FOUNDRY UNITED METHODIST CHURCH - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Board Vice President and Personnel Committee Chair
Job Titles:
- Member of the Nominating Committee
Beth Bingham began to see Hagar of the Old Testament in a new way after studying The CEB Women's Bible.
Suddenly she wasn't just the servant who bore Abraham a child when his wife Sarah couldn't. She was, essentially, the Bible's first single mom - one who had to leave the house because tensions were so high.
Job Titles:
- Project Coordinator for Digital Engagement
Job Titles:
- Member of the Nominating Committee
Job Titles:
- Chairman of the Governance Committee
Job Titles:
- Chairman of the Audit Committee
Job Titles:
- Manager
- Foundry 's Audio / Visual Manager
Eric Lee first joined Foundry in 2015 as a part-time Audio/Visual technician. In 2018, he was promoted to Audio/Visual Team Lead, and he joined the team full time as Audio/Visual Manager in 2020.
Eric grew up near the Jersey shore in Middletown, New Jersey (home of Jon Stewart, Jon Bon Jovi, and other famous New Jerseyans). He earned a BA in Audio Production from nearby American University. While a student, Eric was Recognized for Excellence in Live Sound in 2015 by the American University Audio Technology program.
From 2015-2020, Eric worked as a full-time freelance audio engineer, primarily in live event production. Although his background and primary body of work is in audio, he also has high-level experience in live audio and video production. He has produced live events for Fortune 500 companies; Vice Presidents Kamala Harris and Mike Pence; congresspeople including John McCain, Cory Booker and Elizabeth Warren; and government bodies such as the US Treasury and FTC.
As Foundry's Audio/Visual Manager, Eric especially enjoys working for an organization that makes a deep and direct impact on peoples' lives. He loves being able to see and hear from folks who have been reached by the work performed by his team.
Eric is also a musician, and has played guitar for over 20 years. He also enjoys playing the bass, ukulele, drums, vocals, and synthesizers. Additionally, he has experience producing, recording, and mixing music of various genres, and has played at well-known venues such as the famous Stone Pony in Asbury Park, New Jersey.
He lives in Northwest D.C. with his partner Amy.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Nominating Committee
Job Titles:
- Social Justice Programs Manager
Job Titles:
- Senior Operations Manager
Job Titles:
- Executive Assistant to the Senior Pastor
Job Titles:
- Member of the United Methodist Church
Rev. Jonathan Rikard Brown is a lifelong member of the United Methodist Church. He is married to the Rev. Dr. Katy Hinman, who serves as the Director of the Dialogue on Science, Ethics, and Religion for the American Association for the Advancement of Science. He holds a MA in Religious Studies with a focus in New Testament from the University of Georgia, and a MDiv from Candler School of Theology at Emory University. He is deeply passionate about exploring the narrative structures of the Gospel and Christian Bible.
Jonathan is a self-professed nerd. He has published several articles on various subjects in relation to comic books. He has a YouTube channel where he discusses retro video game collecting, and has been known to step into the squared circle in his professional wrestling gimmick Rev. John Beeman. He is excited to be a part of Foundry United Methodist Church.
Job Titles:
- Facilities and Operations Committee Chair
Job Titles:
- Associate Pastor and Executive Director of Operations
Rev. Kealani Nunes Willbanks, Associate Pastor and Executive Director of Operations and Impact, has been a part of the Foundry team since February 2018. She is the granddaughter of Filipino immigrants, the daughter of Salvation Army preachers, and the proud mother of 5 world-changing adult children.
Kealani earned her B.S. in Business Management in 1999, and her MBA in 2003, all while raising two children as a single mother. After meeting her now husband LTC(R) R. Tyler Willbanks in 2005, she left her corporate job to attend Fuller Theological Seminary, where she earned her Master of Theology. She is an ordained Elder with the Church of God, Anderson, Indiana, and has recently been accepted as a doctoral student at Boston University's School of Theology.
Prior to joining Foundry, Kealani has served in executive pastoral roles at churches in Arizona and Northern Virginia. While serving the 2,000-member church in Arizona, Kealani was pivotal in developing a robust worship experience, creating and managing a sustainable budget, and responding to a catastrophic flood of the facility. Her leadership of these key milestones helped position the church for a fiscally responsible relocation to a new building.
