As vice president for International Ministries of The Christian and Missionary Alliance, Bob oversees the worldwide missionary outreach of the C&MA. It is Bob's passion to see the C&MA used by God as a strategic tool to help complete the Great Commission. This means creative initiatives to develop evangelism, church planting, and ministry- training opportunities in nations where there are still major segments of the population who have never heard the truth about Jesus Christ.      For seven years prior to becoming the vice president of International Ministries in 1998, Bob was the regional director of Africa for the C&MA. He supervised 300 missionaries working in seven countries. In addition, he worked with national church leaders in a total of nine African nations. Bob and his wife, Esther, and two children, served for 10 years as missionaries in Mali, West Africa, and were involved in theological education, youth ministry, evangelism, and church planting. He also was involved in field leadership. More than 20,000 churches worldwide make the C&MA a global missionary church.      Nearly 90 percent of those churches are overseas in 81 countries on every continent. Approximately 850 U.S. Alliance missionaries minister in 48 of these nations.

     Rev. David N. Lauffer has been named incoming Assistant Vice-President of International Ministries and assumed full responsibilities beginning July 1, 2007. He will oversee the Africa and Europe/Middle East regions.      David and his wife Merilyn were both raised in active C&MA families. David’s home church was the Chambersburg Alliance Church in Eastern Pennsylvania. Merilyn’s parents were charter members of Islander Alliance Church in Merritt Island, Fl.      David and Merilyn met at their alma mater, Toccoa Falls College. After graduation in 1983 they became involved for a year in youth ministries at David’s home church and then pastored the Alliance Church of Shippensburg, Pa. for three years. David was ordained in 1986 and commenced Intercultural Studies at Alliance Theological Seminary the following year.      In 1988 the Lauffers began sixteen years of C&MA missionary service in Israel. They ministered alongside messianic congregations in the cities of Beersheba and Jerusalem. In 1992-93 David pursued advanced studies in biblical languages at Wheaton College Graduate School.      From 1995-2003 David served as the Israel Field Director, providing leadership at a time when significant advances were made in both the Israeli and Palestinian ministry spheres. A very fruitful ministry among thousands of temporary workers from China was also initiated by Lauffer.      Since 2004 David has been the pastor of Saline Community Church in Michigan, a newly accredited church of the Great Lakes District.      The Lauffers are the proud parents of three sons and a daughter, ranging in age from 22 to 12 years old.

     Rick's wife Cathy was raised in a home with deep C&MA roots and found the Lord in a personal way as a seven-year-old during a Sunday School class. Rick was led to the Lord through a series of Campus Crusade for Christ outreach efforts during his sophomore year at West Virginia University. Both of us look back on specific moments in which we surrendered our lives to Christ and found Him to be all that we need in life.      Cathy is a graduate of Roberts Wesleyan College with a BS degree in nursing. In her undergraduate experience, she also attended Nyack College for two years. Rick began his educational travels at WVU. After finding Christ he experienced a major redirection of life that led him first to Nyack College for a BS in missions, then to Alliance Theological Seminary for the MPS degree, followed by Westminster Theological Seminary (Philadelphia) for MDiv equivalency studies in Urban Mission with Dr. Harvie Conn, and then to Columbia Biblical Seminary (SC) for the DMin degree which he completed in May 2000.      Rick and Cathy completed their missionary home service in the Western Pennsylvania District of the C&MA, serving as the pastor of the Midway Alliance Church near Titusville, Pennsylvania, from 1980–1984. In April 1984, they arrived in Jakarta, Indonesia, to begin three terms of church planting, educational, and leadership ministry in the largest Muslim country in the world.      Along the way Rick and Cathy were blessed with a son, Jason, who is now in his junior year at the University of Georgia studying International Business with a minor in Chinese. It is Jason’s hope to eventually serve as a Christian witness in the business world of China. Jenny was born during their first term in Indonesia and is currently a freshman at Toccoa Falls College.      Their arrival in the Missionary Candidate Office has been the result of a lengthy journey, but one on which they have seen God’s hand at every turn. In the summer of 1999, they came home from their third term in Indonesia. For some years Rick had been having problems with skin cancer in Indonesia. Upon arrival in the U.S., a doctor’s exam revealed several dangerous spots. At that point Rick underwent a new radical surgical procedure and was also given the medical news that in the future, he ought to stay as far from the tropics as possible.      After much prayer and wrestling, they accepted a teaching position at Toccoa Falls College. For the past three years, Rick has taught various missions and Bible courses at the college as well as filling a coordinator position for the new graduate extension of Columbia Biblical Seminary at Toccoa Falls.      It always has been their desire to be more directly plugged into C&MA missions. As discussions began relative to the possibility of assuming the director of Missionary Candidate’s role, they watched as God cleared the way, removing one by one some high hurdles, and thus making it clear that this is the new path of service that they are to joyously walk in.

