Our Team

Chuck Lewis

Board Chairman

Chuck Lewis has been married to Liz Lewis for over 40 years. They have two children Cliff Lewis and Amy Rutherford who are both active in the family business. Cliff and his wife Wendy have one son, Chase Lewis. Amy and her husband Gary have two sons, Landon and Grayson.

Chuck has been very active in the Central Oklahoma RV Dealers Association serving as Secretary/Treasurer, Vice President and President. He has also served on various committes for the Oklahoma Recreational Vehicle Dealers Association.

Chuck is active in his local church Choctaw Road Baptist Church. He is an ordained deacon and is currently serving as the Building Committee Chairman. Choctaw Road Baptist Church has participated in Several mission trips to Maisha International in Kenya. As a result Chuck and Liz are sponsoring and investing in the lives of six children Gilfton Okore, Charles Ndege, Grace Ogola, Caren Agola and Cynthia Maguti. Chuck has visited Maisha two times participating in the building of the Medical Clinic and various activities at Maisha.

Chuck’s other interests include collecting and restoring antique and classic cars, jukeboxes and other memorabilia. He also enjoys woodworking and he has recently received his private pilot’s license.

Liz Lewis

Board Member

Liz Lewis was born in Frankfurt, Germany where her father was stationed with the U.S. Army. The family would be stationed in several different states before they finally settled in Midwest City, OK. She gave her life to Jesus at the age of 16 and is forever grateful to a loving an merciful God. She met and married the love of her life, Chuck Lewis in 1973. They have been blessed with a close and loving family. Their son Cliff Lewis is marred to Wendy and has one son, Chase. Their daughter, Amy Rutherford, is married to Gary and they have two sons, Landon and Grayson, and one daughter, Abigail. She and Chuck worked together for over 30 years in the family business, Lewis RV Center, and have just recently passed it on to he next generation. In 2011, Chuck and Liz became Legacy of Hope sponsors for Giftone Okore, Grace Ogola and Charles Ndege. After a mission trip to Maisha in 2012, they welcomed two more precious girls into their family, Cynthia Maguti and Caren Agola. Chuck and Liz are passionate about Maisha and are thankful that God has given them the opportunity to be a part of this wonderful ministry and invest in the lives of these young people.

Trust in the Lord with all your heart and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your path. Proverbs 3:5-6

Paul Colley

Board Member

Paul is the worship leader and missions pastor for a growing church in Choctaw, OK. He is passionate for the nations to hear the good news of Jesus Christ and has served as a missionary to multiple nations over the past 30 years. His many experiences serving overseas has made him a keen and thoughtful leader for many trips. Some of those places include Mexico, Israel, Togo, Sierra Leone and Kenya. His attention to detail and compassion for those hurting, lost and in need compels others to go and give their time, energy and resources to make a difference.

Under the umbrella of Choctaw Road and with the assistance of their missions team over the past 7 years, Paul has inspired believers to invest their resources in sponsorship to many children at Maisha. The church participates in providing Christmas boxes, has aided those in need at and around Maisha and was able to build a medical clinic on site that is providing much needed medical care to the community in Kano.

Paul has served on the the board of His Helping Healing Hands International Ministries and been involved in projects sponsoring orphans and supporting indigenous pastors who are taking the gospel to their own people. Paul is not hesitant to share his heart for Christ and his great desire to make Jesus known to all people, both at home and abroad. Before serving at Choctaw Road, Paul and his wife helped to launch the Spero Project in OKC which mobilizes the Church to know, love, and value under-resourced communities. Paul Colley is a family man who loves the Lord and desires to see salvation and justice in a broken world.

Jeff Catron

Board Member

Jeff is the husband of Lesa, and father of two children. His family is the greatest gift he has been given. He is a followr of Christ who finds his purpose in trying to love others as he is loved. He hopes to do the same through his involvement with Maisha. Jeff serves his country as an aerospace engineer for the Air Force and his community through his church, Choctaw Road Baptist Church.

