2011 Strategic Initiatives
alpha usa directors
Prayer: Our First Priority
Gerard Long, Executive Director
Prayer warriors all over the world support Alpha USA, from 1,000 Ugandans praying an hour each day, to the Alpha central office starting each day with sharing and prayer. Other prayer efforts include: weekly national prayer calls; response to prayer requests posted on the Alpha website and seasons of special prayer and fasting. Initiatives for 2011 include: • A monthly prayer call for the Alpha USA Board of Directors • Partnerships with major United States prayer ministries Teaching and ministry on the work of the holy spirit in the life of a christ follower The highlight of an Alpha course is often the weekend or day away to learn about the person of the Holy Spirit, what He does and how He empowers a person to be an effective witness for Christ. In 2011 we will be: • Encouraging churches that are running successful Alpha weekends to invite other local churches to participate in the weekend, thus learning best practices. • Seeking an underwriter, such as a national hotel chain, to sponsor Alpha weekends Lighthouse Churches: Key to Alpha’s Strategic Growth Plan Seventy-one senior pastors have committed their churches to becoming Lighthouse Churches (LH) for Alpha, and we hope to add 18 more in 2011. A LH church models success in running the Alpha course and is committed to sharing, encouraging, serving and giving away the Alpha course to others in its communities. In 2011 we will be: • Encouraging the LH pastors to share best practices and to pray for one another. • Providing support for each LH pastor, including scholarships to attend International Week at HTB in London Linking Alpha Courses to the Local Church There are hundreds of specialty Alpha courses going on across the United States (e.g., Campus, Prisons, Military, Seniors, Workplace), and in 2011 we plan to link each course to a local church. We are developing ‘Champions’ for each specialty ministry in every region and we will provide local churches with guidelines on how to support the specialty courses. Regional Leadership Teams: Facilitating the Growth of Alpha Regional Leadership Teams (RLT) are comprised of senior church pastors (including Lighthouse pastors), businesspeople and an Alpha Regional Director (RD). We are developing RLT’s in 53 regions and plan to initiate an additional 13 teams in 2011. The Alpha Central Support Team provides key services to the RLTs, including data management, web, marketing, event planning and other support. In 2011 the RD’s will focus on: • Developing Lighthouse Churches • Events: Taste of Alpha, Getting Started Training and Global Alpha Training • Alpha Coaches (volunteer Alpha representatives who start, nurture and support Alpha courses) • Developing The Alpha Invitations (a community wide, cross-denominational initiative to invite entire towns and cities to Alpha introductory dinners and subsequent Alpha courses in various churches in the area) • Regional fund development
Gerard’s passion is to know Jesus Christ, to see Him glorified and to introduce as many people to Him as possible. Born in the United Kingdom and now living in the United States, Gerard started running Alpha in his home in 1995. He was a pastor for 17 years in a vibrant church in North London while also an executive at one of the world’s largest banks, HSBC. Gerard left a successful 30-year career with HSBC, as senior vice president, to lead Alpha USA in 2007. He has dedicated his life to seeing people come to Christ and is a passionate public speaker, writer and From left, Jim Charlton, Mike Singh, Susan Woller, Gerard Long visionary. Recently, Gerard partnered with Prison Fellowship Founder Chuck Colson in a groundbreaking video series for Christ followers. In October 2010, Alpha USA released Gerard’s first book, The Breakthrough. Developed in cooperation with worldrenowned business expert and bestselling author Ken Blanchard, The Breakthrough is a modern-day parable, using a simple and engaging story to communicate basic truths about God, religion, suffering and the afterlife. Gerard also recently started writing a blog on the topics of evangelization and church growth (http://blog.alphausa.org). Gerard’s next book, The Note, chronicles the tragic experience of his son’s death, and how his relationship with Christ helped him and his family through a period of pain and brokenness.
Jim Charlton, Director of Course Development
Jim caught the Alpha vision in 1998, led Alpha for a church staff, then helped start and lead Alpha USA/Chicago in 2002. Prior to Alpha, Jim had a 20-year career as a litigation attorney and partner in a Chicago area law firm. His BA is from the University of Illinois at Chicago, and his JD from DePaul University.
Mike Singh, Director of Marketing & Publishing
On an Alpha course in 2004, Mike was born again, and his wife, a Hindu at the time, gave her life to Christ. Mike spent 15 years in entrepreneurial ventures and the banking industry, most recently with HSBC. He earned a BA/BS from DePaul University and an MBA from the Kellogg School of Management.
Susan Woller, Director of Church Fulfillment, IT & Operations
God brought Susan to Alpha, and the experience changed her life. Susan spent 19 years prior to joining Alpha providing IT business solutions to Fortune 500 companies and publishing New York Times bestselling authors. She attended Illinois State University.
alpha People on the Front Lines “Everyday brings new challenges, but I go home at night filled with the satisfaction of knowing that maybe just one more person made a commitment to Christ.” –Kuda Bumhira, Marketing Project Manager, Alpha USA
Brad Jeffery, Chicago Business Executive As vice president of a Chicago-based chemical company, I offered Alpha at Work as an option for my employees. The results were impressive. We’d tried every technique over the last 20 years— corporate retreats, open book management, flex-time programs. These are beneficial, but they aren’t sustainable if you don’t have the right attitude and culture. Alpha was a catalyst in setting the tone for a culture that expanded the hearts of employees, leading to community outreach efforts such as growing a garden for a local soup kitchen, starting a youth mentoring program and holding a picnic for a local orphanage. As you impact people’s hearts, it transforms into how they conduct themselves and helps them to be more satisfied at work. 10
Nicole Sidebottom
Kudah Bumhira
Ruthina Northcutt and Betsy Swann
Janelle Hall
Linnea Smith
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