Headquarters, IT
Peter Ahlin
Chief Operating Officer
Raised in Raleigh, Peter earned his BS in Mathematics/Economics and MBA degrees from Duke University. After graduate school, he worked for more than fifteen years in financial risk management, founding his firm's continental European office in Krakow, Poland, directing the global analytics practice, and later leading the group responsible for people and organizational development, recruiting, training, employee experience, and core HR functions. He also worked as strategic business advisor to for-profit and non-profit organizations, providing interest rate and currency risk management, analytics, business expansion, benefits optimization, and mission/purpose/values expertise.
Peter currently resides in North Carolina with his family.
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Vickie Coonan
Administrative Assistant
Vickie joined Christian Union in 2017 to support the VP of Operations and the team in Princeton. She brings to Christian Union more than nine years of administrative experience at Star 99.1 FM, a Christian radio station in the New York metropolitan area. Prior to that, she volunteered at various organizations and Bible studies in the Princeton area in leadership roles,·all while performing her duties as a Domestic Engineer for 17 years.Vickie grew up in Maryland and earned a BS in business and finance from Mount St. Mary's University. In 1985, she moved to New Jersey to be near her college sweetheart, John, whom she married in 1989. Vickie and John live in Princeton and have three wonderful children, Jimmy, Marykate, and Joe.
Leslie Baier Muscolo
Executive Assistant
Leslie joined Christian Union in the beginning of 2013 out of a desire to serve in Christian ministry and currently supports Operations and Christian Union Universities. Led to Christ in her freshman year of college, Leslie has a special affinity for campus ministry.Receiving a degree in Social Sciences and the Visual Arts from SUNY Purchase in Westchester, NY, Leslie has had a variety of work experience ranging from photography gigs, newspaper and magazine ad layout, leading children’s music and play programs, account executive/photo research work in NYC, and managing a portrait studio. Outside of Christian Union, Leslie keeps herself busy with her photography and floor plan business which she founded in 2008. Her husband, Patrick, joined the business in 2015 and can often teams up with her on home shoots, measuring and drawing the home’s layout.
In her free time, Leslie teaches in the children’s ministry in her church and enjoys walking or running along the canal, enjoying a mochaccino while listening to local music groups, and working in her garden. She can occasionally be found on the basketball court shooting hoops.
David Johnson
IT Director 
David grew up in Southeastern Pennsylvania and graduated from The Pennsylvania State University with a degree in Marketing. David served with Campus Crusade for Christ for four years, first working in their development office, in major gifts, and then as Director of Development Services. Subsequently, David earned a Master’s degree in Business Administration from Eastern University. He has worked in the technology sector for EDS in quality assurance and as a marketing manager for Covad Communications. Dave was married to his late wife, Jennifer, for 24 years. Dave and Jennifer served in China together in 2002-2003, teaching and sharing their lives and their faith. Dave joined Christian Union in 2008 with Jennifer's loving support; she went home to be the Lord in July of 2020. He and Jennifer have three sons: Andrew, Samuel, and Ben. Dave currently resides in the greater Philadelphia area.
Helene Ulrich
Office Manager
Helene grew up in Edison, New Jersey. She taught high school for ten years and then went to work for AT&T in a variety of capacities, including Programmer, Systems Analyst, Project Manager, and Quality Manager.After twenty years in the telecommunications industry, she joined Christian Union in 2003. She has two daughters, Elaina and Anne.