Kerrie Young

Board Member

Kerrie was born in Oklahoma City and is the mother of six children. Being a Christ follower has provided the blessing of being an accomplished marketing and fundraising professional with over 26 years of successful performance in the nonprofit and corporate industries. Kerrie is experienced in marketing strategy, cross-departmental integration, fundraising and team building. She has also proven successful in developing team structure and workflow to increase productivity and efficiency, as well as integrated strategies. She is passionate and dedicated to helping organizations enhance their mission. She was honored to be invited to present at the Direct Marketing Association’s National Conference in 2012. The Non-Profit Times quoted portions of Kerrie’s presentation in their October 2012 “Digital Conversion” article. Kerrie is a strong believer in serving the Lord and seeking His perfect will in all things. All things do work together for good.

Beatrice Williamson

Founder and Director

Beatrice Williamson is a distinguished leader known for her warmth, humor and commitment to learning. She was born January 19, 1976 in Kisumu, the third largest city in Kenya. From the age of nine years old until her second year of college, Beatrice received a scholarship for education from Swedish missionary Anna Lanson. Education was what Beatrice needed to rise above her circumstances and realize her potential.

“Aunty Bea” as the Maisha children affectionately call her, came to The United States in 2001. She founded Pamoja International Ministry to provide outreach services to international students in Oklahoma. She also consults regularly with international executives from a variety of fields to help create synergistic solutions to impacting problems these students face.

In the meantime, Beatrice’s family, living in the village of Kano, just outside of Kisumu, expressed the need and dire situation of the orphans and widows living in their community. The fruition of Beatrice’s dream began in 2006, when she founded Maisha in response to this call for help. Now, her passion is to reach out to orphaned and destitute children and provide them with the same opportunity Anna Lanson gave her. By making a difference in the lives of the children from her home village, Beatrice strives to create a brighter future for the next generation. Her passion is to reach out to orphaned and destitute children and continue the Legacy of Hope Anna Lanson began.

Beatrice Williamson

Board Governance

Beatrice Williamson is a distinguished leader known for her warmth, humor and commitment to learning. She was born January 19, 1976 in Kisumu, the third largest city in Kenya. From the age of nine years old until her second year of college, Beatrice received a scholarship for education from Swedish missionary Anna Lanson. Education was what Beatrice needed to rise above her circumstances and realize her potential.

“Aunty Bea” as the Maisha children affectionately call her, came to The United States in 2001. She founded Pamoja International Ministry to provide outreach services to international students in Oklahoma. She also consults regularly with international executives from a variety of fields to help create synergistic solutions to impacting problems these students face.

In the meantime, Beatrice’s family, living in the village of Kano, just outside of Kisumu, expressed the need and dire situation of the orphans and widows living in their community. The fruition of Beatrice’s dream began in 2006, when she founded Maisha in response to this call for help. Now, her passion is to reach out to orphaned and destitute children and provide them with the same opportunity Anna Lanson gave her. By making a difference in the lives of the children from her home village, Beatrice strives to create a brighter future for the next generation. Her passion is to reach out to orphaned and destitute children and continue the Legacy of Hope Anna Lanson began.

Nicole Del Mastro

Development Director

Nicole fell in love with Maisha Project during a visit to Kisumu in 2016. During her time there, she witnessed a resilient community. At that time, she knew her journey with the organization was just beginning. Maisha Project’s vision to empower communities by creating long-term solutions motivates her to assist in implementing holistic solutions to break the cycle of generational poverty. As the Director of Development, Nicole seeks partnerships that will assist in giving the Maisha community the necessary tools to become self-sustainable. It is often easier to offer a “hand out”, but a lasting solution is to empower through education, proper programming and resources necessary to cultivate change that will spread throughout Kenya and beyond.

Upon graduating college, Nicole worked in sales and account management for 7 years before transitioning into the nonprofit sector. Her journey into the nonprofit sector began with a direct service career as a literacy instructor for a Chicago-based organization. She thrives when given the opportunity to serve and assist in leaving the world a better place. As a Pittsburgh native, Nicole can’t help but appreciate Roberto Clemente’s words of wisdom;

“Any time you have an opportunity to make a difference in this world and you don’t, then you are wasting your time on Earth.”

