MEET OUR TEAM
James Whitford
CEO
True CharityBIO
James received his doctorate from the University of Kansas Medical Center and practiced physical therapy and wound care before he and his wife, Marsha, founded Watered Gardens Ministries in Joplin, Missouri, in 2000. True Charity evolved from their mission to champion a resurgence of civil society in the fight against poverty.
His work has appeared in Heritage Foundation’s Index of Culture and Opportunity, Patrick Henry College’s Newsmaker Series, World, The Christian Post, and The Hill. He and Marsha were honored to receive the World News Group Hope Award on behalf of Watered Gardens Ministries in 2019. He is also the author of The Crisis of Dependency: How Our Efforts to Solve Poverty Are Trapping People in It and What We Can Do to Foster Freedom Instead.
In his role as Executive Director of Watered Gardens and True Charity, James is responsible for establishing vision and strategy for the ministry.
They have 5 children and 7 grandchildren and love to fish the James River in SW Missouri where they live.
Travis Hurley
Vice President of Advancement
True CharityBIO
Travis received his Master of Divinity from Cincinnati Christian University and his Doctorate of Ministry from Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary. After serving in local church ministry for 17 years, he has worked in development for the over 12 years now, serving full-time at Watered Gardens Ministries since January, 2017.
He is also a Lieutenant Commander, serving as a chaplain, for the United States Navy Reserve, and he teaches in congregations and universities on issues of race, culture, and the church. A fellow of the World Journalism Institute, his work has appeared in The Christian Standard and as a guest columnist for local news outlets.
In his current role as VP of Advancement for Watered Gardens and True Charity, Travis is responsible for fundraising and marketing for the ministry.
In addition to 4 children, Travis has 5 grandchildren, 3 of which are grandsons who regularly join him in mischief around the 4-state area of SW Missouri where he lives.
Nathan Mayo
Vice President of Operations & Programs
True CharityBIO
Nathan Mayo earned his Bachelor of Science in Economics from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. In 2013, he was commissioned as an Armor and Reconnaissance officer in the U.S. Army and stationed in Germany with a mission to deter Russian aggression in Europe.
Upon completion of his military service as a Captain, Nathan and his wife, Abigail, spent two years in Haiti building up a network of Haitian-run churches and schools before moving to Missouri to join True Charity in 2020.
Nathan is inspired by solving challenging problems with data and translating the insights of experts into applications for practitioners. In his role as Network Director, he recruits, equips, and connects poverty-fighting organizations so they can continuously improve their approaches and outcomes. His work has appeared in CNN Business, the Washington Examiner, Real Clear Policy, WORLD Magazine, and more.
Nathan and Abigail live with their daughters Heidi and Lillie in Joplin, Missouri.. Nathan is an avid traveler with 39 countries down. He also enjoys hiking, recreational economics, and movies with gratuitous explosions.
Bethany Herron
Vice President of Education
True CharityBIO
Since 2018, Bethany has worked in education as a teacher and instructional designer. In addition to serving with the True Charity team, Bethany currently teaches at a hybrid school in the Atlanta, GA area.
As an instructional designer, Bethany creates engaging educational materials that equip individuals and organizations with life-changing practice.
Bethany holds an Educational Specialist degree in Curriculum and Instruction and a Master of Arts in Teaching from Liberty University, as well as a Bachelor of Arts in Ministry Studies from The Baptist College of Florida.
Bethany and her husband, Jeffrey, a US Army Chaplain, have three children and enjoy hiking, running, and visiting local parks.
Savannah Aleckson
Events Director
True CharityBIO
Savannah earned a Bachelor’s of Science in Organizational Communication from Missouri State University in August 2017. After serving as a para-educator in a local school district for a year, she joined the True Charity team in October 2018.
As our Events Director, Savannah plans gatherings that inspire and equip charity practitioners to participate in responsible, empowering work, including True Charity’s annual Summit and regular webinars.
Savannah lives in Joplin, MO with her husband, Josh, and their daughter, Autumn. Savannah enjoys outdoor activities—skiing, rock climbing, biking, and running—but she can occasionally be found indoors where she enjoys reading and hunting for good shows on Netflix.
Amanda Fisher
Community Engagement Director
True CharityBIO
Amanda received her Bachelor of Arts Degree in Psychology and Business from Tulane University, New Orleans, LA. She brings a history of hands-on experience in poverty-related fields to the True Charity Team. She has worked with individuals living with mental illness as well as the elderly and disabled population as an advocate for independent living.In her current role, Amanda is tasked with the mission of ensuring True Charity principles take root and grow in communities across the nation.Amanda lives with her husband, Brandon, a USAF veteran and Associate Circuit Judge, in Nevada, MO. They have three children and have served as foster parents as well.In her free time, Amanda enjoys running, biking, snow-skiing in Colorado, playing drums with her church band, and spending time with her family.
Avery West
Member Solutions Architect
True CharityBIO
Avery West has worn many hats since the Network was born in 2020, assisting with content creation, member engagement, and consultation.
Now, as the member solutions architect, she brings this experience to her conversations with members as they strategize relational, dignified ways to come alongside their neighbors. She is most happy connecting leaders with other members and models from across the nation, helping them feel empowered to truly meet needs. She also helps develop the next generation of solutions for the Network as a whole.
Avery received her bachelor’s from Hillsdale College in Philosophy, Politics, and Economics. She wrote her senior thesis on the Philosophy of personalism and its connection to poverty-alleviation.
Avery lives with her husband (a law student) and 2 young children in New Haven, CT. There, they love hosting people in their home, participating in their local church, and stopping to look at every acorn and flower on their walks in the woods.
