FRIENDS OF FORMAN - Key Persons


CATHY THORGERSON

Job Titles:
  • EXEC ASSISTANT to the DIRECTOR

Dr. Charles W. Forman

Dr. Charles W. Forman, a Presbyterian missionary from the United States, founded Forman Christian College in 1864 in Lahore, Pakistan. Enrollment grew quickly from 18 students in 1886 to 600 by 1915. The institution became co-educational in 1902 and moved to the current 108-acre campus in 1940. In 1972, the Pakistani government seized control of all private educational institutions. They abandoned everything that had been Forman related, including curriculum, faculty, and administration. During the 30 years of government control, all campus maintenance was deferred. The college was returned to the Presbyterian Church (USA) in 2003, due in large part to the many prominent alumni of Forman who lobbied the government for return. Today, a Pakistani Christian Board of Directors manages the oversight of the college. In 2004, Forman was granted Chartered University status, meaning they can establish curriculum, give exams, and confer degrees. Enrollment as of Fall 2019 stands at 8,300+ students.

Dr. David Renwick

Job Titles:
  • Senior Pastor of the National Presbyterian Church in Washington
Rev. Dr. David Renwick is the Senior Pastor of the National Presbyterian Church in Washington, DC. Prior to accepting this call in 2011, he led churches in South Carolina, Kentucky, Texas, Virginia, and Labrador/Newfoundland, Canada. Born in Malaysia, David spent his youth in Scotland, graduating from St. Andrews University. It was during a junior year abroad he was challenged to consider the ministry and pursue theological studies in the United States. David received his Master of Divinity Degree from Gordon Conwell Theological Seminary and his Ph.D. in Biblical Studies from Union Seminary in Richmond, Virginia. David and his wife, Currie, have three adult children and five grandchildren.

DR. INGRID MASON MAIL

Job Titles:
  • PHYSICIAN
Dr. Ingrid Mason Mail makes her home in Indianapolis, Indiana, where she practices internal medicine in private practice. After working as the Chief Medical Information Officer, Medical Staff President, and other physician leadership positions in the St. Vincent Health System (2010-2018), Ingrid now serves on the St. Vincent Hospital Board. As a senior medical student at Indiana University School of Medicine, she spent three formative months at Bach Christian Hospital in Qalandarabad, Pakistan. In March 2016, she and husband, Jack, returned to Pakistan to visit Forman Christian College. From 2004-2013, Ingrid served on the board of MAP International, a relief and development organization. She has visited ministries in Ecuador, Kenya, Cote d'Ivoire, and Italy. During medical school, they joined Faith Church, a congregation with a strong focus on international and cross-cultural ministries. At Faith, she taught classes for adults and children and co-chaired a Senior Pastoral Search Committee. She leads a handbell choir, sings in choir, and participates in a variety of worship activities. Jack and Ingrid have two adult daughters.

Dr. James Appleton

Job Titles:
  • PRESIDENT EMERITUS / UNIVERSITY of REDLANDS
  • President Emeritus of the University
Jim Appleton is president emeritus of the University of Redlands, having served as president and university professor for over twenty years. Previously, he was vice-president and a faculty member at the University of Southern California from 1972 to 1987. Jim completed his undergraduate degree at Wheaton College and his M.A. and Ph.D. at Michigan State. He has served as a director on several university and foundation boards, is a mentor for new college and university presidents, and conducts retreats to assist boards of trustees in developing best practices. Among his other professional activities, he has served as chair of the WASC Senior College and University Commission (WSCUC), a member of the President's Commission of the NCAA, a member of an UNESCO Roundtable, a faculty member at the Salzburg Seminar, and on the board of the Redlands Symphony. He is married to his artist wife, Carol, has three adult children and six grandchildren. In a previous edition, he was an accomplished vocalist, and in his mind is a terrific golfer, but alas, carries an index of 16.5.

Dr. Jay Madden

Job Titles:
  • PASTOR for MISSION
Jay grew up in South Carolina, where he attended Furman University. After spending 12 years in Greenville owning and operating a number of businesses, Jay sensed that God was calling him to serve the church. He joined the staff of First Presbyterian Church in Greenville, SC, as Evangelism Director before making the move to Chicago in 2003. While there, he served as an Area Pastor at Willow Creek Community Church. In this role, he was responsible for pastoral leadership and also served on the Global-Africa board. He earned a Master of Divinity degree from Bethel Seminary in St. Paul, MN. In 2009, Jay began serving at Peachtree Presbyterian Church as Pastor for Mission, where he is responsible for Peachtree's local and global mission partnerships. He completed his Doctor of Missiology degree in 2019 from Fuller Seminary, which focused on mutual transformation in mission. He is passionate about seeing the Peachtree community reach their full potential in God's mission in Atlanta and around the world. He is married to Rebecca and has two children-a daughter, Neale, and son William. His other passions involve Clemson football, quality time, traveling with his family, and spending time outdoors with his Labrador retriever.