Emily Bernhard

Program Administrator

Emily is a Texas Native, who came to Oklahoma for school, and never looked back! A graduate of the University of Oklahoma, Emily studied journalism, public relations, and nonprofit management. Emily fell in love with what she saw stirring in Oklahoma City through her internship with The Spero Project. She found a deep love and language for Kingdom justice and seeing the local church engaged and equipped to love their communities well. Before joining staff at Maisha, Emily served as resident manager for HopeHouse OKC, and worked with Novo Ministries to mobilize churches and volunteers in inner-city ministry. Connecting the Church in healthy, sustainable ways to under-resourced communities for the flourishing of both is her deepest passion.

“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.” – Margaret Mead

“Not all of us can do great things. But we can do small things with great love.” – Mother Teresa

Britni Portrey

Child Sponsorship Coordinator

Britni felt the calling towards humanitarian relief shortly before her graduation from OU. She has since used her degree in Conservation and Pre-Veterinary Medicine as well as her achievements as a tiny home builder to advocate for conservation efforts and sustainable living around Oklahoma. She does this though consulting, public speaking, and her website www.tinyisnow.com.

More than her passion for sustainability is her heart for children. Britni’s goal to fight under-education and generational poverty is what drew her to Maisha Project. She finds joy in engaging in such a wonderful, life-giving organization that brings sustainable health and education to children and their families living in Kenya.

In her free time, you can usually find Britni exploring the menus of OKC’s local good eats (Ramen! Coffee!) or searching for her next big read. If she’s not there, she will be deep in some sort of refurbishing project.

“With rare exceptions, all of your most important achievements on this planet will come from working with others—or, in a word, partnership.” ― Paul Farmer, To Repair the World

Cody Lawson

Missions & Outreach

Cody has always been passionate about helping others and going on international missions by visiting 12 countries before traveling to Kenya in 2013. Cody stayed actively involved with Maisha after his first visit by helping with photography and assisting with 2014 summer missions planning. Cody has been to Maisha many times and has adopted the Luo name Ochibo. He is passionate about the vision of Maisha and the transformation that is happening in the village. He is thankful for the relationships built with the incredible people of Kenya and is excited to see all that God is doing in and through their lives.

“Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.” – Martin Luther King Jr.

Ann Riley

Board Secretary

Ann Riley is honored to have practiced social work for almost 30 years as a clinical therapist & social work educator. As an alum from the University of Oklahoma, she has three degrees: Bachelors of Special Education 1981; Masters of Social Work 1987; and a PhD in Adult & Higher Education 2010. Currently, she is faculty at OU with the Anne & Henry Zarrow School of Social Work. Her role in facilitating student interns with Maisha (both locally & in Kenya), as well as, meeting with the Maisha social work staff for professional development this past summer 2015, has been among the highlights of her career as a social worker.

Ann & David Riley have three great kids (Jonathan age 26, Jillian age 23, & Jessica age 16) and have been married for 28 years. The Riley family has been involved with Maisha since 2009 and became one of the first family’s to experience the joy of sponsoring a child through Legacy of Hope. Their African daughter, Linda Wanjira age 18, has now completed high school & they couldn’t be more proud of her. Looking forward to sponsoring another child, they feel so blessed to be a small part of these good works. The Riley family has been expanded & lifelong friends made through connection with the Maisha community; for this we are so very grateful.

Mia Rabon

Assistant Child Sponsorship Coordinator

Mia is a student at the University of Central Oklahoma studying Nursing. She is passionate about people and helping those around her. Mia jumped head first into Maisha in 2014 and hasn’t looked back. After volunteering with Light the Future Choir in 2014, she began interning that next spring and spent her summer in Kenya in 2016. Mia fell in love with the people in Kano Village and considers Kisumu a second home.

‘Life’s more persistent and urgent question is, ‘What are you doing for others?’ – Martin Luther King Jr.

Mark Nehrenz

Videographer

If you have seen a video about Maisha, Mark probably made it.

Mark has been Maisha’s videographer since the first Team Maisha mission trip in 2008. He met Bea in Oklahoma City in 2007 at a prayer service for the post-election violence in Kenya, decided to go on the mission trip and hasn’t looked back since. Mark has been to Maisha five times and many people in the village consider him a member of the community. He has also spent a lot of time in South Africa. As a result of his connections in South Africa and his deep love of Maisha, three mission trips of South African students have travelled to Maisha to serve.