Contact the communications staff by email using: Firstname.Lastname@ChristianUnion.org
Developing Leaders at Strategic Institutions
NATIONAL LEADERSHIP
Jason Walsh, Vice President, CUU
Adrian Schoonmaker, Director of Ministry Support
Russ Louk, CUU Ministry Operations Director
View bios >
CHRISTIAN UNION MINISTRY FACULTY / LOCAL LEADERSHIP
Brown University
Sheri Casali, Ministry FellowView bio >
Columbia University
Craig Holliday, Ministry DirectorViviana Hinojosa, Ministry Fellow
Ayomide Tikare, Administrative Assistant and House Manager
View bios >
Cornell University
Marcus Buckley, Ministry Director
Liz Thomforde, Ministry Fellow
Lea Ann Buckley, Administration/Ministry Associate
View bios >
Dartmouth College
Timothy Pillsbury, Ministry Director
View bio >Harvard College
James Galvin, Ministry FellowFady Ghobrial, Ministry Fellow
Sadie Sasser, Ministry Fellow
View bios >
Harvard Law School
Justin Yim, Ministry DirectorView Bio >
Princeton University
Mike Vincent, Ministry DirectorQwynn Gross,Ministry Fellow
Jake Thomas, Ministry Fellow
View bios >
Stanford University
Marcus Preciado, Ministry DirectorJustin Woyak, Senior Ministry Fellow
Susan Brown, Ministry Fellow
View bios >
University of Pennsylvania
Cory Lotspeich, Ministry DirectorSarah Hickenbotham, Ministry Fellow
Collin Frisch, Ministry Intern
View bios >
Yale University
Jeff Walsh, Ministry DirectorChitra Kovoor, Minstry Fellow
Michael Racine, Ministry Fellow and Writer
Bethany Walsh, Administrative Assistant
View bios >
Serving Christian Union's Financial Partners
Juli Chezem
Director of Development
Juli is the Director of Development for the Western region of the United States. She has a passion for developing long lasting relationships and enjoys connecting financial partners to help advance the mission and vision of Christian Union. Juli has spent most of her career in various avenues of sales and marketing, responsible for growing and servicing her customer base throughout the U.S. and Europe. She started her development career with XO Marriage, founded by Pastor Jimmy Evans. During that time, the Lord revealed her love for building relationships and working with a Christian non-profit. Juli has lived in Texas all of her life and attended Texas Christian University where she graduated with a B.S. in Business Merchandising. She is blessed to call herself mom to a wonderful daughter, son and daughter-in-law. When Juli is not working, she enjoys spending time with family along with traveling to new places to experience God's beautiful creation.
David Cole
Director of Technical Services
David brings over ten years of fundraising operations experience serving organizations across the religious, social service, and education sectors. David specializes in helping non-profits optimize donor databases, streamline processes, and enhance data-driven strategic planning efforts.David is a native Texan, a devout Catholic, and an Eagle Scout. He lives in Dallas-Ft. Worth area with his wife, Jennifer, and two daughters. He earned a BA in Communications from the University of Texas in San Antonio.
Landon Eckhardt
Director of Development
Landon represents Christian Union in the Northeast Region, working closely with ministry financial partners, including individuals, churches, and foundations. His role is to steward their participation in developing Christian leaders to impact culture across the country.Born and raised in the Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas metroplex, Landon earned a BSBA in finance from Samford University in 2009, an MDiv from Palmer Theological Seminary in 2014, and an MBA from Eastern University in 2017. Prior to joining Christian Union, Landon worked in development at The Bowery Mission in New York City where he managed a team overseeing donor relations, donation processing and receipting, and various data and reporting mechanisms.
Landon and his wife, Amanda, currently live in New York City and are avid foodies, coffee lovers, and enjoy spending quality time with family and friends.
Patty Fillman
Administrative Assistant
Patty provides crucial administrative support to the development team. She graduated from Mansfield University with a degree in Early Childhood Education and has worked a variety of secretarial and managerial jobs while fulfilling her primary responsibility of raising her children. Patty has three wonderful, grown children: Adam, Rachel, and Hannah. Between them, she and her husband, Jim, have four children and three grandchildren.
Deborah Oladapo
Data Director
Deborah grew up in Auburn, Alabama. She attended the University of Alabama where she received her BA in International Studies and Spanish and her MBA. She spent eight years working as an IT professional with Rohm and Haas Company, The Dow Chemical Company, and with a non–profit community college before joining Christian Union. Deborah is married to Abiola. They have two children and live in Columbus, Indiana.