DR. JONATHAN ADDLETON

Job Titles:
  • RECTOR
  • Rector, Forman Christian College
Dr. Jonathan Addleton was installed as rector of Forman Christian College in October 2020. A five-time USAID Mission Director (Pakistan, India, Cambodia, Mongolia, and Central Asia), Jonathan Addleton also served as US Ambassador to Mongolia, USAID Representative to the European Union in Brussels, and Senior Civilian Representative to southern Afghanistan in Kandahar. He retired after a 32-year Foreign Service career in January 2017 and then taught International Relations at Mercer University in Macon, GA, and also served as Executive Director of the American Center for Mongolian Studies. He has a Ph.D. from Tufts University and a B.S. from Northwestern University. His books include Some Far and Distant Place, The Dust of Kandahar, and Mongolia and the United States: A Diplomatic History. The son of Baptist missionary parents from rural Georgia, he was born and raised in Pakistan. He is married to the former Fiona Mary Riach from Kilmarnock, Scotland and has three adult children.

Dr. Michael M. Murphy

Job Titles:
  • TELECOM EXECUTIVE ( RETIRED )
Now retired from the corporate world, Michael Murphy completed a twenty-five-year career in telecommunications having worked for ATT as Director of Pricing and Competitive Assessment, Qwest as VP Marketing/VP International Business Development, and Wytec as President and CEO. In 2006, Mike returned to his first career, teaching, when he joined the Business and Economics faculty of Forman Christian College, in Lahore, Pakistan. He received his Ph.D. in economics from UCLA in 1974.

Dr. Thomas Taylor

Job Titles:
  • Presbyterian Foundation As President and CEO
  • President and Chief Executive Officer / Presbyterian Foundation
  • US Ambassador ( Retired ) Lewis Lucke
Tom joined the Presbyterian Foundation as president and CEO in 2010. He led the staff and board in new directions through visionary and inspiring leadership, working to cultivate vitality in the mission and ministries throughout the church. Prior to Tom's work with the Foundation, he served as the Deputy Executive Director for Mission at the Presbyterian Mission Agency, where he oversaw the operations of the U.S.-based and the international work of the denomination's national offices in over 100 countries worldwide. He also served for twelve years as a minister in Southern California and Utah. Tom began his career as an attorney in Salt Lake City, UT, practicing in litigation with the law firms of Snell & Wilmer and with Snow, Christensen & Martineau. Tom taught courses and educational seminars for Princeton Theological Seminary, Azusa Pacific University, the University of Illinois-Urbana, and Fuller Theological Seminary. Tom holds a B.A. (with honors) from the University of Illinois-Urbana, a M.Div. from Yale University Divinity School, a J.D. from the University of Illinois College of Law, and a Ph.D. from Fuller Theological Seminary. Tom also studied in Germany, where he received a PNdS in German language proficiency from the University of Aachen. Tom has published numerous academic and popular articles on the interaction of Christian faith, law, and culture. His books include the award-winning "Seven Deadly Lawsuits: How Ministers can Avoid Litigation and Regulation" (Abingdon Press 1996) and "Paradoxy: Coming to Grips with the Contradictions of Jesus" (Baker Books 2006).

GAIL BLUMBERG

Job Titles:
  • ACCOUNTING ASSOCIATE

MR. JOHN H. Gill

Job Titles:
  • Executive Director ( Retired ) Standard Chartered Bank
John Gill retired in July 2019 as an Executive Director in the Financial Institutions Group at Standard Chartered Bank, NY Branch (SCB). He enjoyed a 36-year career in international banking, of which the last 12 years were spent at SCB. Standard Chartered Bank has a unique footprint serving indigenous and transnational clients in Africa, Asia, and the Middle East including Pakistan, where it is the largest foreign bank in the country. John has been active for several years on the Mission Team at Noroton Presbyterian Church (NPC) in Darien, CT, which has had a lengthy connection to Forman Christian College. John has traveled to Kenya and Tanzania twice with family members on NPC-organized mission trips and has also joined tours to Israel and Jordan with NPC. He has a heart for supporting God's work across the world regardless of geography, ethnicity, or nationality. John graduated with Honors with a BA in History from the College of Wooster (1978); received an MBA from the University of Michigan in 1983; and lived/worked in Taiwan for two years with the YMCA (1978-1980) and 3 years in Japan with Irving Trust/Bank of New York (1988-1991). He is married with three children and looks forward to visiting Lahore and FCC post-pandemic.

