Shantha Ready Alonso

Interim Coordinator and Ex Officio Member

Shantha comes from an ecumenical family and has lived questions of Christian unity and diversity since birth. Shantha brings to her work a strong interest in liberation theologies and a background in congregation-based community organizing. As Vice Chair of the World Student Christian Federation, she convenes the WSCF global Advocacy and Solidarity Committee. During her studies at Eden Theological Seminary and her 2008 internship at the National Council of Churches, Shantha became very involved in laying groundwork for the first gathering of the New Fire Network, and has been involved since. She began serving as Interim New Fire Coordinator in December, 2009. Wildflowers, hiking, conversations over coffee, singing, NPR, and quality time with her husband Jaime are a few things that make Shantha smile.

 

Beth Balcombe

Fundraising/Communications Team Member

Beth grew up in Edmonton, Alberta Canada and graduated from Concordia University College of Alberta with a Degree in Business, specializing in Human Resources. Currently she is working at Alberta Innovates – Technology Futures as the HR Coordinator. Beth has always been active in her church from being a member of the choir, fundraising for various organizations, scripture reading and being a part of the UCW. She was fortunate enough to be selected to be a steward for the World Council of Churches General Assembly in Geneva Switzerland this past summer. Beth is relatively new to the ecumenical movement but is excited to roll up her sleeves and dive in!

 

Caitlin Reilley Beck

Ecumenical Formation and Leadership Development Team Member

Caitlin is a student at Yale Divinity School and the Institute of Sacred Music. She has degrees in mission studies and interreligious dialogue, as well as liturgical studies and hopes to add a degree in Eastern Christian studies beginning next fall. Besides all of her academic work, she has planned worship and music for a number of parishes, theological schools and conferences in Canada, the United States and the United Kingdom. In June 2010 she will be attending the Edinburgh Mission Conference as one of nine delegates from the Anglican Communion. She has also been involved in parish and diocesan youth ministry in her hometown of Ottawa, ON. For recreation, she sings in choirs and acapella singing groups in New Haven, CT and Ottawa.

 

Jordan Blevins

Co-moderator and Fundraising/Communications Team Member

Jordan is currently assistant director of land and water programs, as well as coordinator of the poverty initiative for the National Council of Churches, U.S.A. Jordan also oversees the internship program of the Washington Office. Previously, he was a legislative intern at the Church of the Brethren's Witness/Washington office, where he participated in a Faith Expedition to Vietnam, and did follow up reporting and helped create a Brethren Water and Sanitation project in that area through the Global Food Crisis Fund. Additionally, he was manager of Cokesbury Bookstore in Washington, DC, as well as a grassroots fundraiser for Grassroots Campaigns, Inc. Jordan holds a BA in Philosophy and Religion and a BS in Business Administration from Bridgewater College, and recently graduated from American University and Wesley Theological Seminary, with a Master of Arts degree in International Peace and Conflict Resolution, and a Masters of Theological Studies, respectively. He is an active member of the Church of the Brethren, serving on the Board of Directors of On Earth Peace, and the Young Adult Steering Committee. Jordan also served on the Young Adult Task Force of the US Conference of the World Council of Churches, and is currently pursuing a Doctorate of Ministry in Ecumenism and Interreligious Dialogue at Wesley Theological Seminary.

 

Flavia D'Souza

Ecumenical Formation and Leadership Development Team Member

Flavia is the Field Organizer for the Northeast region for Bread for the World. Before joining Bread for the World staff, she served as a Community Organizer, with Youth Ministries for Peace and Justice, a Christian community based organization situated in the South Bronx, New York. There she worked with staff and community residents to develop and implement a model for Community Organizing. She facilitated indigenous leadership development; gathered community residents, employees, business owners, appointed and elected officials to determine and build community consensus; Strategized campaigns; and Supported residents as they challenged the political establishment to improve the Bronx River and Soundview communities in the South Bronx. She earned her Bachelor of Arts Degree in Biology from Wesleyan University in Middletown, CT. At Wesleyan she served as the Captain for the Women’s Varsity Crew team, a Senior Interviewer for Wesleyan Office of Admissions and Community Advisor for the Office of Residential Life. In her spare time, Flavia enjoys reading and memorizing vegetarian recipes, Capoeira, humming gospel music and backpacking.

