Speakers
The summit featured contributions from practitioners, support workers and theologians across its six sessions.
Find out more about the summit here.
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Session 1: The Theology of Migration and Reception
Chairperson
Lieutenant-Colonel Dean Pallant
Director, The Salvation Army International Social Justice Commission
@Dean_Pallant
Dean was born and educated in Zimbabwe and studied at the University of Cape Town in South Africa. He has been a Salvation Army officer for almost 25 years and is presently The Salvation Army principal advocate and advisor to the General of The Salvation Army on economic, social and political issues. Dean is a board member of the Joint Learning Initiative (https://jliflc.com). Dean completed a doctorate in theology at King’s College London in 2010. His first book was published in 2011, Keeping Faith in Faith-Based Organisations.
Session Speakers
Dr Laurelle Smith
Research Analyst, The Salvation Army International Social Justice Commission
Dr Laurelle Smith is the Research Analyst at the Salvation Army's International Social Justice Commission. She completed her PhD in Medicine at the University of Otago in 2016. As part of her role at the ISJC Laurelle regularly attends meetings held by United Nation agencies, non-governmental entities and faith based organisations regarding refugees, migration and displacement issues, international affairs and governmental policy making.
Lieutenant-Colonel Samuel Pho
National Director for Multicultural Ministries, The Salvation Army Australia Territory
Lt Colonel Samuel Pho arrived in Australia as a refugee from Viet Nam in October 1978. Following commissioning and ordination in 1983, he served as Corps Officer at several corps in the territory, as well as at THQ as Media & Information Officer. In 1990, Samuel was appointed as Corps Officer of Chinese Corps in Box Hill, Victoria. He held the position for 20 years before moving to Hong Kong and Macau as the Officer Commanding till 2013. Lt Colonels Samuel and Donni then returned to AUS. Samuel and Donni have 4 adult children currently living in Melbourne.
Reverend Dr Sam Wells
Vicar, St Martin-in-the-Fields, London
@smitf_london
Revd Dr Sam Wells is a widely-known preacher, pastor, writer, broadcaster, and theologian. He has served as a Church of England parish priest for 20 years. He also spent 7 years in North Carolina, where he was Dean of Duke University Chapel. Sam is also Visiting Professor of Christian Ethics at King’s College London. He has published 30 books, including academic studies and textbooks in Christian ethics, explorations of social mission, liturgy and faith, and four collections of sermons. His most recent book is Incarnational Mission: Being with the World.
Dr Russell Rook
Partner, Good Faith Partnerships
@russrook
Dr Russell Rook is a partner at the Good Faith Partnership, a social consultancy working with senior leaders in faith and politics to devise innovative solutions to society’s more intractable problems. He is also the chair of Reset: Communities and Refugees, a new organisation building the capacity of UK communities to welcome refugees. Over the last three years, Russell has worked with the UK government, refugee agencies and faith based organisations to develop the Community Sponsorship Scheme for refugees, and now works with the Global Refugee Sponsorship Initiative to create similar schemes around the world. A lifelong Salvationist, Russell is a member of Raynes Park Community Church, which has become one of the first churches in the UK to sponsor a refugee family from Syria.
Lieutenant-Colonel Wendy Swan
Command President of Women's Ministries, The Salvation Army Hong Kong and Macau Command
Canadian by birth and global citizen by choice, Wendy has served in Canada, Central Africa and Southeast Asia. She is presently the CPWM and Chair of the Hong Kong and Macau Command Moral and Social Issues Council. She also serves as Secretary of the International Theological Council.
Her PhD thesis (King’s College, London) proposed a ‘theology of protest’ as underpinning The Salvation Army’s war against social injustices.
Session 2: Reflecting on Experience
Chairperson
Major Kerry Coke
Corps Officer, The Salvation Army United Kingdom and Ireland Territory
Kerry is a corps officer at Raynes Park corps in south west London, where she spends her days immersed in the things she loves - building community, fighting for social justice, living like Jesus and encouraging creative responses to God's love. Over the last 3 years, Kerry has been heavily involved in refugee support work, including leading the corps to sponsor and resettle a Syrian refugee family into their neighbourhood and helping to reunite 60 unaccompanied minors stranded in 'The Jungle camp' in Calais with their relatives in the UK.
