Reggie is a graduate of Georgia Southwestern College. Reggie and Debbie Joiner live in Cumming, Georgia, and have four grown children: Reggie Paul, Hannah, Sarah, and Rebekah.
Twitter: www.twitter.com/reggiejoiner
Mark Batterson serves as lead pastor of National Community Church in Washington, D.C.. Outreach Magazine recognized NCC as one of the Most Innovative and Most Influential Churches in America in 2008. One church with nine services in five locations, NCC is focuses on reaching emerging generations.
The vision of NCC is to meet in movie theaters at metro stops through the D.C. area. NCC also owns and operates the largest coffee house on Capitol Hill. In 2008, Ebenezer's was recognized as the #1 coffeehouse in the metro DC area by AOL CityGuide.
Mark has two Masters Degrees from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School in Chicago, Illinois. He is the author of best-selling book, In a Pit with a Lion on a Snowy Day. His latest release is Wild Goose Chase.
Mark is married to Lora, and they live on Capitol Hill with their three children: Parker, Summer and Josiah.
Blog: www.markbatterson.com
Twitter: www.twitter.com/markbatterson
Doug Fields has been a pastor to teenagers and ministry leader for over 30 years, serving the past 18 years at Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, California. Amidst the growing demand of speaking, writing and ministry consulting, Doug resigned from Saddleback Church in September 2009 to pursue ministry opportunities that best aligned with his gift for relational leadership and still allowed him to engage in his first love: in-the-trenches ministry to teenagers and youth workers.
Doug is the author of more than 50 books, including Purpose Driven Youth Ministry which is a Gold Medallion award- winning book and a youth ministry textbook used all over the world. He is the founder of Simply Youth Ministry, and later partnered with Group Publishing to bring these two leading youth ministry resource providers into collaboration for wider, global impact.
Of all these things, Doug would say his greatest accomplishment is marrying way out of his league to Cathy, his wife of 25 years, and having three teenage children; Torie, Cody and Cassie.
Blog/Website: www.dougfields.com
Twitter: www.twitter.com/dougfields
Perry Noble is the founding and senior pastor of NewSpring Church in South Carolina. In eight years, the church is averaging over 8,000 people during the weekend services which are held at two campuses. A third campus will be launching in late 2008 to reach even more people.
Perry is a very gifted communicator and teacher and his biblical wisdom and leadership insights exceed his years. God has given Perry a vision and a passion for helping people meet Jesus. Each week, he shares truth and life application intended specifically for you.
Perry, his wife Lucretia and their daughter, Charisse, live in Anderson, South Carolina.
Blog: www.perrynoble.com
Twitter: www.twitter.com/perrynoble
John graduated from Wheaton College and has a Master of Divinity and PhD in Clinical Psychology from Fuller Seminary. John now serves as Senior Pastor at Menlo Park Presbyterian Church, in Menlo Park, CA.
He is the author of a number of books including, When the Game is Over, It all Goes Back in the Box; If You Want to Walk on Water, You've Got to get Out of the Boat; The Life You've Always Wanted and others. John also writes periodicals for Leadership Journal and Christianity Today and speaks in a variety of venues.
John was born in Rockford, Illinois. His wife Nancy is also a seminary graduate and also served as a teaching pastor at Willow Creek Community Church. They have been married for over 25 years and are parents of three children, Laura, Mallory and John.
Nancy Ortberg served as a teaching pastor for eight years at Willow Creek Community Church in South Barrington, Illinois. During that time she lead Network, a ministry that helps people identify their spiritual gifts and find a place of service in the church and Axis, a weekly gathering for the eighteen- to twenty-something generation.
She is a founding partner of Teamworx2, a business and leadership-consulting firm that provides fast-paced, practical, and compelling sessions to leaders and their teams. Teamworx2 works with businesses, schools, nonprofits and churches to address issues of organizational effectiveness and teamwork.
Nancy is a gifted communicator who is passionate about helping people connect their beliefs with their everyday lives. A highly sought-after speaker, Nancy has been a featured presenter at the Catalyst and Orange conferences, and has been a regular contributor to Rev! Magazine.
Nancy is the author of Looking for God: An Unexpected Journey through Tattoos, Tofu, & Pronouns and, Unleashing the Power of Rubber Bands, Lessons in Non-Linear Leadership.
She and her husband, John, live in the Bay Area and have three children: Laura, Mallory, and Johnny.
Twitter: www.twitter.com/nancyortberg
David Kinnaman is the President of Barna Group. He is the author of the best-selling book, unChristian: What a New Generation Really Thinks About Christianity, and the Barna report, Teens and the Supernatural.
Since joining Barna in 1995, David has designed and analyzed nearly 500 projects for a variety of clients, including Columbia House, Compassion, Easter Seals, Habitat for Humanity, Integrity Media, InterVarsity, NBC-Universal, the Salvation Army, Sony, Thomas Nelson, Time-Life, Prison Fellowship, World Vision, Zondervan and many others.