 

Robyn Fickes

Co-Chaplain and Ecumenical Formation and Leadership Development Team Member

Robyn is the Associate Minister at First Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in Omaha, Nebraska. Through the love and encouragement she found in an ecumenical church camp and supportive family, Robyn accepted a call to ministry. Pursuing her theological education at Texas Christian University and Vanderbilt Divinity School, Robyn had the honor and joy to dive deeply into the academic study of religion, while also being supported to continually renew and re-juvenate her faith. She was challenged and encouraged to experience the depth of God’s diversity when working ecumenically and globally as a campus minister and hospital chaplain, as well as in her travels to Ghana, Bosnia, and Herzegovina, and Venezuela. She was moved by the complexity and power of God’s unity while serving as a Young Adult Steward to the WCC Central Committee meeting in Geneva, Switzerland, 2008. From this experience, Robyn served on the WCC US Conference Young Adult Task Force where she helped lead New Fire 2008 & 2009. She has also attended Ecumenical Advocacy Days and helped facilitate young adult gatherings at the 2009 and 2010 vents. She believes that we are called to live, work, and be together. We learn how to do this by joining in our church communities, sharing our faith perspectives, and genuinely listening to one another. Partnering with her congregation, Robyn finds God’s compassionate, transformative love is most revealed when a local community joins in ministry with others. Through these partnerships we, together, become the body of Christ.

 

Ashley George

Local Ecumenism and Outreach Team Member

Ashley currently serves as a Diocesan Council Member, Mission Board Convener, and a National Council of Churches for Christ USA Representative for the Diocese of North America & Europe of the Mar Thoma Church. He was born and raised in New Jersey and has been a life-long member of the Mar Thoma Church. Ashley has served as a Praise & Worship Leader, Sunday School Teacher, and Youth Fellowship Secretary for his local parish (St. Peter’s Mar Thoma Church, NJ) and the Diocesan Youth Fellowship. He also served as the General Convener of the National Mar Thoma Youth Conference held at Rutgers University in August 2004. As Mission Board Convener, Ashley coordinates the mission programs of the Diocese of North America & Europe in its Mexico Mission, Native American Mission, India Mission, and Neighborhood Missions that include Medical Mission, Prison Ministry, and Campus Ministry. Ashley is an I.T. professional managing an operating systems support area for a private bank and brokerage in New Jersey. Because of his I.T. knowledge and experience, Ashley has been appointed Convener of the I.T. Fellowship of the Diocese of North America & Europe, in order to organize I.T. professionals and students to assist the church to better use technology to spread the Good News of Jesus Christ. Ashley is engaged to a member of his local parish and is planning to get married in July 2010.

 

Michael Heller

Co-Chaplain and Local Ecumenism and Outreach Team Member

Michael joins us from the Presbyterian Church (USA). Michael is a native of Omaha, NE, and grew up involved in the life of the church. Michael spent summers at Calvin Crest Camp and Conference Center and most Wednesday nights at church for a mid-week program. As he got older he became more involved in leadership roles in his local church community. Michael also became more interested in the Reformed Christian tradition of theology and spirituality and where it intersects with other Christian traditions. Michael has a BA from Creighton University (Omaha, NE) in Theology and an MA in Christian Spirituality from Creighton University also. Michael regularly teaches Sunday school for all ages and is the chair of the Christian Education committee of his church. Michael also serves on the Theology and Worship Committee of the Presbytery of Missouri River Valley of the PC(USA). Michael's ecumenical experience includes working as a Young Adult Steward for the 2009 NCCC/CWS General Assembly in Minneapolis, MN, working with Christian students from many backgrounds at Creighton University Campus Ministry, and he will serve as a Steward for the Uniting General Council of the newly forming World Communion of Reformed Churches. Michael is an ordained Elder and serves on the session of Underwood Hills Presbyterian Church, Omaha, NE.