Session Speakers
Lieutenant Lizette Williams
Corps Officer, The Salvation Army United Kingdom and Ireland Territory
@DLizWilliams
Lt Lizette was born in Luanda, Angola in 1985. Due to political and economic instability, her early childhood was split between Luanda and Kinshasa, DRC. In the early 1990s, Lizette’s family headed to Europe in search of a better life and eventually settled in East London. She has been a Salvation Army officer since July 2017.
Ahmad Al-Rashid
Refugee Advocate
@jackahmed12
Ahmad al-Rashid was born in Aleppo, Syria. He was living there when the Syrian conflict started, as a result, he fled to Iraq in 2013 and then moved to the UK in 2015. Ahmad graduated from SOAS- University of London. He holds an MSc in Violence, Conflict and Development.
Lieutenant-Colonel Ced Hills
Chief Secretary, The Salvation Army Finland & Estonia Territory
Ced’s first experience of disaster response was in Sarajevo and Sipovo, Bosnia (1996). Subsequently, he undertook regular international deployments, including the Republic of Georgia, Albania, Kosovo, Turkey and Kenya. Operational memories of his appointment as International Emergency Services coordinator (2002-2008) include the 5-year programme in Iraq, south Asian tsunami, sub Saharan famine relief and winterisation in Afghanistan. He began his current appointment as Chief Secretary of the Finland & Estonia territory in June 2016.
Damaris Frick
Deputy Co-ordinator, The Salvation Army International Emergency Services
@TSA_Projects
Damaris' involvement in the humanitarian field commenced in January 2006 with a deployment to Northern Pakistan for the earthquake relief programme. For several years, she held mainly field-based positions managing disaster relief operations in locations like Myanmar, Indonesia, Eastern DRC, Haiti and Pakistan. She now oversees the management of all field operations of the Salvation Army worldwide, dealing with natural as well as man-made disasters (including conflict and displacement). Damaris holds a MA in Development and Emergency Practice (Oxford Brookes).
Captain Craig Farrell
Corps Officer, The Salvation Army Australia Southern Territory
@CraigFarrell6
Captain Craig Farrell is the corps officer of Berwick Corps in Melbourne, Australia. Berwick corps has a strong ministry with families and youth from Sudan. Craig is also part of a Christian advocacy group, Love Makes A Way, that seeks an end to Australia’s asylum seeker policies through prayer and civil disobedience.
Major Sandra Crowden
Territorial Social Justice Secretary and Indigenous Ministries Consultant, The Salvation Army Australia Southern Territory
A Scottish born Australian, Sandra has served as a Salvation Army Officer for 30 years. During this time she has held appointments around Victoria and in Alice Springs; as well as in New Zealand and Sri Lanka. Her service has been varied and has included Pastoral Leadership as well as Administrative and Teaching roles. A mother and a grandmother, Sandra longs to see all people given the opportunities to flourish.
Captain John Clifton
Corps Officer, The Salvation Army United Kingdom and Ireland Territory
@johnclifton_
John Clifton is a Salvation Army Officer in Ilford, East London. Over the last six years, the congregation has used the tools of broad-based community organising to bring the pastoral concerns of the congregation into public life, including a particular focus on community sponsorship and the resettlement of unaccompanied minors from Calais. John is currently studying at King’s College London for a PhD in Systematic Theology, focusing on social action and the formation of religious identity.
Session 3: Working with Governments, other Faith Groups and NGOs in Refugee/Migration Situations
Chairperson
Nick Bryant
BBC New York and United Nations Correspondent
@NickBryantNY
Nick Bryant was born in Bristol, England and studied history at Cambridge and has a doctorate in American politics from Oxford. He has worked for the BBC in Washington DC, South Asia, Australia and now is the BBC New York correspondent. "Bryant is a genuine rarity - a Brit who understands America." said the Washington Post. Bryant's books include The Bystander and Correspondentland.
Session Speakers
Gregory Maniatis
Director, International Migration Initiative at the Open Society Foundations
@gmaniatis
Gregory Maniatis served as Senior Advisor to Peter Sutherland, the UN Special Representative for Migration, from 2006-2017, and from 2003-2016 as Senior Fellow at the Migration Policy Institute in Washington. He is also a co-director of the migration project at Columbia University's Global Policy Initiative. Mr. Maniatis has worked closely with the European Commission, the European Parliament, EU member state governments, civil society groups, and international organizations on all aspects of migration and integration policy. His reportage and commentary have appeared in many publications, including the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal. Earlier in his career, he was the founder and publisher of Odyssey, an international magazine about Greece and the Greek diaspora.