Mr. Lewis Lucke

Job Titles:
  • US Ambassador ( Retired ) EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT
Ambassador (ret) Lewis Lucke is executive vice president for the Middle East and Africa for Grainster LLC, developing an enhanced ecosphere platform for on-line grain trading that directly connects buyers and sellers of grain worldwide without the need for middlemen. He is also chairman of Fuelie Systems Inc., developing telemetry-enabled mobile-fueling systems for more effective refueling at the point of need. He is also co-founder of Waste to Energy Global Partners (WGP), developers of waste-to-energy projects worldwide. Ambassador Lucke served for 30 years overseas in the Senior Foreign Service with the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and the US Department of State. He was the first USAID Mission Director for Iraq, where he directed a $4.0 Billion reconstruction and economic development program. He also led the US emergency response to the 2010 Haiti earthquake. He served as US Ambassador to the Kingdom of Swaziland and in the U.S. Foreign Service in ten countries: Mali, Senegal, Costa Rica, Tunisia, Bolivia, Jordan, Haiti, Brazil, Iraq, and Swaziland. He was USAID Mission Director in Bolivia, Jordan, Haiti, and Iraq. Ambassador Lucke is from North Carolina and now lives in Austin, Texas. He received a B.A. from the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill and an MBA from Thunderbird School of Global Management in Arizona. He is fluent in French and Spanish and has a working knowledge of Arabic. He is the author of the books "Waiting for Rain: Life and Development in Mali, West Africa" and "From Timbuktu to Duck & Cover: Improbable Tales of a Career in Foreign Service".

Mr. Robert Tebbe

Job Titles:
  • Retired / Elder / First Presbyterian Church - Lakeland, FL
Robert Tebbe is a retired Executive Buyer for Pasternak Baum & Company, brokers/traders of fats, oils, and grains world-wide, where he worked for 32 years. His primary function evolved into trading palm oil and palm kernel oil from Latin America to Europe and from Southeast Asia to the US, Latin America, and Europe. Earlier in his career, he worked for Procter Gamble. Bob retired at the end of 2015 to live in the Florida Presbyterian Homes (FPH) community in Lakeland FL, where he serves on the board. He is an ordained Elder at First Presbyterian Church in Lakeland. In addition, he volunteers for reading at a local elementary school and participates in various activities in the community. He has been married to his wife Nancy for 52 years, and they have three sons and six grandchildren.

MR. STEPHEN F. RASMUSSEN

Job Titles:
  • Lead Financial Sector Specialist for CGAP
Stephen Rasmussen is the Lead Financial Sector Specialist for CGAP (Consultative Group to Assist the Poor). CGAP is an independent resource center housed in the World Bank and is dedicated to working on financial inclusion for poor people. Since 2006, he leads a team working on building digital financial systems for poor people in parts of Asia, Africa, and the Arab countries. In 2014-2015 Stephen established and was the first CEO of Karandaaz Pakistan, a start-up company focused on small business finance, digital financial inclusion, and innovation in the financial sector. Prior, Stephen was CEO of the Pakistan Microfinance Network (2001 to 2008) and CEO of the Aga Khan Rural Support Programme (1994-2003), a large rural development program in northern Pakistan. Here he also helped establish First MicroFinanceBank. Stephen and his wife Zeba are the founders and patrons of a not-for-profit organization in northern Pakistan working with children with disabilities.

MR. STEVE SHABET

Job Titles:
  • MANAGING MEMBER / SUNNY MEADOW FARM, LLC
Since 2012, Steve Shabet has owned and managed Sunny Meadow Farm in Litchfield County, Connecticut. This land has been used for farming since the 1700s; Sunny Meadow uses organic methods to grow fruits, vegetables, grasses and grains. Prior to this, Steve worked in New York City, most recently as COO/CCO for Colony Investment Management from 2005 to 2012, where he built and managed a registered investment adviser business investing in global real estate related securities for Colony Capital. From 2003 to 2005, Steve was the Managing Director for the Akul Group LLC and a Vice President at Goldman Sachs from 1987 to 2003.

