Get to know Bethany's leadership

Keith joined Bethany after working on the leadership team at Kamehameha Schools in Hawaii that provides education to more than 10,000 children every year with little cost to their families. Before working at the school, Keith was employed by United Parcel Service for more than 35 years where he completed his career as chief compliance & ethics officer. At UPS he oversaw all domestic and international compliance programs for employees, customers, and vendors. Keith is a frequent speaker on topics of leadership, compliance and ethics, change management, and enterprise risk management. He holds a bachelor’s degree in business and economics from Malone University and a master's in business administration from Franklin University. Keith and his wife, Dr. Deborah Burdick-Cureton, have four adult children and eight grandchildren. They're motivated by their faith and thrilled to be answering God’s call together to strengthen families by serving the mission of Bethany.

In partnership with the CEO, Lorita works to align all of Bethany's programs, processes, and resources with our strategic framework, equipping us to accomplish our mission today and realize our vision for the future. She is a recognized leader in the social services field, with over 31 years in the public and private sectors. Her experience includes managing media relations, fundraising, corporate oversight, quality, and process improvement for national organizations. Lorita excels at driving executive-level projects, building teams, and establishing systems within complex organizations. She has a BSW and MSW from Florida State University. Lorita and her husband have four children and reside in Florida.

Mike leads a team of 20 members who support and build Bethany’s technological services, websites, and internal applications to advance Bethany's mission. A graduate of Dordt College, Mike brings 20 years of IT experience with a passion for working in organizations with a strong mission.

Since 2001, Scott has served a variety of roles within the finance team. He now leads a team of dedicated financial professionals whose mission is to promote stewardship of the resources that God has entrusted to Bethany. Scott strives for financial transparency and accuracy in every aspect of managing the business activities of Bethany.

Nhung provides leadership to all legal aspects of the organization including legal transactions, contracts, risk management, and mattes of regulation and compliance. She most recently served as the senior associate counsel/data privacy officer for Samaritan’s Purse providing legal advice and guidance to management, both domestically and internationally, in the areas of employment and labor law, privacy and data protection regulations, child protection, bribery and corruption, anti-trafficking and aviation law. Nhung, her husband, and daughter live in West Michigan.

Cheryl joined Bethany in 2019. She brings a wealth of philanthropy and donor engagement expertise from her time leading the World Vision development teams. She leads our fundraising efforts, national campaign strategy, and donor relations team. Cheryl brings great joy and compassion to her work to support the families and children Bethany serves.

Annie is responsible for the integration of Bethany’s mission and priorities across the organization by leading internal communications and public relations, spearheading crisis communications, ensuring organizational assimilation to change initiatives, and providing strategic support to the CEO and Board of Directors. As a certified human resources professional, and holding dual Master of Philanthropy & Nonprofit Leadership and Master of Education degrees, Annie brings a people-first approach to all that she does. She lives with her three children and husband in West Michigan.

Tawnya has worked in child welfare and refugee services for over 27 years. During her career at Bethany she has served in a number of roles including branch director, regional director, national development director for refugee services, vice president of regional operations, and vice president of refugee and immigrant family services. Tawnya is a strategic leader in growing programs and services specifically designed to meet the greatest challenges facing children and families. She holds a Master of Social Work and is clinically licensed. She and her husband have two sons and reside in Maryland. In all things, Tawnya is motivated by her faith and seeks God’s purpose daily as she speaks up for people in vulnerable situations around the globe.

Brad Keller, VP of regional operations in Michigan, has supervised teams at Bethany for more than 28 years. Brad enjoys helping teams build on their individual strengths, negotiating outcomes so everyone knows their role and what is expected of them, moving things in a positive direction, and using humor and joy to fulfill Bethany’s mission of serving vulnerable children and families. He earned his master’s in social work and has worked in child welfare, foster care, and adoption since 1995.

Since 1998, George has provided direct clinical services and oversight to a broad range of family strengthening programs. He has also directed branch strategic planning and various cultural diversity initiatives. George earned his bachelor’s degree in psychology from the University of Michigan and his master’s degree in social work from Grand Valley State University.

Mark earned a bachelor’s in finance and a master’s in business administration from Grand Valley State University. In 1997, Mark, along with five other founders, started Mercantile Bank of Michigan where he currently serves as its senior lender and west region president. He has been married to his wife, Julie, for over 27 years, and they have four children. Mark also enjoys coaching, running, and biking.