He is a graduate of Princeton University, attended the Institut d’Etudes Politiques in Paris, and is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations.
Dr Russell Rook
Partner, Good Faith Partnerships
@russrook
Dr Russell Rook is a partner at the Good Faith Partnership, a social consultancy working with senior leaders in faith and politics to devise innovative solutions to society’s more intractable problems. He is also the chair of Reset: Communities and Refugees, a new organisation building the capacity of UK communities to welcome refugees. Over the last three years, Russell has worked with the UK government, refugee agencies and faith based organisations to develop the Community Sponsorship Scheme for refugees, and now works with the Global Refugee Sponsorship Initiative to create similar schemes around the world. A lifelong Salvationist, Russell is a member of Raynes Park Community Church, which has become one of the first churches in the UK to sponsor a refugee family from Syria.
Daryl Crowden
Director of Humanitarian and Emergency Affairs, World Vision Australia
@DarylCrowden
Daryl commenced with World Vision Australia in 2011 and has managed programming teams in the Middle East, Eastern Europe, Latin America, Caribbean and South Asia. He is currently the Director of WVA's Humanitarian and Emergency Affairs and has qualifications in Cultural Anthropology and International and Community Development (Humanitarian Management).
Commissioner Christine MacMillan
Associate Secretary General for Public Engagement, World Evangelical Alliance
An inspiring and effective advocate of social justice for all, Commissioner Christine MacMillan has been a Salvation Army officer serving in five countries. In 2007, she became the founding director of The Salvation Army International Social Justice Commission. Today, Christine serves with the World Evangelical Alliance as Associate Secretary General for Public Engagement. She plays a catalytic role in identifying global key issues while developing a WEA voice and responses of participation through the offices at the United Nations and influential bodies.
Session 4: Camp and Community Based Responses
Chairperson
Colonel Lisbeth Welander
Under Secretary for Programme Resources, The Salvation Army International
@LisbethWelander
Colonel Lisbeth Welander entered the Officers Training College in Oslo, Norway, as a Cadet of the Servants of God session.
Following commissioning in 1984 she has served in Norway, the Philippines and in Denmark, currently stationed at International Headquarters in London, serving as the Under Secretary for Programme Resources Department.
Lisbeth is a firm believer of the strength within the body of Christ. Together we aspire, together we achieve in Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine.
Session Speakers
Lieutenant Oleg Samoilenko
Corps Officer, The Salvation Army Eastern Europe Territory
@OlegSamoilenko
Oleg was born and raised in Ukraine. By education, he is a historian. Oleg has worked as a teacher of history and law, and as a social worker with people living with HIV in The Salvation Army project at Kharkiv Corps. Now, he serves as the Corps Officer of The Salvation Army Dnipro corps, which is one hour's drive from the war zone. Since the war began three years ago, a new challenge has been local refugees (IDPs) from this part of the country and from the Crimea (the part of Ukraine that Russia has occupied). Every day more than 50 people come and ask for help.
Major Isaac Siundu
Under Secretary for East and Southern Africa, The Salvation Army International
Major Isaac Siundu was born and raised in rural western Kenya. He is currently the Under Secretary for East and Southern Africa at The Salvation Army International Headquarters in London. Major Isaac has been an officer for 21 years, having served at eight churches including in some of the poorest slums (Kibera, Mathare and Mukuru) in Nairobi and at Territorial Headquarters in both Nairobi and Kakamega. He has experience in emergency relief response in Kenya and Rwanda.
Major Isaac holds a BA in Geography and an MBA in Human Resources Management.
Reverend Juliet Kilpin
Co-ordinator, Urban Expression
@JulietKilpin
Juliet Kilpin is a British Baptist Minister. She co-founded a project called Peaceful Borders as a grass roots, collaborative peacemaking response to the growth of the unregulated refugee camp, nicknamed ‘the jungle’, on the UK/French border in Calais, France. She is co-chair of the Safe Passage Campaigns Team that seeks to encourage British government to open and implement safe and legal routes for unaccompanied refugee minors to come to the UK.