As a spokesperson for the firm's research, he is frequently quoted in major media outlets (such as USA Today, Fox News, Chicago Tribune, New York Times, Los Angeles Times, Dallas Morning News, and The Wall Street Journal). He is also in demand as a speaker about trends, teenagers, vocation and calling, young leaders, and generational changes.
The son of a lifelong pastor, David has served in various capacities within congregations he has attended, including working with teenagers, teaching, and providing strategic consulting. He graduated from Biola University, where he served as Student Chaplain.
David and his wife, Jill, live in Ventura, California, with their three kids.
A passionate communicator with an interest in "barely organized religion," Chris currently serves as the lead pastor of Westside King's Church in Southwest Calgary where he lives along with his wife and three daughters. He is a former church planter and founder of The Project, which grew to become one of the largest young adult ministries in Canada. Chris has written no books. But he has completed Ironman USA in under twelve hours and roasts his own coffee.
Blog: www.wkc.org
Twitter: www.twitter.com/cswiersma
Dr. Michelle Anthony is a native Californian and has lived in Southern Orange County for the past 20 years along with her husband, Michael, and her two children, Chantel and Brendon. Michelle earned her B.A. from Biola University in Christian Education, her M.A. in Christian Education with an emphasis in Theology from Talbot Theological Seminary, and her Doctorate in Educational Leadership from Southern Seminary.
She has over 20 years of practical church ministry/leadership experience as a Children's/Family Pastor and is currently serving as the Pastor of Family Ministries at Rock Harbor Church in Costa Mesa, and as the Family Ministry Architect for David C. Cook Publishing. She has written over a dozen resources in Childrenís/Youth ministries and Christian education, and enjoys teaching, speaking, and serving in missions abroad.
In her free time, Michelle enjoys sailing, the beach, being with her family, and a good cup of coffee.
Twitter: www.twitter.com/truinspiration
Scott Austin is the Next+Gen pastor at Community Bible Church in San Antonio, Texas. Scott manages a family ministry team that ministers to over 3,000 kids each week, from cradle to college. After more than a decade in youth and college ministry, Scott led a team to transition the ministries at CBC from traditional models of independent age levels to one integrated ministry team. Scott was born and raised in Texas, but has never owned a horse, branded a steer, or lived in the country (it's very important to him you know this.) He and his wife Shannon, a pediatrician, live on the north side of San Antonio with their two-year-old son Chase, who is already a rock star.
After serving for almost nine years as pastor of student ministries at Cornerstone in Simi Valley, California, Chuck Bomar is now the senior pastor of Colossae Church located in Portland, Oregon. He's also the founder of CollegeLeader: an organization focused on helping local church leaders understand and embrace ministry to college-age people. Chuck has written numerous resources including, College Ministry 101: a guide to working with 18-25 year olds (YS/Zondervan). He and his wife, Barbara, have two daughters, Karis and Hope.
Blog: www.collegeleader.org
Twitter: www.twitter.com/chuckbomar
Tammy Burns is the Pastor of Family Ministries at The Ridge Faith Community, a missional community in the suburbs outside Richmond, Virginia, where she is a champion for inclusive ministry. The Ridge values including special needs individuals as a core value that stretches across the entire community... not just a program.
Chap Clark (PhD, University of Denver) is the vice provost and professor of youth, family and culture at Fuller Theological Seminary. He is also the senior editor of YouthWorker Journal, a contributing writer for Sojourner and "Red Letter Communicator," and president of ParenTeen and HURT Seminars. Chap is a speaker, trainer, consultant, as well as the author of 18 books, including When Kids Hurt: Helping Adults Navigate the Adolescent Maze (Baker, 2009), Hurt: Inside the World of Today's Teenagers (Baker Academic, 2004), Disconnected: Parenting Teens in a MySpace World, Deep Ministry in a Shallow World and the recent Deep Justice in a Broken World.
Chap has served in many diverse settings over his career, in the church, parachurch, and industry. He was on the staff of Young Life for 15 years as an Area and Regional Director. Chap has been a seminary professor for the past 18 years, during which time he also served as an executive pastor, senior pastor and a consulting producer for a New Line television reality show. He is a highly acclaimed resource for community, adult, youth and family conferences, as well as media, board, corporate and educational consulting and training.
Dee and Chap have been married for 28 years and have partnered together in ministry, speaking and writing throughout their married life. They have three grown children: Chap Jr., Rob and Katie. They make their home in Burbank, CA.