Brian serves as the CEO of National Heritage Academies, a for-profit charter school management company that consists of 87 K-8 schools in nine states. Before moving to the midwest, Brian spent 15 years at The Walt Disney Company in multiple leadership roles. He's a proud graduate of the United States Naval Academy, serving the country for nine years as a naval flight officer. Brian is the adoptive father of three children.

Larry is a certified public accountant (CPA) who lives in Florida. He has two grown children and has served on Bethany's Board in Florida since 2003.

Joel has been a banking professional in West Michigan for 30 years. He currently serves as regional president for Independent Bank. He graduated from Central Michigan University with degrees in finance and economics. He has been married to his wife, Nancy, for 30 years and has two adult daughters, Katelyn and Sarah. Joel and Nancy worked with Bethany to adopt Sarah from South Korea. They attend Grace Community Church, where Joel is active in the music ministry.

Susanne served as an adoption social worker for Bethany in Fremont and Muskegon, Michigan, for 31 years before her recent retirement. Her expertise is in the areas of domestic infant adoption, pregnancy counseling, foster care adoption, and refugee transitional foster care. She enjoys bicycling, camping, traveling, and reading.

An emerging faith leader, Marben is a pastor, writer, and entrepreneur committed to humbly serving the Lord while being a successful business leader as a bivocational pastor. Marben is a military veteran, retired businessman, and recent second-career graduate of Columbia Theological Seminary in Atlanta. He currently serves the New Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Dublin, Georgia, while also assisting business and faith-based clients to achieve success.

Kafi is a third-generation community organizer working at the institutional and grassroots levels to empower communities to solve their own problems. Her experiences include working in incarnational Christian community development in urban Los Angeles, running a community-based non-profit leading the church's antiracism effort, and working in public and private urban Christian schools as both teacher and a principal. She holds a B.A. in psychology/public policy analysis from Pomona College, a master's in elementary education from Claremont Graduate University, and a master's in educational leadership from California State University, Los Angeles. Kafi is currently working on a Ph.D. in Innovative Urban Leadership at Bakke Graduate University, a global Christian university.

Children have always been at the center of Lori’s life. Four children, two grandchildren, several Safe Family host children, and hundreds of school children have blessed her with rich experiences and insights. Lori also served on Bethany's Board in Indiana for nine years.

Peter is the director of client relationship management at Vocera Communications in Knoxville, Tennessee. He has also served as an elder at Redeemer Church of Knoxville and as an associate pastor at Community Church in California.

Steve lives with his family in Grand Rapids, Michigan, and is a program director for Cornerstone Trust. He gives oversight to the Trust’s engagement in Sub-Saharan Africa. Prior to Cornerstone, Steve served for 10 years in a local church where he led their international and local outreach efforts. He has two master's degrees: one in historical theology and the other in international development with a focus on monitoring and evaluation.

Daniel is an insurance agent and agency owner at Buiten & Associates. Besides serving on Bethany's national board, he has also served on the boards of Good Samaritan Ministries, Western Seminary, Holland Hospital, Care for Uganda, Christ Memorial Church, Camp Geneva, Holland Home and Benjmins' Hope.

Maegan serves as chief of staff for Meet Copper, Inc, an online platform for book clubs bringing people together in meaningful communities. A social worker by trade, she has spent over a decade in various leadership roles and working with adoptive families and vulnerable children. Maegan is host of The Post Adoption Podcast and serves with Equality for Adopted Children. She enjoys helping others launch products or books they love to bring positive change to the world. She and her husband, TC, believe their most meaningful work is parenting their three children, two of which came to them through international adoption. Her family resides in North Alabama.

Roger is the CFO of CREA, LLC an Indiana-based affordable housing equity provider. He has 30+ years of finance experience. He graduated from Huntington University and is a licensed CPA in the state of Indiana. He has been married to his wife, Melinda, for 30 years and has four daughters. Roger and Melinda serve on the local advisory board of Isaiah 117 House which provides physical and emotional support in a safe and loving home for children awaiting foster care placement.

Deb’s professional background is in social work practice, social welfare history, child welfare, and nonprofits. She has a B.A. from Hope College, an MSW from Western Michigan University, and a Ph.D. from Michigan State University. Deb is a professor of social work emerita at Hope College, where she recently retired after 33 years of teaching and research. She's grateful for her working relationships with many Bethany staff that resulted from placements of social work interns, participation at Bethany conferences and workshops, and completion of global training, program evaluations, and research projects.