A transformational moment in Kealani's ministry was while serving with a 3,500-member congregation in Fairfax, VA. Responsible for developing the church's first opportunity to participate in non-proselytizing refugee resettlement, Kealani created a sustainable inter-faith program for houses of worship to receive arriving families from Syria and Afghanistan. This collaboration resulted in additional partnerships with refugee camps in Lebanon, and lifelong friendships with several Syrian families.
Service to others is a key value of the Willbanks family. Kealani's husband served 28 years with the U.S. Army, with his final tour as the Deputy Commander of The Old Guard at Fort Myer, Virginia. Her son also served with the Caisson Platoon and one of her daughters is currently on active duty. Rev. Kealani is particularly honored to be one of the first female chaplains of The Old Guard Association, a permanent organization of all who have served with the 3d United States Infantry Regiment (The Old Guard).
Rev. Kealani's multi-vocational, interracial, and interdenominational background symbolizes her profound desire to elevate fully represented and inclusive ministry. She is also deeply committed to embedding social justice values in common business and operational tools used in both the marketplace, and non-profit environment. She hopes to use these key markers as part of her doctoral study at Boston University.
Outside of Foundry, Kealani spends as much time as she can with her kids and granddaughter when they are in town. She is a beach lover, enjoying any activity that involves sand, water, or waves. Rev. Kealani lives in Southern Maryland on the sacred and unceded land of the Piscataway peoples, with her husband, two corgis, one Siberian husky, and an occasional boomeranging kid, nephew, niece, friend, or whoever needs a space or sanctuary.
Job Titles:
- Religion and Racial Justice Committee Chair
Job Titles:
- Treasurer and Finance Committee Chair
Job Titles:
- Director of Family Ministries
Job Titles:
- Associate Pastor
- Executive
Rev. Ben Roberts joined Foundry United Methodist Church as Associate Pastor and Director of Social Justice Ministries in 2013. He was named Executive Director of Program and Justice Ministries in 2022.
Rev. Roberts is especially passionate about engaging the church in acts that both care for individuals in their physical needs, and for the community in our systemic needs. He believes we're called to acts of mercy and justice as Christians who take seriously the commandment to love your neighbor, knowing that God first loved us. Ben believes our work is more effective as a community, in partnerships with other communities of faith and neighbors of good will.
A cradle Methodist, Ben grew up in Oak Island, N.C. as the son and maternal grandson of Methodist pastors. He received his B.A. in Religion from Greensboro College in 2008, his Master of Divinity from Wesley Theological Seminary in 2013, and an Executive Certificate in Nonprofit Management from Georgetown University in 2020.
Prior to joining Foundry, Pastor Ben's experiences include working with North Carolina Congressman Brad Miller; spending a year teaching English with a non-profit in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso; and working with American University's Housing and Dining Programs.
While earning his M. Div. at Wesley, Ben also completed a two-year field placement on Capitol Hill with the General Board of Church and Society (GBCS), the public policy arm of the United Methodist Church. While at GBCS, his work focused on Peace with Justice issues, including the Comprehensive Peace Agreement in Sudan, conflict minerals in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, Israel/Palestine peace efforts, and the United Methodist program known as Imagine No Malaria.
Upon graduating Wesley Seminary in 2013, Ben was approached to fill an interim position at Foundry, where he had been teaching elementary age Sunday school for two years. After a brief interim period, Ben was hired full-time to his current position as the Director of Social Justice Ministries.
He was ordained with full clergy orders as a Deacon in 2017 by the North Carolina Annual Conference and is officially on loan to the Baltimore-Washington Conference for his appointment. In his present role, Ben oversees 13 ministry teams working in various areas of justice and mercy ministries - from cooking and clothing, to securing identification documents, advocating for DC's unhoused population, to advancing efforts for full inclusion of LGBTQIA+ persons in the life and ministry of The United Methodist Church.
The Greensboro College Alumni Association honored Pastor Ben with the Young Alumni Award in 2015. He was also named by Bishop Hope Morgan Ward to The United Methodist Ecumenical and Interreligious Training fellowship in 2018.