Mark is a graduate student at the University of Oklahoma, getting his master’s degree in journalism. He spent nearly a year in South Africa on a Fulbright Grant making documentaries, wishing he could be at Maisha doing the same with the kids there!!

In his own words: “Maisha has made Kenya a home away from home for me. I find incredible joy in telling the story of what God is doing at Maisha through the videos that I make. When Bea and I are at Maisha and reflect on how much growth has happened since 2008, we are just blown away and humbled at how much has happened because of our incredible supporters around the world. My experiences at Maisha have forever changed me into someone who has life- long connections with my brothers and sisters in Africa. I look forward to telling their stories in the best way I know how for as long as I can! The people of Maisha are changing Kenya, and I think they can change the world!”

Mark Aduddell

Board Treasurer

Mark Aduddell is the founder and Lead Pastor of Vintage Church, Edmond, Oklahoma. Mark’s wife Amy is an artists, kids pastor, and women’s conference speaker. They have two sons, Christian and Joel. He and Amy began Vintage Church with a desire to reach people of all ages, backgrounds, denominations, and ethnicities. The people they attract most are those who are looking for more to life. At Vintage those people find that we worship a God that is “more than enough.”

Mark grew up in a pastor’s home and has been in full-time ministry since 1986. He has earned (B.B.A) Bachelor of Business Administration and (Th.M) Masters of Theology degrees, and holds an Honorary (D.Min) Doctorate of Ministry. He has served on staff in churches both small and large in Oklahoma and Texas; planted two churches; traveled the country as an evangelist, revivalist, camp speaker, and church growth/ministry consultant; and served as a board member for national and international ministries.

Mark is passionate about taking the gospel of Christ across the street and around the world. He is gifted at communicating God’s Word in a way that is practical, inspiring, convicting, and challenging. God uses him to raise up young men and women into ministry, as well as equipping and sending believers into mission fields around the world.

Lisa Beard

Board Member

Lisa Beard, of Chicago, IL, has been dedicated to Maisha Project’s Mission since 2008. Lisa and her husband, Steven Beard, aided in the development of Maisha’s Medical Clinic, Academy, Feeding Project, Water and Sanitation, Community Center, and Boys Home.

Lisa spent 9 years in the surgical device industry with Johnson and Johnson. She has experience in Sales, Sales Training, Surgeon Training, Marketing and Corporate Accounts. She graduated Cum Laude from The Pennsylvania State University with a Bachelor of Science in Business Marketing.

Cathey Byerley

Board Member

Cathey Byerley is a grateful parent of 6, adoring grandparent of 3, and blessed to be the wife of Nathan. Given the opportunity in 2006 to sponsor a couple of teens at Maisha ultimately increased her family by 12. Considers the relationships born from the Legacy of Hope sponsorships to have clarified her purpose and enlarged her world.

Mel Hurst

Board member

Mel Hurst was born and raised in Lancaster County and has been married to Ruth for 54 years. He is the Co owner of Hurst Williams real estate company, the 4th largest real estate company in Lancaster County for 8 years in the mid 80’s. He developed numerous real estate projects in Lancaster County including The Maples in Leola, The Millpond in Manheim Township, Westpointe Ridge in Ephrata, Quail Ridge in Lititz as well as building and owning many small apartment projects.

Mel is the Co founder of Triple H Construction. He’s a charter member of the Ephrata Chapter of The Full Gospel Businessmen’s Fellowship International and served as President for 5 years. He also Co founded The Worship Center, a 4,000 member independent church in Leola, Pa.

Mel retired from real estate at age 53 and now acts as a small business consultant, life coach and personal mentor.

Michael Votaw

Board Member

Michael Votaw is a follower of Jesus, a husband, a father of two, and a small business owner. He currently lives in Bad Soden, Germany (near Frankfurt), supporting the US Army. He has been spending his time supporting the IT needs of the Army, growing his business, and supporting his family; a family that is now extended into east Africa. Michael has made it a goal to give his time and effort to using his resources in a way that lives beyond him. Michael first visited Kenya with his family in December of 2010. He was changed. He went to Kenya again to build a computer center. Now he looks forward to making his resources give hope. He wants to use his skills in computer technology to make a difference and create a future.