Contact the Christian Union development staff by email using: Firstname.Lastname@ChristianUnion.org
Sharing Christian Union's Mission and Vision
Patrick Dennis
Creative Director
Patrick oversees the design and creative direction of Christian Union's brand communications. He has spent more than twenty years helping for-profit companies and non-profit organizations tell their story well. From 1999 to 2009, he served as the president and creative director of a brand strategy and communication design firm that he co-founded in Northern Virginia. During that time, he had the opportunity to consult with and serve a wide range of companies, as well as organizations ranging from well-funded startups to Fortune 500 companies. Upon selling his share of the firm in 2009, he began consulting with Christian Union and a small number of other clients.He and Karey live in Northern Virginia and have three children. They enjoy skiing and diving together, and Patrick has been known to be found on the golf course occasionally.
Erin Conner
Writer and Communications AssociateErin Conner holds two Bachelor’s degrees in Rhetoric and in Political Science from the Pennsylvania State University, as well as a Master’s Degree in Education from the University of Maryland. While at Penn State, Erin earned the “Outstanding and Value Service Award” from the Pennsylvania Office of the Attorney General for her work in mediation for the Bureau of Consumer Protection.
Erin began her educational career as the Director of the Academy at Mindworks Learning Institute near Washington D.C. that received an award for excellence by Johns Hopkins University. Erin, then, taught in both private and public school settings until starting her own educational service business near Bucknell University where she also served as a Board Member for the Pennsylvania Chamber of Commerce to help support the growth and education of local businesses. Erin founded Telos Educational Ministries, a non-profit organization that empowered under-represented students to gain access to outstanding educational resources to create significant and measurable improvements in their learning and life.
Erin and her family moved to New Hampshire where she worked as the director of youth and college ministry through her local church. Before working on the communications team at Christian Union, Erin served as a Ministry Fellow for Christian Union Vox at Dartmouth.
Erin has published three books: Seek: Principles for Living an Abundant Life, Seeking God, Finding Life: A Graduate’s Guide to Faith, and Know, a Scripture-based children’s book about living in the promises of God. She currently lives near Pittsburgh, PA with her husband, Joe, who coaches college men’s lacrosse; they have three children: Ethan, Gia, and Jace.
Serving Alumni of Christian Union Universities' Ministries
Christine Foster
Director of Alumni Mentoring
Christine was raised as an Episcopalian and renewed her faith as a young adult by participating in the Alpha Program at St. Bartholomew's in New York City. A native Californian, she earned a BA in history from the University of Pennsylvania.
Susan Brown
Cornerstone Partner CoordinatorSusan grew up in California and can’t imagine living anywhere else. She came to faith at an early age and has sought out opportunities to grow and serve Jesus in her church and local community ever since.
Over the past twenty-five years Susan has served in a wide range of ministry and leadership roles, including the nonprofit sector and the local public schools. She previously served as a volunteer Bible Course leader for Christian Union, helping to launch the very first women’s Bible Course at Stanford. She looks forward to being back on campus, spending time with students.
A graduate of Biola University, Susan enjoys travel, gardening, reading, baking and spending time with her three children and friends.
Contact the Christian Union alumni engagement staff by email using: Firstname.Lastname@ChristianUnion.org
Developing and Connecting Christian Leaders Across America
Grace Ann Arvey
Director, Christian Union America
Grace Ann brings a lifelong passion for seeing the good news of the gospel transforming people's lives in the community. This passion led her to spend her early career years as an elementary educator at an inner-city school. She received her B.A. in Elementary Education from Covenant College and her M.Ed. in English Language Learning from Western Governors University. When the Lord opened the door for her to work alongside her husband's financial company as an executive assistant, she learned that she loved working with adults to transform culture from the top-down.
Joseph Blodgett
Joseph Blodgett is a dedicated apprentice to Jesus, a devoted husband and father, and a fervent champion of biblical literacy and spiritual formation.
With his wife and three children by his side, Joseph has served as an Event Director and Teaching Pastor for local and national ministries. He graduated summa cum laude from Liberty University, earning a Bachelor of Science in Biblical and Theological Studies, and is currently attending Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary.
In addition to his formal ministry roles, he and his wife oversee a house church (The Garden) where they foster others through deep discipleship and genuine Christian community. In his free time, he can often be found on a pickleball court, savoring quality moments with his family and friends, or engrossed in a good book.