Blog: www.parenteen.com
Twitter: www.twitter.com/chapclark
Todd Clark is the founding pastor of Discovery Church in Simi Valley, California. Discovery is committed to "Thinking Orange" in every environment and has experienced many different hues of orange as they have grown from a movie theater, to a school gymnasium, to their own facility. Todd is married to his high school sweetheart Rene and they have two very unique, interesting, joy-filled children, Ruby and Cole.
Twitter: www.twitter.com/toddclark
Mike is one of the founding pastors of Discovery Church in Simi Valley, California. In his role there, he oversees the vision and leadership for Discovery's family ministry environments. He also produces and co-hosts their weekly family experience called Discovery Kidz. Mike is married to Crystal - who now, thanks to him, has the coolest name ever - Crystal Clear! They have an adorable son named Nash.
Twitter: www.twitter.com/mclear
Michael Chanley is the proud father of three awesome children and is married to his best friend. He served with honor in the Marines and currently is the Parenting and Family Minister at Southeast Christian Church in Louisville, Kentucky. He is the creator of cmconnect.org and speaks across the nation on issues related to Children's and Family Ministry.
Blog: www.cmconnect.org & www.smconnect.org
Twitter: www.twitter.com/michaelchanley
Jamey has a passion for working with students. While at the University of North Carolina he founded 180 Ministries, a multi-campus movement inspiring thousands of students toward deeper worship and devotion. From there he sensed God directing him to Moldova, a little country in eastern Europe, where he spent two and a half years building student ministry environments for a generation alienated from the Church and skeptical about God. Currently Jamey is the director of high school ministries at Buckhead Church in Atlanta, Georgia. His passion is to show students that knowing Jesus is the greatest thing on the planet and inspire them to live radically for Him.
President and Creative Director of BigStuf Productions, BigStuf Media and BigStuf Camps, Lanny has been working with kids, producing events, and creating environments for ministry for...seems like 43 years, but probably more like since 1975.
He's the brain behind the BigStuf Camps and has been the emcee/host guy for those events, as well as Atlanta Fest, DCLA, CHIC, Catalyst Conference, Orange Conference, his kid's birthday parties, and KidStuf at North Point Community Church. He does some creative consulting for a bunch of Christian and secular organizations, and his mom is really proud of him.
Most recently, Lanny founded the 410 Bridge. This non-profit organization is focused on partnering churches in America with churches in Kenya to help meet the specific needs of Kenyans. Since visiting Kenya in 2005, Lanny has had a passion to use the resources on this side of the world to help and equip people on the other side of the world.
He wrote this bio himself, and wondered why he typed it all in third person. He also figures that all the stuff in the paragraph really doesn't mean a whole lot, but that his relationship with God does.
He and his talented and creative wife, Peggy, live in Alpharetta, Georgia, and are presently enjoying the challenge of raising their three sons: Landon, Andrew, and Evan.
Blog: www.lannydonoho.com/
Twitter: www.twitter.com/lannydonoho
Adam Duckworth has been involved in family ministry for nearly ten years beginning right out of high school. Adam completed a Language Arts and Public Relations degree from the University of Toledo and then went directly into full time ministry in Southeast Michigan. He is currently the minister to children and families at First Baptist Church of Fort Lauderdale in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Adam relocated in November of 2008 from Michigan to help lead FBCFL through their Orange transition. In the summertime, you can find Adam hosting and teaching at Camp KidJam. He and his wife, Katelyn, love to spend their free time fueling their obsession with all things Disney.
Twitter: www.twitter.com/adam_duckworth
Samuel Dula has spent most of his adult life serving middle and high school students in various capacities. Upon graduation from college, he immediately began working with students all over the country, concentrating on leadership development through a non-profit organization in Atlanta, Georgia, New Generation/Youth United. He also invested several years of his life leading and building the high school ministry of Destiny Metropolitan Worship Church, where he also served as a minister.
In addition to Samuel's work in churches and other non-profit environments, he also taught middle school students in Georgia's public school system. In 2005, he transitioned into full-time ministry with Next Exit - Rewired, a vehicle he used to consult, create curricula and other resources for urban youth ministries.
Currently, he serves as the Family Pastor for Blueprint Church in Atlanta, Georgia. He and his wife Tina have one child, Myles. After their son was diagnosed with Autism, Tina launched Myles-A-Part, a nonprofit organization to assist families facing autism.
Blog: www.sammydula.com
Twitter: www.twitter.com/dulaman
Steve Fee remembers standing on a stage before his high-school peers with little musical ability and even less worship leading experience. How times change. Since the early days, he's been featured at Passion and Catalyst conferences, at 7|22, and also as worship leader at North Point Community Church in Atlanta, one of the nation's fastest growing churches. Steve is also the frontman for new INO Records signing, rock-worship band Fee, which released its debut album We Shine in 2007.