Major Peter White
Corps Officer, The Salvation Army Australia Eastern Territory
Peter has been an officer for 20 years, currently serving at the Hurstville Corps in Sydney (English and Mandarin congregations). He has served in corps and social appointments in Australia Eastern Territory, in Projects/Development in Congo DRC, Southern Africa and Mozambique, as well as International Emergency Services Deployments to Kenya West and Uganda.
Captain Naomi Clifton
The Salvation Army United Kingdom and Ireland Territory
@naomi_clifton
Captain Naomi Clifton studied history at Cambridge University, where she explored the role of religion in shaping everyday life. Now a corps officer in Ilford, East London, she leads church-based projects on family poverty and homelessness. She also represents the corps on a multi-faith partnership making a Community Sponsorship application. A former teacher, Naomi cares deeply about the wellbeing of children, and was excited to involve children at the corps in seeking justice for other children who were lone refugees in the Calais camp.
Session 5: Church Based Responses
Chairperson
Dr Russell Rook
Partner, Good Faith Partnerships
@russrook
Dr Russell Rook is a partner at the Good Faith Partnership, a social consultancy working with senior leaders in faith and politics to devise innovative solutions to society’s more intractable problems. He is also the chair of Reset: Communities and Refugees, a new organisation building the capacity of UK communities to welcome refugees. Over the last three years, Russell has worked with the UK government, refugee agencies and faith based organisations to develop the Community Sponsorship Scheme for refugees, and now works with the Global Refugee Sponsorship Initiative to create similar schemes around the world. A lifelong Salvationist, Russell is a member of Raynes Park Community Church, which has become one of the first churches in the UK to sponsor a refugee family from Syria.
Session Speakers
Commissioner Jane Paone
Territorial President of Society and Family, The Salvation Army Switzerland Austria and Hungary Territory
Jane Paone, a Salvation Army Officer of 35 years, is proud of her Scottish origins. Since 2002, she has served with her husband Massimo in senior leadership roles (Italy and Greece, France and Belgium and, since September 2014, Switzerland Austria and Hungary Territory). Jane is Senior International Social Justice Coordinator (Europe) of the ISJC team.
Paula Marshall
Immigrant and Refugee Ministries Consultant, The Salvation Army Canada and Bermuda Territory
Paula Marshall is the Immigrant and Refugee Ministries Consultant for the Canada and Bermuda Territory, providing resources for welcoming newcomers. As the Sponsorship Agreement Holder Representative for the Salvation Army, she works with corps, community groups, and relatives in Canada to undertake Private Sponsorships of Refugees. She served as chair of the Southern Ontario Sponsors Group (2014-2017), and was a member of the development board for Lifeline Syria (2015).
Dr Mary Jo Leddy
Founder, Romero House Community for Refugees
Adjunct Professor, Regis College, University of Toronto
Dr Mary Jo Leddy, founder of the Romero House Community for Refugees, has spent a lifetime advocating for human rights and peace in the Catholic community and beyond. She has published more than ten books, receiving numerous academic awards and scholarships. She is currently an adjunct professor at the University of Toronto and is a visiting professor at several other prestigious universities.
Reverend Dr Mark Gornik
Director, City Seminary of New York
Mark R. Gornik is the Director of City Seminary of New York City. After twelve years in Baltimore doing pastoral ministry in the Sandtown neighborhood, Mark moved to New York City in 1998. His areas of interest and practice are theological education in the city, community development and institutional life, pastoral ministry, immigration and the changing church, and the transmission of faith between generations. Mark holds a PhD from the University of Edinburgh. His book Word Made Global: Stories of African Christianity in New York City (2011) was awarded the mission/global affairs book of the year by Christianity Today.
Lieutenant Ben Cotterill
Corps Officer, The Salvation Army United Kingdom and Ireland Territory
Together with his wife, Lieutenant Ben serves as a corps officer in the United Kingdom Territory with Republic of Ireland. The exciting and challenging ministry of their corps focuses on refugees and asylum seekers, food poverty and family work. A Master's Degree in Global Studies led Ben into working in international development for the Army in Sweden, India and IHQ before becoming an officer in 2014.