Mrs. Denise W. Moore

Job Titles:
  • EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
  • EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR / INDEPENDENT PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH ( IPC ) FOUNDATION
  • Executive Director and Chief Financial Officer of the Independent Presbyterian Church
  • Executive Director of the Independent Presbyterian Church Foundation
Denise Moore became the executive director of the Independent Presbyterian Church Foundation in Birmingham, Alabama in 2015. Much of her career prior to IPCF was spent in the corporate sector. As a CPA, she held positions at Time Inc. and its subsidiary, Southern Progress Corporation, serving as VP of Finance for twelve publishing divisions. She also has extensive audit experience through her time at Ernst & Young. Denise Moore is the Executive Director and Chief Financial Officer of the Independent Presbyterian Church (IPC) Foundation, a $65M foundation committed to serving the missions of IPC for the betterment of mankind throughout the world. Prior to joining IPC, Denise spent most of her career in the corporate sector. She is a CPA and held numerous positions at Time Inc. and its subsidiary, Southern Progress Corporation. Among those positions, she was the VP of Finance for 12 publishing divisions, which included Southern Living, Cooking Light, and Sunset Magazines. She also has extensive audit experience with Ernst & Young with a focus on oil and gas, manufacturing, and not-for profit industries. Denise loves helping organizations with missions focused on family. She has served on numerous boards throughout her working career, including chairing the board of Gateway, the oldest social service agency in Birmingham. She is also a sustaining member of the Junior League of Birmingham, a Rotarian and active member of Rotary Foundation Board of Birmingham, the United Way Community Appeals Board, and the United Way Visiting Allocations Team, of which she is the chair. She is an active member of Asbury United Methodist Church. Denise is married to her childhood sweetheart, Jon, who is an orthodontist; and they have three children.

MRS. GAYLEN KEMP BAXTER - Chairman

Job Titles:
  • Chairman of the Board
  • ATTORNEY ( RETIRED ) COMMUNITY VOLUNTEER / CHAIR
Gaylen Baxter, a retired attorney who practiced corporate, finance and securities law, is active in a variety of community organizations, serving on numerous nonprofit boards. Gaylen currently serves on the Board of St. Joseph's Health System. She previously served as Vice Chair of the Board of St. Joseph's Hospital of Atlanta, and earlier was Chair of St. Joseph's Mercy Foundation, and is currently an emeritus board member. Gaylen is deeply involved in her church, Peachtree Presbyterian, having served as Vice Chair of the Peachtree Presbyterian Trust Board and Chair of its Grants Committee for four years, three terms as Elder, was Clerk of Session and chaired the Elder Nominating Committee in 2006. She also serves as a Trustee of the Church. She has traveled with Peachtree on numerous international mission trips, including visits to Forman Christian College in 2011 and 2019. Gaylen has a passion for mentoring younger women. She has served as a Mentor Mom for Mothers of Pre-Schoolers (MOPS) since 2010 and also is involved in Women Mentoring Women. She coordinated a Thursday morning Women's Bible study at Peachtree for 12 years. Gaylen served on the Board of American Intercontinental University from 1996 to 2010 and has been a member of the Board of the Atlanta Legal Aid Society since 1989. She and husband, Jeffrey, have three adult daughters and one grandchild.

Rev. SAMUEL SCHREINER III

Job Titles:
  • EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
  • PEXECUTIVE DIRECTOr
Rev. Samuel A. Schreiner III is the Executive Director of Friends of Forman Christian College which supports Forman Christian College in Lahore, Pakistan. After this historic college was denationalized and returned to Christian control in 2003, Friends of Forman was incorporated to raise funds for college leadership, student scholarships, and capital improvements. Previously, Rev. Schreiner was the senior minister of Noroton Presbyterian Church in Darien, CT. He has been a lecturer at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary and the pastor of two churches in New Hampshire. Since 2009, Rev. Schreiner has been a trustee of Gordon College in Wenham, Massachusetts. His churches have always been active in mission, aiding partners locally in the inner city as well as overseas in Africa, Asia, and Central America. Volunteer mission trips and speaking opportunities have taken him to Taiwan, New Zealand, Dominican Republic, Kenya, Ethiopia, Jordan, and Pakistan. Sam has a love of Scripture, especially the history and cultural background of the New Testament. He has led multiple pilgrimages to Biblical sites in Israel, Jordan, Turkey, and Greece. Mission work runs in his family. Sam's grandparents were United Presbyterian missionaries to India from 1915 to 1940. His grandfather, Dr. John C. Heinrich, taught in the extension program of Forman Christian College and the chapel at Taxila Hospital is dedicated to him. Sam and Deb Schreiner have been married since 1977 and have three adult children and nine grandchildren.

Samuel A. Schreiner III

Job Titles:
  • Executive Director of Friends of Forman Christian College

SANDY O'MEARA - CFO

Job Titles:
  • CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER

SUSAN MANN

Job Titles:
  • DEVELOPMENT ASSOCIATE