Kendra Fleming is the multi-campus Childrenís Director for North Point Ministries in Alpharetta, Georgia. In this position she oversees the ministries on each campus for Waumba Land (birth-preschool), UpStreet (K-5th grade), and KidStuf which serve over 5,000 children each Sunday. It is her passion to create irresistible environments for kids that connect them to their Heavenly Father. In addition, Kendra works with the multi-campus strategy of North Point Community Church by serving as part of the NPM leadership team.
She lives in Cumming, Georgia, with her husband Gary and their four children, Jessica, Catherine, Jack, and Emily.
Blog: www.insidenorthpoint.org/kids
Twitter: www.twitter.com/kfleming
Stuart is the director of training for XP3, the student division of The reThink Group, Inc. Prior to joining reThink, Stuart led Dash, Inc., which he founded in 2001 to create students of influence. He is the co-author of The Seven Checkpoints: Seven Principles Every Teenager Needs to Know and MAX Q: Developing Students of Influence with his pastor, Andy Stanley. Stuart can also be found every day laughing and playing with his wife, Kellee, and their three children: Grant, Chandler and Cameron. The Halls live north of Atlanta, Georgia.
Husband, dad, singer, songwriter, storyteller, painter, poet, author, actor, playwright, blacksmith, master prop and widget-builder. He can't dance or play the piano but most everything else is open for discussion. He uses humor, energy, stories and bottom line truth to inspire and teach families to integrate crucial personal beliefs into their everyday lives. He and his wife Carol live in Charlotte, NC where he ministers at Forest Hill Church, as Children's Director as well as Director of loose ends with a ministry in spontaneity, availability and interruptions.
Website: www.storyrealing.com
Twitter: www.twitter.com/thebigdealguys
Jeff Henderson is the Campus Pastor of Buckhead Church, the first multi-campus location of North Point Community Church. Prior to Buckhead Church, Jeff managed the sports & beverage marketing efforts of Chick-fil-A, Inc. He spent 15 years in marketing working for the Atlanta Braves, Callaway Gardens Resorts, Lake Lanier Islands Resorts and Chick-fil-A.
Blog: blog.buckheadchurch.org
Twitter: www.twitter.com/jeffhenderson
Jared Herd is considered by many to be one of today's freshest communicators. Over the past few years, Jared has been traveling the country sharing the hope of Jesus with a humorous and captivating approach that has reached thousands of teenagers and college students.
Hannah Joiner has been involved with The reThink Group since the beginning. She is basically the reason that Reggie knows anything about parenting and thinks she should get more credit. Hannah is currently a college student and has been involved with KidStuf dancers and singers since 1996. She is co-choreographer for 252 Basics and is on the music development team for Amber Sky Records.
Twitter: www.twitter.com/hannahjoiner
Rebekah is finishing up her senior year in high school and taking on more and more responsibilities at The reThink Group. Sheí' been involved with nearly all of the music projects at reThink either as a singer, choreographer, dancer or administrative assistant. Most recently, she has been on the leadership team working to launch and maintain Amber Sky Records. Rebekah and her dog, Boston, live in Cumming, Georgia.
Twitter: www.twitter.com/rebekahcarmen
Craig Jutila has been providing leadership and creative resources for children's ministry for over twenty years. He has served as children's pastor at two churches, most recently with Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, California, for 13 years. He has authored and contributed to more than ten books championing children's ministry.
Craig is the founder of Empowering Kids, a company that provides leadership and resources for children's leaders in the local church. He and his wife, Mary, have also founded Hadassah's Hope to help loving parents offset the cost of adopting children internationally and provide care for orphans around the world.
Craig and Mary live in southern California with their sons, Alec and Cameron, and daughter, Karimy.
Video Blog: www.liquidleadership.tv
Twitter: www.twitter.com/craigjutila
Shaun King is a very regular dude. Sometimes he says and does very dumb things and other times he has absolute near strokes of genius. Marrying his high school sweetheart, having a big family, and launching The Courageous Church are the best things he has ever done. He's not a perfect husband, dad, or pastor, but gives these things his very best shot every single day. Chasing down a home invader and nearly choking him to death is probably the dumbest thing Shaun has ever done and ranks just ahead of making the ridiculous pledge to purchase every student in an inner city Atlanta school a brand new uniform and toy this past Christmas. That was very expensive.
Shaun has been shot at, robbed, beaten within an inch of his life, and nearly killed in a head-on car crash, but just won't die. He takes this as a sign that God isn't finished with him and has decided to squeeze all of the potential out of life as a sign of his thankfulness to God for so many second chances.
Before Shaun was the pastor of The Courageous Church, he worked for nearly ten years as a motivational speaker and youth advocate for some of the leading non-profits in the country. In 2003 Shaun was recognized by the State of Georgia for speaking to more incarcerated young people than any other individual in the state when he spoke over 300 times at twenty different prisons and youth detention centers throughout the year. A regular guest commentator on NPR, Shaun is often called "The Facebook Pastor" for his creative use of social networks and technology to promote courageous causes and the Gospel message.