Developing Leaders at Strategic Institutions
Jason Walsh
Vice President, Christian Union Universities
Jason Walsh honorably served 10 years in the United States Marine Corps, 3 years in the 102nd Mounted Infantry Battalion with the Connecticut Army National Guard, and 4 years as a Firefighter/EMT for the City of Stamford Fire Department in Stamford, CT. Jason served at the Pentagon as a Mission Planner for the President of the United States, Vice President, Secretary of Defense, Joint Chiefs of Staff and Military Generals in all branches of the military. While deployed to Afghanistan, He was a Combat Aviation Operations Chief at Camp Dwyer, Afghanistan; a Forward Operating Base (FOB) to combat insurgent activity in the Helmand Valley, which was a hotbed of terrorist activity and the most dangerous province in Afghanistan at the time. Jason served in and out of combat zones with multiple government agencies including the CIA, FBI, Secret Service, U.S Army’s 20th Special Forces Group and the British SAS.
Throughout nearly 20 years of service in military and local agencies combined, Jason’s leadership has been at the forefront! Jason graduated from Marine Corps Recruit Training, Parris Island, SC (Boot Camp) as the Platoon Honor Graduate, #1 out of 96 recruits, and was promoted to the rank of Sergeant within his first 4 years of Marine Corps service. He was selected from the top 1% of the Marine Corps globally for recruiting duty. Jason was also a .50 Cal Machine Gunner and is proficient in all weapons systems in the U.S. Army Infantry as well as criminal profiling and interrogation. He was selected in the top 10 out of 2000 applicants to be a Firefighter/EMT and later selected as an instructor at the Stamford Regional Fire Training School after being unanimously voted as platoon leader in his own firefighter recruit class. Among his numerous military medals and personal awards, Jason was awarded the Afghanistan Campaign Medal, 2 Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medals, 3 Marine Corps Good Conduct Medals, the National Defense Service Medal, and the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal.
Jason is currently the Vice President of Christian Union Universities, officing at Yale University. He is a licensed pastor and Co-Pastor of The Rock Church in Wallingford, CT. Jason’s passion for Jesus and serving others stems from his own story of being homeless and at rock bottom; only to be healed and delivered after experiencing the overwhelming love of Jesus Christ! Jason believes Jesus has a unique message specific to each person that will change your life!
Jason holds a bachelor’s degree in Pastoral Leadership and Ministries from Nazarene Bible College in Colorado Springs, CO, with additional education in Theology and Urban Missions from Alliance Theological Seminary in Manhattan, NY.
Adrian Schoonmaker
Director of Ministry Support, Christian Union Universities
Adrian Schoonmaker began leading in faith-based and non-profit environments in his early 20s. For more than two decades, he has been leading staff and volunteers in universities, NGOs, churches and ministries—even the broadcast journalism newsroom.
Just before coming to Christian Union, Adrian served for 10 years as Executive Pastor at Grace Community Church in Orange County, New York, leading as “chief of staff” across nine locations in the Hudson Valley. Adrian led at Grace during years of rapid change, with budgets, attendance, facilities and personnel multiplying at an exponential rate. Grace was named repeatedly among America’s fastest-growing churches, and one of the “Top 400” most influential churches in the United States.
Adrian majored in Pastoral Ministry during undergrad, then earned two master’s degrees (M.A., Journalism and M.A., Practical Theology), and soon graduates with a doctorate in “Leadership & Ministry Management” from Trinity (“TEDS”) in Chicago. His dissertation focuses on models of spiritual leadership development among West Point cadets.
Adrian and his wife, Jocelyn, live in Holland, Michigan, with their six children—ranging in ages from high school to kindergarten.
Russ Louk
Ministry Operations Director, Christian Union Universities
Born and raised in Farmingdale, New Jersey, Russ earned his MA in Christian Ministry Leadership, MDIV in Christian Leadership & Church Ministries, and DMIN in Expository Preaching and Teaching from Liberty University Baptist Theological Seminary. Shortly after graduating high school, Russ decided to serve his country and joined the United States Air Force.Inspired by the Holy Spirit, Russ ended his 27-year career in the military to pursue the call to full-time ministry. He has worked in a variety of ministry roles such as Ministry Internship Director, Leadership Community Teaching Director, and Pastor of Leadership Development in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Russ joined Christian Union in the Spring of 2023..
