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Leadership

Dr. Jonathan Brown

President

Dr. Jonathan Brown began serving as President of City Gospel Mission in 2023 after 32 years in K-12 education. Before joining City Gospel Mission, Dr. Brown was most recently Director of School Leader, Employee and Labor Relations of Cincinnati Public Schools. Throughout his career he has held several leadership and teaching positions within public school systems in Ohio and Maryland. He has a Doctor of Education from the University of Cincinnati, a Master of Education Administration, and Bachelor of Arts in Elementary Education. Dr. Brown is also the Senior Pastor of Pilgrim Missionary Baptist Church. He and his wife are the proud parents of two children. Learn more about Dr. Brown.

Barry Baker

Executive Vice President & Chief Administrative Officer

Barry Baker has over 40 years of experience in leadership and management. After receiving a degree in Mechanical Engineering, he spent 17 years in management with P&G in their Product Supply Division. Barry left P&G to work with Athletes in Action where he held several leadership positions. In 2005, he came on staff with City Gospel Mission as Vice President of Youth Programs. Currently, Barry serves as Executive Vice President and Chief Administrative Officer, overseeing administration, finance and fundraising for the organization. Barry is also a Pastor at Calvary Alliance Church. He and his wife Terri have four children and four grandchildren.

John Allbrittin

Vice President of Youth Programs

John joined the City Gospel Mission team in 2014 after retiring from his 28-year career at P&G. He leads the Whiz Kids Tutoring program. John and his wife Lisa have two children.

Angela Allen

Vice President of Church and Volunteer Partnerships

Angela is a graduate of Covenant College and Georgia Institute of Technology where she earned degrees in Natural Science and Civil Engineering. She joined City Gospel Mission in 2000 after nearly a decade of volunteering with the organization. Angela loves building partnerships with local churches to expand Christ’s Kingdom and serve the poor.

Lucretia Bowman

Executive Vice President of Community Engagement

Lucretia Bowman is the founder of Having the Courage to Change, City Gospel Mission’s recovery program for women. Lucretia is the author of Breaking the Cycle of Self Abuse, a book sharing her journey. She is a licensed pastor with more than 20 years of experience leading programs that empower men and women to discover their true identity and recover from addiction, abuse and incarceration. Lucretia and her husband Charles have two sons and one daughter.

Joshua McBride

Vice President of Recovery Services

Josh McBride is a Graduate of Taylor University. He has worked with City Gospel Mission since 2015, serving in various roles. Currently he is the Vice President of Transformational Recovery Services. Josh was raised in Cincinnati’s Over the Rhine Community, which instilled a deep desire to serve the marginalized, poor and hurting.

Paul Spence

Vice President of Development

Paul spent nine years as Executive Director of a homeless mission before bringing a passion for fundraising to City Gospel Mission. Since 2007 he has lead the Development Team to connect God’s people with the Mission’s needs. Paul and his wife, Monica, have five children and live in Forest Park.

Tim Williams

Vice President of Homeless Services

Tim Williams has worked for City Gospel Mission in different leadership, program and fundraising roles for 30 years. He is currently the Vice President of Homeless Services for both City Gospel Mission’s shelter in Cincinnati and Hope House Mission’s two shelters in Middletown. Tim and his wife Judy have five children and five grandchildren.

Kelly Wilson

Chief HR & Talent Development

Kelly started with City Gospel Mission in 2017 in Development. She moved to Human Resources in 2019, becoming the first dedicated HR staff member. Kelly is a twice graduate of University of Cincinnati, with a BA in Psychology and Master of Business Administration. She spent much of her career at Procter & Gamble as a leader in Sales and Product Supply, Purchasing. Kelly and her college sweetheart, Ken, have four children and a new daughter-in-law. She loves hospitality and how God uses it to break down barriers and connect people to Himself and one another.

Abe Woolfolk

Vice President of JobsPlus

After a celebrated tour of duty in the Navy, Abe returned to Cincinnati and grew in his faith under the leadership team of Faith Christian Center. He later served as both a Deacon and Elder. Abe joined JobsPlus in 1999 and started to work part-time at City Gospel Mission in 2002. JobsPlus merged with City Gospel Mission in 2012, and Abe became VP of JobsPlus in 2019. He currently resides in Golf Manor and is active in youth A.A.U. basketball.

2019 Board of Trustees

Not pictured: Deborah Merritt

Board of Trustees

Chair

Jonathan Adams, President, SALIX

Vice Chair

Sharon Doering, Discover Solutions, LLC

Secretary

Deborah Merritt, Executive Pastor, Christ Emmanuel Christian Fellowship

Treasurer

Dan Owens, CPA, Retired Shareholder, VonLehman & Company Inc.

Trustees

Dick Alexander, International Consultant, Christian Missionary Fellowship

Lonnie Grayson, President/CEO, Environmental Safety Solutions Inc.

David Lindner, VP Retail Marketing/Operations, United Dairy Farmers

Jason McSwain, President, McSwain Carpets & Flooring

Carla Messer, Chief Results Officer, BestWork

Rodney Swope, Chief Servant, Rod&Staff Enterprises

 

City Gospel Mission Board of Trustees members do not receive compensation or benefits for their service on the board.