Blog: www.shauninthecity.com
Twitter: www.twitter.com/shaunking
Darren Kizer is in awe of the privilege of being a husband, father, pastor and follower of Jesus. His pastoral role at Parker Hill Community Church in Scranton, Pennsylvania, has him leading the Family Ministries Team and strategizing with the Leadership Team. He is driven by the essential question: "What must we do within Lackawanna County to become the single greatest influence upon its families and to make a significant God impact on the county's 10,000 high school students?" His life journey has led him through Bible college, a hilarious masters degree in recreation, one heck of a good time as the director of a summer camp, inspiring years as manager of a wilderness leadership organization, and now onto the pursuit of a doctor of education degree focused upon family ministry internships and advocacy. He enjoys family time with his bride, Becky, and teenagers, Brynn and Tucker.
Twitter: www.twitter.com/darrenkizer
Christine Kreisher serves as Director of Family Ministries at Glad Tidings Church in Reading, Pennsylvania, where she works with hundreds of volunteers to create relevant environments for families to learn the life-changing truth of God's Word. Christine also produces and co-hosts their quarterly, out-of-the-box, family experience called "Family Fusion." Her passion to reach unchurched families is evident in the way that she dedicates her time to develop outreach events that attract thousands of people annually.
Christine received her formal life coach training at Coach University, the leading global provider of coach training programs. She has been the featured speaker for numerous local, regional, and statewide organizations. Her workshop topics include: volunteer recruitment, team building, and leadership. Her diverse life and business experiences have made it possible for her to connect with clients and audiences ranging from church leaders and volunteer teams to corporate executives.
Christine is married to her best friend and business partner, Jim. They have three incredible boys and never a dull moment!
Twitter: www./twitter.com/christinekreish
After serving as the Director of MarriedLife at North Point Community Church in Alpharetta, Georgia, Ted Lowe has recently started an organization called MarriedPeople. MarriedPeople is partnering with Reggie Joiner and The reThink Group to create resources and training tools for leaders that work with married couples. Ted Lowe lives in Cumming, Georgia, with his four favorite people: his wife, Nancie, and their 3 three children: Chapman, Judson, and Teddie.
Twitter: www.twitter.com/tedlowe
Cara has a varied background in education and ministry. She enjoys learning and working alongside kids, adults and families. For many years, Cara served as the early childhood director at Irving Bible Church where she also led the church's initiative to reach more families.. Currently, she is a researcher and creative contributor, writer and developer for many projects at The reThink Group. Cara and her husband, Kevin, have two kids and live in Flower Mound, Texas.
Blog: www.orangeleaders.com
Twitter: www.twitter.com/caramartens
Mark Matlock has been working with youth pastors, teens, and parents for two decades. He speaks to thousands of students around the world each year attempting to accelerate the acquisition of wisdom in the lives of teens. Mark is the president and founder of WisdomWorks and leader of Youth Specialties' PlanetWisdom conferences. This spring 250 seasoned youth pastors have been trained to present Real World Parent seminars across the country aiming at helping families live in the story of God. He's the author of several books including Real World Parents, The Wisdom On... series, Living a Life That Matters, Don't Buy The Lie, Freshman, and Smart Faith. Mark currently lives in Texas with his wife Jade and their two children.
Blog: www.planetwisdom.com/blog
Twitter: www.twitter.com/markmatlock
Sue Miller joined The reThink Group, Inc. in 2005. She and her family moved to the Atlanta area after 16 years of leading the Promiseland ministry at Willow Creek Community Church in Barrington, Illinois. Her responsibilities included leading and directing a ministry that involved 3,000 children and 1,000 volunteers. Sue was instrumental in leading the change process that grew Promiseland into a cutting edge, contemporary children's ministry. The story of how all that happened is told in her book, Making Your Children's Ministry the Best Hour of Every Kid's Week.
Jackie Mills-Fernald, Director of Access Ministry of McLean Bible Church, leads one of the largest ministries in the United States, serving hundreds of families affected by disability in the Washington, DC area. Through her advocacy for inclusion of the disabled in the church and community, Jackie has become a sought after speaker, trainer and consultant for developing disability ministries. Jackie is also Program Coordinator for Jill's House, a McLean Bible Church sponsored respite care/therapy center due to open in 2010. The center will provide overnight short-term respite care for up to 30 children with special needs along with areas for therapeutic programming, recreation and other services. In 2007, Jackie organized the Capital Area Disabilities Ministries, a coalition of 20 Washington, DC area churches interested in improving access for people with disabilities. Lecrae Moore is a Christian rap artist signed to Reach Records. Lecrae resides in Memphis, Tennessee hosting hip-hop related events, volunteering at the local juvenile detention center, and engaging with ReachLife Ministries. Also, as a member of the 116 Clique, Lecrae ministers at various campus and community venues. He has received two nominations at the 2007 GMA Dove Awards. One was for his song, "Jesus Muzik", which also featured Trip Lee; and the other nomination was for his second album, After the Music Stops. He has recently been nominated for Hip Hop/Rap Recorded Album of the Year by the 2009 GMA Dove Awards.