 

Kara Hildebrandt

Member

Kara is the Associate Pastor for Christian Education at The Presbyterian Church in Bowling Green, Kentucky. She is a recent graduate of Vanderbilt Divinity and also holds a Master of Education. Kara has been heavily involved in the leadership of the Academy of Preachers, and serves the task force as a liaison between the Academy and New Fire. Kara is married to Jan (pronounced Yon) who is from Prague, Czech Republic and is currently working on a second master’s in Medieval Studies. They both enjoy traveling to Europe and the Boston area to visit family. Kara also enjoys snowboarding during the winter and rock-climbing year around. Kara believes that Christian Education is vital to the health and well being of the church. Learning how God interacts with the world and with ourselves brings a knowledge of peace and joy that furthers the love of God.

 

Orenthious Hill

Ecumenical Formation and Leadership Development Team Member

Orenthious has a great interest in learning and living the word of God, and discerning how it applies to his life and his community. Orenthious is a member of Mayflower African Methodist Episcopal Church in Havana, Florida, which is a rural community twelve miles east of Tallahassee. Orenthious' local community ministry focuses on helping school-aged children and young adults transition their relationship with God to higher levels of understanding. Orenthious’ work within the AME Church is through the Young Peoples and Children’s Division, the Richard Allen Young Adult Council, and the Lay Organization. He is the former Global Mission and Witness chairperson for the Young Peoples and Children’s Division, in which his vision and platform was to provide clean drinking water to those in Africa, establish food banks for the homeless and less fortunate, and do clothing drives. Outside of his work in the African Methodist Episcopal Church, Orenthious was selected to be a Steward to the 2009 General Assembly of the National Council of Churches, and also took part of the New Fire Gathering of 2009. Orenthious describes himself as an open-minded, self-motivated, hard-working, and faith-led individual. He is a history major at Florida State University.

 

Lauren Hodgeson

Local Ecumenism and Outreach Team Canadian Co-Convener

Lauren Hodgson joins us from the United Church of Canada and is currently pursuing a Masters of Divinity at Emmanuel College in Toronto, Ontario. Born and raised in the UCC, Lauren has been active in the life and ministry of the church – at both local and national levels – since she was a young teen. Lauren is deeply passionate about creative young adult engagement in ministry and has recently become involved in the ecumenical movement during a field placement with the Canadian Council of Churches. This coming year, Lauren will spend four months on internship in Kenya working with the Kenya Alliance for the Advancement of Children’s Rights. She is a certified yoga instructor and embraces any opportunity to share her love of the yoga practice with others. Originally from Vancouver, BC, Lauren has always adored the outdoors – especially gardening, biking, running and any time spent near the ocean!

 

Allison Johnson

Campaign Coordinator for Christians for Comprehensive Immigration Reform

Allison works with clergy, denominations, organizations and individuals to support and advocate for fair and humane immigration reform. She provides training and resources to groups around the country and works to strengthen existing efforts within the church. She also seeks to build bridges between diverse groups of Christians and has a passion for seeing communities transformed by the power of people of faith taking action together. She is a graduate of the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, MN with a degree in Justice and Peace Studies and Spanish. She has been at Sojourners since fall of 2007 and is a proud Sojourners Internship Program alumna. She is a native of Minnesota and grew up in the ELCA Lutheran tradition. She enjoys travel, family and friends, and taking advantage of all the free events DC has to offer.

 

Nick Kiger

Local Ecumenism and Outreach Team Member

Nick serves as the Assistant Regional Director for the Ohio region of Church World Service. Before coming to CWS, Nick served as Director of Youth Ministries at the Salvation Army of Licking County in Newark, OH and Youth Pastor at Livingston United Methodist Church in downtown Columbus, OH. Nick is a member of the United Church of Christ where he is in the beginning stages of the ordination process. Nick graduated from Otterbein College with a BA in Religious Studies and from Methodist Theological School in Ohio with a Master of Theological Studies in New Testament. His educational background allows him to stay very involved with biblical research, and he is currently working on an article addressing the influence of Greco-Roman mystery religions on early Christianity. Nick’s passion for the ecumenical movement focuses on the amazing things that people of faith can do when they come together. Nick is shaped by his experiences in Rwanda and Kenya where he participated in and led service learning projects through Otterbein College. Nick and his wife Misty have set up the Rwandan Friend’s College Fund which strives to provide college funding for victims of the 1994 genocide. Currently the first student is in his third year of university. In his spare time Nick enjoys Chicago Cubs baseball, SCUBA, bluegrass music, triathlon and traveling all over the world with his wife Misty.