     Philip is a former Alliance missionary who oversees the work of CAMA Services and the International Fellowship of Alliance Professionals (IFAP). These two have a combined staff of more than 90 people serving in 19 countries. For the most part, CAMA/IFAP works in countries where traditional missionaries cannot serve. Phil says, “A key aspect of my work is encouraging people to serve in countries that require staff to be discreet due to political issues and to be physically tough due to living conditions.”      Mongolia, for instance, fits in both categories. It is a country that is learning democratic processes after eight decades of Communist rule. It is also isolated, cold, and dusty. Still, the work in Mongolia is progressing rapidly with several C&MA churches being planted over the last year. Phil says, “This is a challenge to keep the staff encouraged as they work in a ripe harvest field under difficult conditions.”

     Matt, as director for the Short-Term Missions Office, has ministered with The Alliance for more than ten years. He first served as a youth pastor at the Open Door Alliance Church Voorhees in New Jersey for seven years. God gave Matt a vision to send youth from churches across America to serve our missionaries oversees on a short-term basis. Out of this vision came Alliance Youth Mission (AYMission). For three years, Matt led AYMission exposing more than 1,000 young people to oversees missions. In spring 2006, Matt accepted the position of director for the Short-Term Missions Office, and the two offices merged into one.      Matt lives in Upper Darby, Pennsylvania, with his wife, Bernadette, and his son, Chad. Currently, they attend and serve in the church his father pastors, the Philadelphia International Alliance Church, where more than 15 nations are represented. Matt graduated from Nyack College with a BA in Sociology. Matt serves on the Executive Committee for LIFE, a nationwide Alliance youth conference.

     Chris accepted Christ as a child of 10 in the Belgian Congo during the political tensions of the Congo rebellion. An African was chasing him and a friend through the bushes was a machette yelling, "Albinos, I'm going to kill you." Their young African friend hid them and ran on ahead, making lots of noise, and leading their chasers away. Upon arriving home, Chris's dad led him to asking Jesus into his heart, explaining that Jesus had gladly been killed for us.      Marcia came to a gradual realization of what Jesus had done on the cross for her, in a godly home and church, and claimed Christ as her Savior at a young age.      Chris graduated from Biola with a degree in Christian education, received a masters degree from Talbot Seminary, and his Ph.D. in education from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School in Deerfield, Illinois. Marcia graduated from Biola with a BA in secondary education.      Their home service was done in Santa Ana, California, where they served as youth directors, and also at Centerville, Louisiana, where they served for three years in a pastoral role.      In 1978, Chris and Marcia began their missionary service in Zaire, and since then have served in Gabon and Cote d’Ivoire. Their ministry experience has included helping to plant and establish seven churches in Zaire, special assignment for five years with Evangelism Resources in Congo, starting the School of Christian Education in Zaire, teaching at and serving as director at the Bible Institute as well as overseeing the bookstore and distribution center for Gabon.      Both Chris and Marcia feel God's leading in their decision to accept the role of regional director couple for Africa. They deeply care about the welfare of Alliance missionaries in Africa. Their 24 years of experience has has given them insight that will be helpful in this new role.      The Brauns have two married children: Joshua and Alicia.

     Richard was born in California and grew up in various locations including California, Illinois, New Jersey, and India. Richard had no idea that, years later, God would use his experience of living in India and extensive travel to numerous countries (including Thailand) as part of his call to missionary service.      It was during his freshman year at State University of New York (Oswego Campus) that Richard first began to understand the claims of Christ on his life. A series of Missions Conferences at the Fulton Alliance Church in Fulton, New York, inspired Richard to serve Him overseas. He made a firm commitment to missions at the end of the church’s 1977 Missions Conference.      Wendy was born into a Christian home in New Jersey. At the age of eight she gave her heart to Jesus Christ, and at twelve she committed her life for missionary service. Wendy first became acquainted with The Alliance when she attended Geneva College in Pennsylvania.      Richard and Wendy married in 1979 and began full-time ministry with The Christian and Missionary Alliance the following year at the Clarendon Road Church in Brooklyn, New York. Richard served as an intern from Alliance Theological Seminary, assistant pastor, and after his ordination, as interim pastor during the summer of 1982. Richard and Wendy also served in youth ministries at the church, working with junior and senior high youth groups.      The Herrings arrived in Thailand in 1983 to begin Thai language study. In 1985 they began ministry in northeastern Thailand. From 1990 to 2003, Richard and Wendy were involved in leadership training, first at Northeastern Institute of Theology and then at Bangkok Bible College and Seminary.      In 2004 Richard and Wendy assumed the role of field director couple for the Siam Mission of the C&MA. In 2006 the Herrings were appointed regional director couple for the Asia Pacific region.      The Herrings have two daughters: Natalie and Tamara.

     John is an MK from Africa. He and his wife, Fran, served in Gabon for 16 years and in France for 6 before assuming the responsibilities as the regional director for E/ME in 2000. In September 2002 they moved to the Black Forest area of Germany as part of IM's relocating RDs to the regions.      John and Fran oversee approximately 175 missionaries in 14 countries (9 fields). There are another nine countries where there are C&MA personnel present but not directly connected to IM.      Needs in the region are many and varied. Those interested in Muslim outreach have key opportunities for this in varied settings: Western Europe, Eastern Europe, and the Middle East. Each country has its unique need and approach to outreach. Those interested in reaching post-modernists will have their hands full in Western Europe. Those interested in reaching agnostics face the challenges of the post-Communist Eastern European countries.