Website: www.reachrecords.com
Twitter: www.twitter.com/lecrae
Carey Nieuwhof is the senior pastor of Connexus Community Church with campuses in Barrie and Orillia, Ontario. Prior to opening Connexus in 2007, Carey served as lead pastor of Trinity Community Church for twelve years. Before moving into fulltime ministry, he worked in law and broadcasting. Carey has a passion for seeing peopleís lives changed as they encounter Christ. He and his wife, Toni, live in East Oro, Ontario, with their two sons. His family outshines him in skiing, mountain biking, hiking, water skiing and more, but he does everything he can to keep up with them.
Blog: connexuscommunity.typepad.com/carey_nieuwhof/
Twitter: www.twitter.com/cnieuwhof
As one of the original actors in the KidStuf family production, Greg was a key voice in developing the concept of family experiences that communicate at different levels with children and their parents. Working directly with Reggie Joiner, Greg was also KidStuf's first director and writer as he served on staff at North Point Community Church for eight years before joining The reThink Group.
Misty Phillips has over 25 years of experience in children's ministry - first as volunteer, then pastoral staff directing children's leadership teams with an average of 500 children weekly. In her last role, she worked to launch My First Look, 252 Basics and a family experience environment. Misty is an expert on training and motivating volunteers, small group leaders, large group storytellers and hosts and worship leaders. Most recently, Misty joined the staff of The reThink Group as a Partner Development Director, sharing her ministry experience and knowledge with churches around the country to help them win. She is a Missouri native currently living in St. Louis, happily married for 30 years to Tim, mom of 4 awesome kids and grandmother to 2!
Twitter: www.twitter.com/mistyp01
Gina is the children's director at Browns Bridge Community Church in Cumming, Georgia. She currently leads a team of 400 volunteers and approximately 900 kids each Sunday. She and her husband Kevin have been involved at North Point for the past 13 years and have 3 children.
Kevin Ragsdale serves on the Leadership Team for North Point Ministries and is the Multi-Campus High School Director of North Point Community Church, Buckhead Church, and Browns Bridge Community Church (all in the Atlanta area). Kevin was one of the first Family Ministry employees at North Point and developed the student ministry philosophy built around a small-group model. In addition to leading a staff on three campuses that is responsible for over 1,100 high school students in small groups every week, Kevin is currently leading his fourth small-group of guys (heís already graduated three). He also designs environments and oversees curriculum development for weekly programs as well as special events. Kevin and his wife, Gina, live in Cumming, Georgia, with their three children.
After working in secular production for TV and radio, including the 1996 Olympics, Jeffrey Reed was called into full-time ministry and has worn many hats: Student pastor, children's pastor, worship leader, executive pastor, etc. He also took on the role of serving as a consultant to churches across the country for ministry and curriculum development. His specialty is working with churches that have limited or no resources. Jeffrey and his wife, Katherine, have been married for 15 years and have four children. He is a regular speaker for the reThink group at Orange and Camp KidJam.
Blog: www.jeffreyreed.org
Twitter: www.twitter.com/jeffreymreed
Yancy is an artist, songwriter and worship leader who has shared the stage with some of the music industry's brightest stars. She has the distinctive skill to lead all ages in worship. Yancy currently travels the globe sharing her music, leading worship as well as training and mentoring worship leaders. When she's not interacting with other leaders, you can find Yancy working behind the scenes with Amber Sky Records to give direction to the music and content delivered on this site. She and her husband, Cory, live in Nashville.
Twitter: www.twitter.com/yancynotnancy
John, a web developer by trade, gifting, opportunity, and choice, has been "doing" online for more than 14 years, first for numerous Fortune 50 businesses and now as the Creative Web Director for North Point Ministries. A social computing strategist and technologist, he enjoys challenging and encouraging others to see how web technology is changing how we do ministry. He blogs frequently at ChurchCrunch.com and Human3rror.com and finds Twitter (@human3rror) both a fun little nuisance and vehicle for connection.