 

Sam Martinez

Co-chaplain and Communications/Fundraising Team Member

Church: it’s the one thing Sam has always known. Sam’s parents (Dallas-raised Latino dad, and South Arkansas-bred white mom) met at Bible college and have lived in service to the church. Sam specialized in Biblical Studies as an undergrad and entered full-time church work at 19. While in college and after the events of 9/11, Sam renewed his commitment to follow the Jesus, this time with a passion for peace and striving for justice. Presently, he is an ordained minister with the Assemblies of God and the minister of students and young adults at First Assembly of God, Dallas, Texas. Sam also works on the leadership team of Pentecostals and Charismatics for Peace and Justice and has been a member of other ecumenical groups such as the Society for Pentecostal Studies, the Ekklesia Project, and Evangelicals for Social Action.

 

Carrie Chefas McClain

Communications/Fundraising Team Member

Although a committed Christian from a young age, Carrie was only peripherally involved in church. For the most part, her faith was nurtured through family, friends – and C.S. Lewis! Carrie grew up in Tampa, FL and attended Northwestern University in Evanston, IL. After undergrad, Carrie served as an AmeriCorps VISTA with LIFT, a non-profit organization that mobilizes college students to help fight poverty in their local community. Carrie then worked as a government contractor with the U.S. Department of Labor before God called her to pursue a Masters in Divinity at North Park Theological Seminary (NPTS) in Chicago, IL. While a student at NPTS, Carrie became increasingly interested in issues of social justice and ecumenism. She hopes to work in one or both of these areas upon graduation – either in a church or a non-profit. Carrie is a health food junkie and loves cooking, swimming, yoga, history and the arts. She is excited to be a part of New Fire and serve as a liaison to Christian Churches Together in the U.S. as well as The Evangelical Covenant Church.

 

Rachel Medema

Local Ecumenisms and Outreach Team Member

Rachel is a graduate student at San Francisco Theological Seminary and Graduate Theological Union and she has been involved in several ecumenical efforts in the last few years. Following college she had the opportunity to serve as an intern at Sojourners in Washington D.C. and at the World Council of Churches in Geneva, Switzerland. These experiences inspired a great passion for ecumenical life and fellowship. Rachel has served as a coordinator for young adults at Christian Churches Together in the U.S., the planning team for New Fire 2009 and is the Co-Chair of the North American Region for World Student Christian Federation. She is currently finishing her M.Div. and M.A. and is consumed with a thesis on immigration issues during the 2009-2010 school year and hopes to work in social justice education with college students when she graduates.

 

William Miller

Co-Moderator and Ecumenical Formation Team Member

William is a son of the south. A native of Charleston, SC, aspirations to receive a quality secondary education along with hard work took him to Winston-Salem State University, where he graduated in 2008 with a B.S. in Business Administration. Currently, he is a Master of Divinity student at Drew University in Madison, NJ where he is active as an intern with the Black Methodist Heritage Center, Theological Admissions, Communities of Shalom, and the Black Ministerial Caucus. A fourth generation minister in the African Methodist Episcopal Church (A.M.E.), he began his work in ministry on December 26, 2004. In addition to being active in many aspects of AME life, William is relatively new to the ecumenical movement, but hopes to gain a strong start through his involvement with New Fire. His current plans are to serve within the parish ministry of the African Methodist Episcopal Church, become an entrepreneur and work as a community relations consultant to faith-based organizations and corporations. William’s passions in life include but are not limited to traveling, studying history, writing, cooking, and the overall pursuit of happiness.