Christian Union
Matt Bennett
Founder and President
Matt Bennett is founder and president of Christian Union, a Christian leadership development organization with the mission to bring sweeping spiritual and cultural transformation to our nation and the world by developing and networking Christian leaders to make an impact for Christ. Christian Union focuses its activity on America's most influential universities and on professionals in the nation's key cities.A native of Houston, Texas, Matt earned BS and MBA degrees from Cornell University and holds a Master of Divinity from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School. He worked for Campus Crusade for Christ (Cru) at Princeton University for 12 years, and developed the ministry into one of the largest in the history of the Ivy League. In 2002, he founded Christian Union. The ministry has been featured in The New York Times, PBS, NPR, Christianity Today, and World Magazine. Matt currently resides in New York City.
Follow Matt Bennett on Twitter: @MattWadeBennett.
Peter Ahlin
Chief Operating Officer & Chief Financial OfficerRaised in Raleigh, Peter earned his BS in Mathematics/Economics and MBA degrees from Duke University. After graduate school, he worked for more than fifteen years in financial risk management, founding his firm's continental European office in Krakow, Poland, directing the global analytics practice, and later leading the group responsible for people and organizational development, recruiting, training, employee experience, and core HR functions. He also worked as strategic business advisor to for-profit and non-profit organizations, providing interest rate and currency risk management, analytics, business expansion, benefits optimization, and mission/purpose/values expertise.
Peter currently resides in North Carolina with his family.
Jason Walsh
Vice President, Christian Union Universities
Jason Walsh honorably served 10 years in the United States Marine Corps, 3 years in the 102nd Mounted Infantry Battalion with the Connecticut Army National Guard, and 4 years as a Firefighter/EMT for the City of Stamford Fire Department in Stamford, CT. Jason served at the Pentagon as a Mission Planner for the President of the United States, Vice President, Secretary of Defense, Joint Chiefs of Staff and Military Generals in all branches of the military. While deployed to Afghanistan, He was a Combat Aviation Operations Chief at Camp Dwyer, Afghanistan; a Forward Operating Base (FOB) to combat insurgent activity in the Helmand Valley, which was a hotbed of terrorist activity and the most dangerous province in Afghanistan at the time. Jason served in and out of combat zones with multiple government agencies including the CIA, FBI, Secret Service, U.S Army’s 20th Special Forces Group and the British SAS.
Throughout nearly 20 years of service in military and local agencies combined, Jason’s leadership has been at the forefront! Jason graduated from Marine Corps Recruit Training, Parris Island, SC (Boot Camp) as the Platoon Honor Graduate, #1 out of 96 recruits, and was promoted to the rank of Sergeant within his first 4 years of Marine Corps service. He was selected from the top 1% of the Marine Corps globally for recruiting duty. Jason was also a .50 Cal Machine Gunner and is proficient in all weapons systems in the U.S. Army Infantry as well as criminal profiling and interrogation. He was selected in the top 10 out of 2000 applicants to be a Firefighter/EMT and later selected as an instructor at the Stamford Regional Fire Training School after being unanimously voted as platoon leader in his own firefighter recruit class. Among his numerous military medals and personal awards, Jason was awarded the Afghanistan Campaign Medal, 2 Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medals, 3 Marine Corps Good Conduct Medals, the National Defense Service Medal, and the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal.
Jason is currently the Vice President of Christian Union Universities, officing at Yale University. He is a licensed pastor and Co-Pastor of The Rock Church in Wallingford, CT. Jason’s passion for Jesus and serving others stems from his own story of being homeless and at rock bottom; only to be healed and delivered after experiencing the overwhelming love of Jesus Christ! Jason believes Jesus has a unique message specific to each person that will change your life!
Jason holds a bachelor’s degree in Pastoral Leadership and Ministries from Nazarene Bible College in Colorado Springs, CO, with additional education in Theology and Urban Missions from Alliance Theological Seminary in Manhattan, NY.