Blogs: www.churchcrunch.com & www.human3rror.com
Twitter: www.twitter.com/human3rror
Kimberly Scales is an Atlanta native who loves the city where she grew up. She received a BA from Berry College and her Masters of Education from West Georgia. After working many years in youth service and youth leadership with schools, non-profit organizations, and local governments, Kimberly now serves as the Executive Director for a non-profit organization she founded in 2007 called "flood." Watching students serve is Kimberly's passion as she has witnessed time and time again the amazing things that take place in the heart of a student when they give back to the less fortunate. Flood has become the catalyst that allows students to have the chance to transform their own life as well as the community around them. Kimberly resides in Alpharetta with her husband (an active duty Army Reservist) and her two children: Alex, 12, and Amelia, 10.
Clay Scroggins is the Director of High School Ministries at North Point Community Church in Alpharetta, Georgia. Clay speaks frequently at North Point in a number of different environments, as well as at BigStuf camps in Panama City Beach, Florida, and at the Lighthouse Family Retreat, which serves children with cancer and their families. As well as being a graduate of Dallas Theological Seminary and Georgia Tech, Clay is a dynamic, vibrant, and gifted communicator who is passionate about challenging students to live lives that are as big as the God we serve. When he is not speaking, Clay can be found with his beautiful wife, Jenny, and a set of golf clubs or a basketball in his hands.
Tom is the North Point Ministries Multi-Campus Director of Middle School for North Point Community Church, Buckhead Church, and Browns Bridge Community Church. Tom's passion is developing young leaders as well as working with, recruiting, and developing the hundreds of volunteer small group leaders it takes to pull off Xtreme and Inside Out (North Point's middle school and high school environments). Tom and his wife Julie live in Cumming, Georgia with their three amazing kids…Mac, Joey, and Coop.
Blog: www.coachshef.com
Twitter: www.twitter.com/coachshef
Jeff is a social entrepreneur, experience designer and always innovating new cause-oriented ideas. He is passionate about communicating the needs of the impoverished and connecting them with the privileged in our culture to determine what is enough in all of life. He recently launched Plywood People, an innovative community addressing social needs through sustainable goods, awareness campaigns, and creative services. He is the co-founder of the Q event and spent three years as Brand Manager at Catalyst, the Next Generation Leadership Conference. His latest projects include starting a local coffee shop and a new form of giving: GiftCardGiver.com. Jeff lives in East Atlanta Village with his wife, Andre, and boxer, Max.
Blog: www.plywoodpeople.com
Twitter: www.twitter.com/shinabarger
Abbie is the author of Can You Keep You Faith in College and an upcoming release, Slow Fade, with Reggie Joiner and Chuck Bomar. Various experiences overseas, or alongside Passion Conferences and College Leader, have lent Abbie an array of insight. She holds degrees from Emory University and Talbot Seminar'ís Institute of Spiritual Formation and resides in Savannah, Georgia, as a writer and spiritual director.
Blog: www.conversantlife.com
Jeanne Stevens has been working in Ministry since 1991. Her adventure began while doing her undergraduate work in Chicago and working with Metro Chicago Youth For Christ. She was on staff at Willow Creek Community Church from 1995 to 2005 where she served as a Student Ministry Pastor. Jeanne now spends her time writing, speaking, leading, consulting and dreaming about the church that she and her husband are launching in Chicago - Soul City Church. Jeanne has been privileged to train ministry leaders around the globe. Jeanne is an animated and engaging communicator that is both sensitive and strong as she speaks. She is committed to helping people live and lead from their soul. Jeanne is the author of Soul School and the soon to be released book, What Lies Beneath. She has been married to Jarrett Stevens for 13 years. They have son named Elijah William and a daughter named Genevieve Grace "Gigi".
Twitter: www.twitter.com/jeannemstevens
Geoff Surratt is executive pastor of Seacoast Church, a multi-site congregation based in Charleston, South Carolina. Geoff has helped oversee Seacoast's expansion from one to thirteen locations across three states and is one of the teaching pastors. He has over 26 years of ministry experience in a variety of roles in local churches, and Geoff works frequently with other churches across the country in strategic planning and staff development. Geoff is the author of Ten Stupid Things that Keep Churches from Growing as well as co-author of the Multi-site Church Revolution and The New Normal. He lives in Charleston, South Carolina with his wife Sherry, two children Mike and Brittainy and an ugly dog named Moose.
Twitter: www.twitter.com/geoffsurratt
Sherry serves as the Director for Women's Initiatives in Leadership, where her passion for helping women reach their leadership potential shines through. She joined Leadership Network in 2008 with an extensive background in ministry, most recently serving as Central Support Pastor and Children's Ministry Pastor for the 13 campuses of Seacoast Church in Mt. Pleasant, South Carolina. Prior to church ministry, Sherry was a teacher and administrator in the Houston public school system and holds a B.A.T. from Sam Houston State University. She resides in South Carolina with her pastor husband Geoff, two beautiful children and one big, hairy dog named Moose.