Sonya Stearns
Network Manager
True CharityBIO
Sonya is an experienced high school teacher, having taught critical thinking, public communication and speech, financial literacy, life skills, Bible, and choral music. She received her Bachelor of Arts in Music from the University of Mobile in Alabama and served on staff at local churches in Alabama and Texas. She has served with her husband in church ministry for over 35 years, mostly in South Florida.
Sonya was awakened to the ineffectiveness of many ministries to the poor several years ago, and she has a deep desire to see successful and ennobling practices spring up across America, especially in churches.
As the network manager, Sonya regularly meets with potential member nonprofit and church leaders to communicate the benefits of joining the True Charity Network. While maintaining the member portal, she works with network members to ensure they receive the proper tools and education to benefit from all that True Charity offers.
Sonya enjoys outdoor activities, especially gardening, jogging, and hiking new trails. She takes pleasure in hosting people for home-cooked meals and fellowship in her home, and she has a passion for helping other Christians minister effectively to their families and communities.
She and her husband, Dr. Todd Stearns, live in Austin, Texas, where he is the worship pastor at Austin Baptist Church, and she assists in leading the adult choir rehearsals. They have 3 married, young adult children who live in Texas, Indiana, and Florida.
Alyssa Glasgow
Graphic Design Manager
True CharityBIO
Alyssa earned her Bachelor of Science in Commercial Art from Southwest Baptist University in 2015, where she also began her career as a graphic designer.
In her role as True Charity’s graphic design manager, Alyssa creates visually compelling materials that support our groundbreaking work in teaching organizations how to engage in more effective charity.
Alyssa began to recognize the tremendous need for long-term poverty solutions in college and she is committed to pursuing those solutions through her creative design and photography work.
Alyssa is actively involved in her church and volunteers as a student ministry leader. In her spare time, she enjoys photography, reading, and traveling anywhere and everywhere! She loves her Oklahoma Sooners and rarely misses a football game.
RJ Harbison
Video Producer
True CharityBIO
RJ first heard about True Charity while serving at a Watered Gardens’ Forge ceremony in early 2021. After being a True Charity Summit volunteer in 2022 and being hired as a contractor for video work for the 2023 Summit, RJ came on board as our full-time Video Producer. RJ earned his Bachelor of Arts in Creative Arts Ministry from Ozark Christian College in 2021 with a primary focus in Video Production.
In the role of Video Producer, RJ is responsible for creating engaging, high-quality video content for our team that equips organizations and individuals to understand what it takes to love their neighbor more intentionally and do charity more effectively.
RJ lives in Joplin, Missouri, where he actively serves as a board member for Great Wonder Productions, a non-profit based out of Joplin that focuses on supporting the cinematic arts in Southwest Missouri. For fun, RJ loves to make short films, go hiking, and play video games and board games with his wife, Jessica.
Steve Lyon
Editorial Director
True CharityBIO
Steve has a rich ministry and content background, having served as a student ministries pastor, staff writer for Gary Smalley and John Trent’s family ministry, senior pastor, Editor in Chief at Moody Publishers, and Vice President of Publishing at Bible League International. In addition, he has served as a freelance editor for a number of ministry and secular organizations (including Shortridge Instruments and the Texas Department of Public Safety). He has a BBA from Southern Methodist University and a ThM from Dallas Theological Seminary. He is also a published author.
His interest in effective charity was piqued interacting with the homeless in downtown Chicago during his days at Moody Publishers; and observing the well-intentioned but poorly executed compassion ministries of his church. That gave rise to thedeep impression Moody’s When Helping Hurtsmade on him. “True biblical compassion is possible,” Steve says, “and I’m honored to lend my skills and experience to an organization that understands thatand knows how to express it and multiply it.”
He and his wife, Dawn, live in Austin, Texas where she serves as an accounts payable specialist for a tech firm. They are actively involved in their church, where Steve teaches a Sunday morning bible study and Dawn assists him by covering class administrative duties. He’s been a fitness swimmer for … well, let’s just say “a long time,” enjoys playing guitar, and hiking with Dawn. They have three grown children.
Cole Edmonson
Marketing Specialist
True CharityBIO
Cole earned his Bachelor of Science summa cum laude in Graphic Design and Business from one of the nation’s top design schools. Upon graduating, he applied his creative skills as the marketing and communications guy for the pregnancy resource centers in Portland, Oregon for three years, before then moving across the country and working in the financial services industry.
Now, as True Charity’s marketing specialist, Cole enjoys bringing both his nonprofit and B2B marketing skills into play: helping reach and equip other organizations to grow their impact in serving people who are experiencing poverty!
Cole lives with his wife Natalie and supports her own nonprofit work in helping people from hyper-fundamentalist backgrounds grow in biblical faith and find healthy church community. Cole enjoys his lifelong LEGO hobby as an award-winning fan designer, along with in-depth cultural commentary, politics, and going on walks with friends.
Krystal Perkins
Development Director
True CharityBIO
Krystal Perkins brings over 8 years of experience in nonprofit fundraising to her role as Development Director at True Charity. Her career began in homelessness and addiction services, where she developed a deep passion for serving others. Over the years, she has honed her skills in both volunteering and professional ministry and deepened her commitment to making a meaningful impact.
Krystal is enthusiastic about the effective charity movement and is dedicated to creating lasting change. An experienced grant writer, she also serves on review panels for major nonprofit funders, bringing valuable expertise to her role.
Outside of her work at True Charity, Krystal and her husband, Jason, own a small construction company in southern Oregon, where she manages the administrative side of the business. She also owns a children’s entertainment company that provides character visits for special events. In her free time, Krystal enjoys traveling, spending time with her family, and sharing hope with others through her personal testimony.
