Development Team Updates

2020 brought many changes for all of us. At ABCH, we saw significant change among our Development Team, as the Lord moved among His servants, and in the process, brought many new faces to our ABCH family.

Todd McMichen has joined our team as our new Chief Development Officer. This change follows as Jay Boyd, our previous Director of Development, has accepted an offer for a new ministry opportunity in South Carolina. As Chief Development Officer, Todd will lead our Engagement Team, which is made up of our Development, Communications, and Database Teams. Todd is already proving himself to be a very valuable contributor to one of our ministry’s desires—to be known for excellence and innovation, while also pursuing sustainability. He is uniquely talented and wonderfully qualified for the role he will be fulfilling in our ministry.

Steve Sellers, known and dearly loved by Alabama Baptists all across the state, served with us in Development for 24 years. In late 2019, he announced his retirement for early 2021. He was serving as Development Officer for North Alabama. From Chief Operations Officer for North Alabama Michael Smith: "I will miss my dear brother, Steve Sellers, when he retires in January. For my nearly 15 years with ABCH, Steve has been my constant source of support and accountability. He has helped me carry out my vision by finding the donors to support that vision. As a result, the lives of many children and families have been wonderfully impacted in the present and for eternity.”

Michael Gentry will be our new Development Officer for North Alabama. Michael has been serving Alabama Baptists for decades on church staffs and as a regional representative for LifeWay. He knows lots of pastors and lots of Baptist leaders and will be quite effective at sharing our unique story with current and future partners in ministry. Michael will be based in Decatur, but will also work closely with our Oxford programs.

Rick West has spent much of his professional life serving churches in Florida, North Carolina, and Alabama. For nearly the past decade he has served as a regional representative for LifeWay. He is very well networked with pastors and church leaders. Rick will be based in both Mobile and Dothan. Rick comes highly recommended by Kim McGainey, ABCH Area Director for Southeast Alabama.

Allison Combs joined our Development team in 2018 as a Development Officer in the Birmingham area. She continues her good work of helping children and families as she faithfully works with major donors and corporate partners in Central Alabama, as well as leads efforts across the state in one of our newest giving initiatives, Women of Compassion.

God has used Bob Dewhurst, our first Director and Vice President of Development, and Jay Boyd to prepare us exceptionally well for our next chapter in our engagement efforts. Working closely with our outstanding Communications Team and our excellent Database Team, I can only imagine the impact in engagement we will see in the coming months and years! I am very excited to welcome these new team members and watch God's plans continue to unfold as we work daily to protect, nurture, and restore children and families through Christ-centered services.

State-WideRod MarshallFebruary 18, 2021