2008 Innovative Impact Speakers
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Sam McKee Sam McKee is a former newspaper reporter who now loves being a pastor. He enjoys hockey, football, snowboarding and especially hanging out with his wife and their two children. He became a Christian at age 18 through a homeless man and an energetic African-American Church near Chicago. Now he loves to share the joy he’s found in Christ with anyone who’s searching for something more. Sam served as a youth pastor in Colorado after graduating from the seminary at Andrews University. From 2003 through 2008, he served as senior pastor of the Sunnyvale Seventh-day Adventist Church, which serves the people of Silicon Valley. Sunnyvale Church has a large number of young adults, many of whom work at high-tech companies like Google and Intel. Five years ago he started an innovative small group ministry called Adventure Groups, which calls members to take what they love and use it to build community and bring people one step closer to God. In the first four years, they grew from 12 groups to 36. These small groups include inline hockey, flag football, triathlons, crafting, golf, weight management, music jam sessions, creation/evolution and many other spiritual discussion groups. Sam is now the lead pastor of Epikos Church, a church plant in Vancouver, WA. www.epikoschurch.com |
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Marcellus Robinsonn Pastor Robinson has been the senior pastor of the Emmanuel-Brinklow Seventh-day Adventist Church since January 2000 following highly successful pastoral service in the Lake Region Conference of Seventh-day Adventists and as pastor of the Bladensburg Seventh-day Adventist Church in Bladensburg, Maryland. Pastor Robinson is a graduate of Andrews University and its Theological Seminary located in Berrien Springs, Michigan, where he received his Bachelor, Master, and Doctor of Ministry degrees. He was ordained to the gospel ministry in 1988; and completed his D.Min. in May 2008 Pastor Robinson is the fourth of six children born to William and Thelma Robinson of Cumberland, Virginia. In September 1979, he married Maryann Lewis, a native of Nassau, Bahamas. She is a registered nurse with advanced degrees and an active Officer in the U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps. The Robinsons have two daughters, Marquita and Marcia, who, respectively are majoring in biology and education at Oakwood College in Huntsville, Alabama. In addition to his pastoral responsibilities at Emmanuel-Brinklow, Pastor Robinson serves the wider Seventh-day Adventist Church as a member of the Executive Committees of the Allegheny East and Columbia Union Conferences and as a member of the North American Division Human Relations Committee. He also serves on the Board of the Washington Adventist Hospital. He is the Area Leader for the Washington Metropolitan Area Ministerium of the Allegheny East Conference |
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Eric Brown As a servant of Jesus Christ, Eric Brown has been following his passion of growing people in God as a local church pastor since 1994. He, his wife Robin and their two children Aaron and Alyssa currently live in Riverside California where he has served as Senior Pastor to the Riverside Community Church since 2005. Eric is a certified coach trainer with Coachnet and NADEI. He has extensive experience helping churches grow to health through the Natural Church Development process. A church planter at heart, he began his ministry in an innovative church plant for young adults near Boise State University in Idaho. He has continued to support church planting by successfully spawning a daughter church in the Boise area and has hopes to do so from his church in Riverside. Eric’s last two assignments have provided extensive experience in helping churches find recovery from deep trauma and conflict. If he’s not in the church office you might find him on the back of a horse or elbow deep in sawdust with some woodworking project. |
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Charles Wesley Knight Dr. Charles Wesley Knight is a pastor with a heart for God and a message of hope for the world. He believes strongly in equipping the church to accomplish their mission in the world. Pastor Knight was called to preach when he was 16 years old and now he serves as the senior pastor of the Mt. Rubidoux Seventh-day Adventist Church, a dynamic and progressive community of people who are committed to the kingdom of God. Through the Holy Sprit’s leadership, the church has just purchased an 8 million dollar facility featuring two sanctuaries, a gymnasium, two playgrounds, and an administrative building. Pastor Knight has a passion for preaching, leadership development, youth ministry, and community activism. He also holds a Masters in Divinity with an emphasis in preaching and a Doctoral degree from McCormick Theological Seminary. He is married to the former Stephanie Johnson from Orlando, FL who works as an occupational therapist. They have a 7 year old girl named Princess Aja and a 4 year old son, Charles Ajani. |
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Roger Hernandez For the last 6 years, Roger Hernandez pastored one of the fastest growing congregations in the NAD, the Hillsboro Spanish SDA Church, which has given birth to The Rock, a multicultural , 2nd Generation Church that meets in the same campus. His passions are healthy, spirit filled, comunity centered churches, in which a "Commision Culture" is lived. Married to Kathy, father to Jonathan, Vanessa, and Deisy, he is transitioning to leading the Hispanic Ministries for the Oregon Conference, with a vision for church planting, targeting the 2nd Generation, as well as empowering local leadership to engage the community in relevant ways. |
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Dr. Carlton P. Byrd
Dr. Carlton P. Byrd, an ordained minister of the Seventh-day Adventist Church, is a graduate of Oakwood University (formerly Oakwood College) in Huntsville, AL with dual degrees, a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Theology and a Bachelor of Science Degree in Business Management. He is also a graduate of Andrews University (SDA Theological Seminary) in Berrien Springs, MI, where he earned both the Master of Divinity Degree and the Doctor of Ministry Degree, and a graduate of Tennessee State University in Nashville, TN, where he earned the Master of Business Administration Degree. |
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Fredrick A. Russell Now in his 27th year of ministry, Russell, a graduate of Oakwood University, is a longtime pastor and sought-after speaker. He also holds a Master of Science in Management with an emphasis in managerial leadership from National-Louis University in Chicago. He started his ministry in Allegheny West as associate pastor of the Shiloh Seventh-day Adventist Church in Cincinnati. He then went on to pastor the Cleveland Heights church (now called Temple of Praise), Park Street church in Oberlin, Ohio; Bethel church in Akron; and Ethan Temple in Dayton. Twelve years ago, he accepted a call to serve as senior pastor of Allegheny East Conference’s (AEC) Miracle Temple in Baltimore. |
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Jesse Wilson Dr. Jesse Wilson is the Co-Visionary of the Innovative Impact confereces. For years he has been on the cutting edge of church growth, multi-media ministry, and community-church relationships. As a licensed church growth consultant,he travels the country equipping church ministers and members to maximize their gifts for the purpose of mission. Currently Dr. Wilson is Associate Professor of Religion in the areas of Church Growth and Evangelism at Oakwood University in Huntsville, Alabama. He is also the Coordinator of the Doctor of Ministry cohort in Urban Ministries at Andrews University in Berrien Springs,Michigan. |