Twitter: www.twitter.com/sherrysurratt
Larry Thompson is senior pastor at the 13,000-member First Baptist Church of Fort Lauderdale, at the heart of South Florida's fastest-growing residential, entertainment and business corridor. First Baptist isn't a typical downtown Baptist church, since determining to intentionally become a community of faith which reflects its larger culture. Members from more than 70 nations worship as one, and international translation is provided live and on the Internet in five languages. Larry has been on the front page of USA Today and in the past year appeared on ABC News and Fox and Friends. He and his wife Cynthia have two married daughters: Taylor, communications director for DATA (the organization behind Bono's One and Red movements) and Jennifer, who is completing her doctorate in counseling.
Andy Tilly has been involved in various aspects of ministry since 1997. He is on staff at Cross Timbers Community Church, a multi-campus church based in Argyle, Texas, as the Director of United Students & CT Kids. Andy is also the Founder and Speaker for the Xperience It! Foundation and Andy Tilly Ministries as well as the author of The Student Experience, Practical Jesus and Poser. He is currently located in the North DFW area.
Twitter: www.twitter.com/andytilly
Brian VanderArk is the senior pastor of family ministries at Ada Bible Church near Grand Rapids, Michigan. Brian has developed a comprehensive ministry strategy that coordinates parent resources and family celebrations with a curriculum for children and students. 
Tim has served for thirteen years as the children's pastor at Blythefield Hills Baptist Church just north of Grand Rapids, Michigan. Over the past ten years he and his team have transitioned from a more traditional children's ministry approach to an orange model including kid-targeted environments and a monthly family production. He and his wife Jen have two beautiful children and live in Rockford, Michigan.
Sammy Ward is from North Georgia. He began writing songs while in college in Atlanta and moved to Nashville after signing his first record deal with a division of EMI Music Group.
Ward’s hit single “It’s for You” from his album My Passion was climbing the Christian music charts shortly before the record label came to a surprising halt. God took what could have closed down a career in music and used it to not only draw Ward closer to Him but also propel Ward forward to where he now is generating serious interest in the mainstream market. Throughout all of the ups and downs Ward’s life has remained in God’s hands.
Sammy Ward has been honored to share the stage with artists and ministries such as DC Talk, Rebecca St. James, Jars of Clay, Michael W. Smith, and many more. He has also had the privilege to perform and minister at Louis Palau Festivals to audiences in the tens of thousands.
Website: www.sammyward.com
Dan Webster is an author, teacher, communicator and mentor with over 30 years of experience working with leaders from all walks of life. He has worked on the staff of two of the largest and most influential churches in America: Willow Creek Community Church, Barrington, Illinois and the Crystal Cathedral, Garden Grove, California. Additionally, Dan is the founder of Authentic Leadership, Inc.
Pirate, English major, surfer, drummer, radio-video-audio-computer tech guy who is an eclectic dictionary of music, humor and improv that creatively comes to the stage at a momentís notice. Beneath the surface lies a serious tool vault of leadership, storytelling, building, writing, and creative communication skills. On the surface, he captains his own sailboat with hat, patch, and sword. Andrew is the Producer and Director of The Big Deal at Forest Hill Church and usually gets roped into doing just about everything else. He lives in Charlotte, North Carolina, with his awesome wife, Amy and their eminently curious daughter, Elle.
Website: www.storyrealing.com
Twitter: www.twitter.com/thebigdealguys
Jim Wideman is an internationally recognized voice in children's and family ministry. He is a much sought after speaker, teacher, author, personal leadership coach, as well as church ministry consultant who has over 30 years experience in helping churches thrive. Having served for 17 years at Church on the Move in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Jim understands what it takes to grow dynamic, relevant ministries to people of all ages. Along with overseeing one of America's largest children's ministries, Jim has also held various other positions giving him a background in almost every area of the local church and Christian school. He has successfully trained hundreds of thousands of children's ministry leaders from all denominations and sizes of congregations in conferences and seminars around the world.
The International Network of Children's Pastors awarded Jim the "Excellence in Ministry Award" in 1989 for his outstanding work, and Children's Ministry Magazine in 2001 honored him as one of ten "Pioneers of the Decade" in children's ministry.
Blog: www.jimwideman.com
Twitter: www.twitter.com/jimwideman
A native Alabamian, Heather Zempel invested her parent's money and six years of her life at Louisiana State University earning bachelors and masters degrees in biological engineering. She finally left Cajun country to apply her newly acquired skills as a consultant at an environmental engineering firm and later as a policy advisor in the United States Senate. She now engineers environments that foster community and spiritual growth as the discipleship pastor at National Community Church in Washington, D.C. Heather and her talented husband, Ryan, can be found on Capitol Hill producing musical theatre and debating theology. She is the author of the small group curriculum Sacred Roads: Exploring the Historic Paths of Discipleship.
Blog: www.discipleshipgroups.blogspot.com
Twitter: www.twitter.com/heatherzempel