 

Juliana M. Mecera

Local Ecumenism and Outreach Team U.S. Co-Convener

Juliana grew up in Columbus, OH. At Ohio Wesleyan University, she wrote her thesis on Orthodox Christian-Wesleyan consultations, and provided leadership in many ecumenical gatherings. At St. Vladimir’s Orthodox Theological Seminary in New York, she led Inter-Seminary Dialogues. At the 2009 Orthodox Theological Society in America meeting, she presented her M.A. thesis on the October 2007 letter from 138 Muslim scholars to Christian leaders around the world. Since fall of 2008, Mecera has been heavily involved in the National Council of Churches’ (NCC) Commission on Faith & Order and Interfaith Relations, and among other projects and publications, has developed a program called “Faith Forum” to encourage grass-roots ecumenical dialogue among near-by congregations. She was selected to be a Steward at the NCC General Assembly in 2008 and WCC General Assembly in 2009. She has also served as a proxy delegate to the NCC for the Orthodox Church in America. Currently, Mecera is working on her Master of Sacred Theology at Union Theological Seminary. Beyond ecumenism, Mecera’s personal passion is for women’s roles within the Orthodox Church. Mecera’s long-term goals include living abroad, college chaplaincy work, a Ph.D. in theology, and teaching undergraduate and seminary students.

 

The Rev. Garland F. Pierce

Staff and Ex Officio Member

Garland is Senior Program Director for Education and Leadership Ministries of the National Council of Churches USA. Garland F. Pierce has been active in the leadership of the World Council of Churches. In 1995, he joined the staff of the WCC U.S. Office in New York. His travels during his tenure as a member of the WCC staff, and later as an AME delegate and member of the Commission on World Mission and Evangelism, included meetings in Brazil, Zimbabwe, Thailand, Tonga, Cuba, Greece and elsewhere. Before he joined the WCC U.S. Office, Pierce was Youth Minister at Greater Bethel AME Church in Nashville from 1994-1995. He was a curriculum Resource Specialist in the AME Department of Christian Education in Nashville from 1993-1995. Pierce holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Furman University, Greenville, S.C., and the Master of Divinity degree from Vanderbilt University in Nashville, and he is a Ph.D student at Claremont Graduate University, Claremont, CA. He was interim director of the Claremont McNair Scholars Program in 2002. Pierce served as Youth Minister of First AME Church, Pasadena, CA. Pierce joined the National Council of Churches staff in 2003 as associate director of the Education and Leadership Ministries Commission. His responsibilities then included program ministry administration and planning, program interpretation, advocacy for Christian education, leader development and ecumenical formation, staff support for the NCC Inclusiveness and Justice Standing Committee, and staff support to NCC General Assembly Caucuses, Young Adult, Racial/Ethnic, and Historic Black Churches.

 

Craig Talmage

Local Ecumenism and Outreach Team Member

Craig is in his final year of this two-year presidency of Lutheran Student Movement-USA. LSM-USA is an organization devoted to student leadership and Lutheran and Christian unity. Craig is a second year graduate student at Minnesota State University, Mankato where he studies Industrial/Organizational Psychology. This discipline works to better organizational effectiveness and employee well-being. Craig is also actively involved in Lutheran Campus Ministry. In the future, Craig hopes to start a consulting firm that is dedicated to helping non-profit and community organizations at low-costs.

 

Ann Tiemeyer

Program Director of Women’s Ministries
The National Council of Churches in Christ in the USA

The Rev. Ann Tiemeyer serves as the Program Director for Women’s Ministries at the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA (NCC). The NCC is a community of thirty-six Anglican, Orthodox, Protestant, Historic African-American and Peace churches united by a common witness to the Christian faith and a cooperative effort in the ministries of education, service and witness www.ncccusa.org. In her capacity at the NCC she facilitates the NCC Justice for Women Working Group which has four focus areas: domestic violence, human trafficking, poverty and language – inclusive & expansive. Rev. Tiemeyer has also developed the NCC Young Women’s Leadership Experience program that networks women of faith ages 18 to 30 by providing information and opportunities to participate in ecumenical justice and advocacy events. Rev. Tiemeyer was ordained in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) and holds a B.A. degree in Theater and Sociology from Wittenberg University. Her Master’s of Divinity degree was earned at Yale Divinity School, where she also received an excellence in preaching award. More information about the Women’s Ministries program can be found on the NCC website at ncccusa.org/womensministry or become a friend on facebook at “Ncc Women’s Ministries”.