Quincy "Wolfgang" Watkins
Vice President, Spiritual Formation
Quincy earned a BS in Economics from Temple University and an MBA in Marketing and Organizational Development from The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. He has held numerous executive-level, corporate positions and is a gifted business strategist. In addition, Quincy is a sought after preacher, lecturer, and prophetic minister with more than two decades of ministry experience. A bishop with One Accord Assemblies, he has overseen five congregations. Quincy joined Christian Union in 2008, bringing a dynamic blend of corporate and ministerial experience to his roles, including five years as a ministry fellow. As VP of Spiritual Formation, Quincy ministers to Christian Union faculty, staff, and students, helping develop and deepen lifestyles of seeking God wholeheartedly.Quincy's lifelong mission is to provide health and balance to the Body of Christ through holistic preaching, teaching, and deliverance. As a bi-vocational minister, he continues to serve as lead pastor of The Neighborhood Church in Darby, Pennsylvania, and Wilmington, Delaware. A native of Chicago, Quincy is happily married to Fay.
Andy Woodard
Joseph Blodgett
In addition to his formal ministry roles, he and his wife oversee a house church (The Garden) where they foster others through deep discipleship and genuine Christian community. In his free time, he can often be found engrossed in a good book, savoring quality moments with his family and friends, and frequenting local eateries throughout East Tennessee.
Christian Union
Matt Bennett
Founder and President, Christian Union
Cornell BS '88, Cornell MBA '89
Trinity Evangelical Divinity School MDiv '10
A native of Houston, Texas, Matt earned BS and MBA degrees from Cornell University and holds a Master of Divinity from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School. He worked for Campus Crusade for Christ (Cru) at Princeton University for 12 years, and developed the ministry into one of the largest in the history of the Ivy League. In 2002, he founded Christian Union. The ministry has been featured in The New York Times, PBS, NPR, Christianity Today, and World Magazine. Matt currently resides in New York City.
Ken Fish
Independent Board MemberGraduate of Princeton University
Masters of Divinity, Fuller Seminary
MBA, UCLA's Anderson Graduate School of Management
Ken Fish has more than 20 years of experience as a senior executive with Fortune 500 corporations specializing in corporate strategy, mergers and acquisitions, corporate finance, financial management and organizational transformation.
Throughout his life, Ken has worked with parachurch ministries, and in the 1980s he worked full-time for John Wimber for several years at Vineyard Ministries International (VMI). Among his duties at VMI, he worked on various aspects of the conferences that were a hallmark of the early Vineyard movement, including researching and ghost-writing for John Wimber. He has traveled extensively as a conference speaker, teaching on wide variety of topics ranging from leadership and spiritual formation, church growth and revival, biblical authority and exposition, to prophecy and healing and deliverance.
Dian Naman
Independent Board MemberAlumna, Columbia University
Dian Naman is a wonderful woman of God and is a tremendous addition to the Board. She and her husband Vince first became acquainted with Christian Union through their children’s involvement. It started with Luke, a 2015 graduate of Dartmouth and an active participant in Christian Union activities, and then their youngest daughter Brianna, a 2017 graduate of Brown, who was also involved with Christian Union.
The Naman’s eldest daughters also attended Ivy League Schools but before Christian Union was fully formed and/or present at their respective universities. Natalia, the oldest, went to Princeton earning a BA in English, theater, and African-American Studies (2008). She also earned an MFA, Dramatic Writing from NYU in 2010. Julia attended Yale and graduated in 2012. Christian Union featured the all-Ivy family in CU: The Magazine in 2016.
While Vince is a proud Princetonian and is now a plastic surgeon, Dian attended Columbia University for nursing school and runs their medical clinic and spa, Chattahoochee Plastic Surgery. Dian and Vince have been generous advocates and financial supporters of CU over the years. They love the mission of Christian Union and enjoy the prayer and fasting initiatives from Day & Night. They have also hosted or been a key connector to CU events in Columbus, GA where they are pillars in their community.
Winston Wu
Developing Christian Leaders. Sharing the Vision.
Please select from the following teams to learn about those who lead Christian Union for organizational excellence; those who develop Christian leaders; and those who share the vision for culture change with supporters.
Email any member of the Christian Union team by using the following convention: Firstname.Lastname@ChristianUnion.org.