Pastor Ben loves being outside, and enjoys trips to the beach, surfing, tennis and basketball. And while he enjoys supporting DC United and the Washington Nationals, he remains painfully loyal to his hometown teams: the Carolina Hurricanes, Carolina Panthers and Charlotte Hornets.
He lives with his spouse Cortney, sons George and Henry, and dog Nora in Southwest D.C.
Job Titles:
- Pastor
- Senior Pastor
- Author of Sacred Resistance
Rev. Ginger E. Gaines-Cirelli is a lifelong United Methodist who is passionate about sharing the good news of God's liberating love in Jesus Christ.
In 2014, she became the first woman to serve as Senior Pastor of the historic Foundry United Methodist Church in Washington, D.C. Since Ginger's appointment, Foundry has reenergized its work for racial justice, become a founding member of the Sanctuary DMV movement, and created a Sacred Resistance Ministry Team to mobilize consistent action in response to troubling current events.
A graduate of Yale Divinity School, Ginger has served a variety of congregations: small and large, urban and suburban in the Baltimore Washington Conference of the United Methodist Church, in addition to an uptown Manhattan and two-point charge in the New York Annual Conference. Ginger has served the Baltimore Washington Conference as Chair of the Board of Discipleship and currently serves on the Board of Ordained Ministry. In addition, she has served as an elected delegate to the 2016 General Conference and the 2019 Special General Conference of the United Methodist Church.
For over 20 years as a pastor-theologian, her ministry has encouraged spiritual growth and engaged discipleship-emphasizing radical hospitality, shared ministry, spiritual practices, and solidarity with the poor and oppressed. With this focus, she has brought depth, health, and growth to every community she has served. Ginger contributed to and served as a general editor for The CEB Women's Bible (Abingdon, October 2016). Her book, "Sacred Resistance: A Practical Guide to Christian Witness and Dissent," was released in May 2018. Ginger is a sought-after preacher, teacher, and facilitator at local, regional, and international events.
When so many causes, crises, and critical needs demand our attention, how can a congregation decide where to engage? Pastor and author Ginger Gaines-Cirelli outlines key questions and concerns in discerning a faithful and sustainable response to public issues. READ MORE
Ginger Gaines-Cirelli, author of Sacred Resistance, says it's up to preachers to address the pain, injustice, confusion, and chaos in our days even when it is risky, and she offers guidance on approaching controversial issues in meaningful and responsible ways.
Job Titles:
- Associate Pastor Director of Discipleship Ministries
Job Titles:
- Associate Pastor & Executive Director of Operations and Impact
Job Titles:
- Pastor for Public Witness and Ecumenical Connection
Rosa Vega began volunteering at the Foundry Preschool in the late 1980's and early 1990's, watching the kids while their parents were in meetings. In late November 1992, Rev. Paul Vali called her looking for someone reliable to prepare and serve coffee at coffee hour. Rosa began as Foundry's Hospitality Assistant that Sunday after Thanksgiving, and has been serving in that role ever since.
With her soul for service and smile that warms the room, Rosa is driven by the Foundry community. In her three decades here, she has made countless connections - and loves watching children grow up, get married, and start a families of their own. She considers Foundry to be an extended family, and especially loves both seeing the familiar faces on Sunday, and welcoming new ones to the community.
Rosa was born and raised in a very small town named Izalco in El Salvador. She left El Salvador and moved to the United States in February 1976. She studied at Colegio Santa Ines to become a teacher. After graduating, she taught primary education for six years.
When she's not at Foundry, Rosa loves knitting - especially blankets and sweaters for babies. She also enjoys visiting museums here in D.C., with her favorites being the National Museum of the American Indian and the National Air and Space Museum.
Rosa has lived in our very own DuPont Circle neighborhood since 1981.
Job Titles:
- Director of Music
- Director of Music and Worship Arts
Stanley J. Thurston is the Director of Music and Worship Arts Foundry United Methodist Church, having started as our Director of Music Ministires in 2008. He is also currently the Artist in Residence at Washington National Cathedral, Artistic Director Emeritus of Choirs with Washington Performing Arts, and founding Artistic Director of The Heritage Signature Chorale. He is a graduate of Morgan State University and the American Academy of Conducting at Aspen (Colorado).
Job Titles:
- Foundry Board Representative on Nominating Committee