Session 6: Tackling Critical Issues
Chairperson
Lieutenant-Colonel Dean Pallant
Director, The Salvation Army International Social Justice Commission
@Dean_Pallant
Dean was born and educated in Zimbabwe and studied at the University of Cape Town in South Africa. He has been a Salvation Army officer for almost 25 years and is presently The Salvation Army principal advocate and advisor to the General of The Salvation Army on economic, social and political issues. Dean is a board member of the Joint Learning Initiative (https://jliflc.com). Dean completed a doctorate in theology at King’s College London in 2010. His first book was published in 2011, Keeping Faith in Faith-Based Organisations.
Session Speakers
Major Nick Coke
Corps Officer and UK Refugee Response Co-ordinator, The Salvation Army United Kingdom and Ireland Territory
@nicholascoke
Nick is both the corps officer at Raynes Park Corps, London, and the UK Refugee Response Co-ordinator. His corps has pioneered the community sponsorship of refugees programme and Nick has been involved in shaping and developing the scheme across the UK, working with central government and other leading partners. Nick has been involved for many years with a community organising approach to social justice. By his own admission, this has made his corps ministry varied, exciting and occasionally mischievous!
Major Heather Grinsted
Regional Leader, The Salvation Army Middle East Region
Major Heather Grinsted has been serving with her husband in the Middle East for the past seven years and is a member of the International Human Trafficking Task Force. She lived her childhood in Zimbabwe. Prior to becoming an officer, she taught in inner city secondary schools. She has been an officer for 24 years, in leadership in local congregations both urban and suburban. Her passions for ministry include the marginalized and youth. She has gained a BSC in Mathematics and an MA in Theology of Leadership.
Major John Rohmingliana
General Secretary, The Salvation Army Bangladesh Command
@rohmingliana
Major John Rohmingliana is a Salvation Army officer presently working in Bangladesh. He has experience working in the field of administration for social and health ministries of The Salvation Army in India. Born in North Eastern part of India, John has experience working in the South Asian context. He has passion for social upliftment.
Lieutenant-Colonel Eirwen Pallant
Deputy Director, The Salvation Army International Social Justice Commission
Chair, International Anti Human Trafficking Task Force
Eirwen was born in India and spent her childhood in Wales. She studied medicine in Yorkshire, England and worked as a hospital doctor before training as a Salvation Army officer. Eirwen was conferred Membership of the Royal College of Practitioners, and she continued to work part time for the National Health Service while a Salvation Army Officer.
Eirwen, with her husband Dean, has been a corps officer in the UK, a social (medical) officer in Zambia and the UK, and has worked as a THQ officer in the UK. For the past 10 years she has been at International Headquarters, first as International Medical Services Coordinator and then as part of the International Social Justice Commission team.
Dr Curtis Elliott
The Salvation Army Social Justice Research Center, Trevecca Nazarene University
Dr. Curtis Elliott is a Salvationist working with The Southern Territory's Social Justice Research Center in Nashville Tennessee. Dr. Elliott has served in various roles within the Salvation Army including an overseas lay-person in The Republic of Georgia, a mission trainer and coordinator as well as a local officer. His doctoral research focused on the intersections of migration and religious faith among IDPs (Internally displaced persons) in the Republic of Georgia. Currently he is involved in leading an oral testimony project with recent immigrant populations in Nashville. He is married with three children.
Major Ray Harris
Board Member, Manitoba Multifaith Council
Major Ray Harris is a retired Salvation Army officer who lives with his wife, Cathie, in Winnipeg, Canada. Their appointments over the years have included both congregational and college responsibilities. Presently he serves on the board of the Manitoba Multifaith Council and is actively involved in refugee settlement.
Brian Dyck
Migration and Resettlement Co-ordinator, Mennonite Central Committee Canada
Brian has been the Migration and Resettlement Coordinator at MCC Canada since February 2015. His primary work at MCC has been helping churches think about refugee sponsorship and the broader issues around forced displacement. Since May 2012 he has also been chair of the Canadian National Refugee Sponsorship Agreement Holder Association, a national organization that meets with the Canadian government to help form Canadian policy on refugee resettlement. He has received degrees from Canadian Mennonite Bible College, University of Winnipeg and Anabaptist Mennonite Biblical Seminary.