International Office Staff
Director of Operations
David Chronic begins his role as Director of Operations on September 1, 2018. He has been serving in Romania with Word Made Flesh since 1998. During his senior year of high school, David became a Christian and sensed a calling to cross-cultural mission and especially to the poor. He studied international relations at the University of Nebraska at Omaha through which he received a scholarship to study in Romania and Moldova. While living in those two countries, David developed relationships with children living on the streets and children abandoned in the state institutions. God opened doors for David to remain in Romania, where he has since lived and served.
Alongside his wife Lenuta, David works among vulnerable youth and poor families, providing education, counseling and mentoring through Day Centers, Community Centers and community development. David also organizes short-term teams and internships, providing discipleship and development in a context of missional service. Recently, David has contributed articles and chapters on cross-cultural mission among the poor to qideas.org, Living Mission: the vision and voices of New Friars, and Child, Theology and Mission.
Cami Goble
Regional Coordinator for Africa & Europe
Cami began serving with Word Made Flesh in Sierra Leone in 2003, where she lived and worked for 18 years. Since 2019, she has served as the Regional Coordinator for Africa and Europe.
Cami grew up in Colorado, where her father’s absence from an early age brought deep challenges. Shy and reserved, she found comfort in reading and discovered hope and direction through her faith in Jesus, which set her on a path of service, forgiveness, and generosity.
She studied intercultural studies (B.A.) and education (M.A.) at Biola University, where she developed a foundation for cross-cultural ministry and lifelong friendships. She went on to teach in Namibia with WorldTeach, in Papua New Guinea with Wycliffe, and in Garden Grove, California, gaining experience that prepared her for long-term ministry with Word Made Flesh.
During a sabbatical in 2010, Cami volunteered at the Iona Christian Community in Scotland, where she met her husband, Alan. On a second sabbatical in 2018, they adopted their son, Joseph. Today, Cami and her family live in Wales. She continues to enjoy reading, hiking, birding, cooking, and baking.
Kristen Stiefel
Director Of Community Care
Kristen joined Word Made Flesh as the Director of Community Care in 2018. She desires to offer a space for reflection, rest and a listening ear to the WMF community as we live out our vocational callings around the world.
In 2017, Kristen graduated from Portland Seminary with an MA in Spiritual Formation and a certificate in Spiritual Direction. Before joining Word Made Flesh, she worked in experiential learning and study abroad programs for college students in both Lithuania and San Francisco. She loves exploring the sacred space where identity and spiritual formation as it collides with cross-cultural experiences.
Kristen currently lives in San Francisco and can be found either hiking in the mountains or searching for the perfect lavender latte with friends.
Chris Harrell
Regional Coordinator for Asia
Chris, raised in a loving Christian family in Nebraska, committed his life to Jesus in fifth grade. Influenced by a mission-focused church and friends with overseas experiences, Chris developed a deep understanding of God's love for the world.
While attending Asbury University, Chris solidified his calling to care for at-risk youth during a transformative trip to Romania with WMF. Post-graduation in 2003, he joined a Word Made Flesh India servant team, where he met his future wife, Erin. They married in 2006, spending their initial year traveling with WMF and Servants to Asia in India, Cambodia and Thailand.
They played a crucial role in expanding WMF's work in Sierra Leone, particularly in the Kroo Bay slum community. Upon returning to the States in 2011, Chris dedicated seven years to the Hope Center for Kids, focusing on high school employability training. Chris and Erin have four children, Keyara, Elijah, Josiah and Aaliyah. Chris loves seeing new places, sharing experiences and serving alongside a team. He also enjoys hiking, fishing and playing ultimate frisbee.
Ariel Alexander
Regional Coordinator for Latin America
Ariel grew up in Córdoba, Argentina, and has called La Paz, Bolivia home since 2009. She joined Word Made Flesh in 2012 and has supported survivors of abuse and sexual exploitation as program coordinator, researcher, advocate, and inter-cultural formation facilitator within the WMF community in Bolivia. At the beginning of 2023 she stepped into the role of Regional Coordinator for Latin America. She desires to support Latin American WMF communities and create bridges of partnership between individuals and organizations serving those in vulnerable situations in the region.
In 2020, Ariel graduated from the Universidad Bíblica Latinoamericana in partnership with the Universidad Nacional (Costa Rica) with her Masters in Theological Studies. Ariel completed her undergraduate studies at Baylor University with a BA in International Studies with a focus on human rights and truth and justice initiatives throughout the Southern Cone of South America. Ariel loves adventuring around Bolivia and everywhere else with her husband and two sons, trying new foods and diving into deep conversations with people she just met.
Jennifer Seo Ney
Global Advocate
Jennifer was born in Seoul, South Korea, and raised in a Catholic family. At the age of 17, she experienced a personal encounter with Christ, which gave her courage to serve God in unexpected ways and places. After working for about a decade as a dental hygienist, she felt a strong calling to full-time missions and began serving in Vancouver’s inner city, working alongside individuals facing drug addiction, homelessness, and mental illness.
From 2014 to 2017, Jennifer served as Advocacy Coordinator with Word Made Flesh Sierra Leone, and from 2019 to 2024, she held the role of Field Director. Her work centered in Kroo Bay, a slum community in the capital city of Freetown, where she engaged deeply in ministry with vulnerable women and children.
Jennifer is married to Stephen Ney, and together they adopted their sons, Ezekiel and Nathaniel, in 2020 while living in Sierra Leone. She has a passion for reading and delights in continually learning new things.
Emily Fales
Communications Coordinator
Emily joined Word Made Flesh in 2023. With a background in digital content strategy, videography, and human centered storytelling, she brings a thoughtful and empathetic lens to stories that advocate for marginalized communities. After earning her degree in Strategic Communications and Marketing from Butler University, she crossed paths with Word Made Flesh and felt drawn to its mission. Emily believes in the power of storytelling to bridge cultures, restore dignity, and inspire love in action. Through her work, she seeks to elevate voices that are often overlooked and invite others into deeper connection with God, neighbor, and self.
Ken Dean
Financial Coordinator
Ken joined Word Made Flesh in 2015. Ken has spent over 20 years enjoying various finance roles that specialized in Financial Planning & Analysis. In 2013, Ken, a fifth-generation-native Californian, moved to Wilmore, KY, to attend Asbury Theological Seminary. He loves to spend time with his family and enjoys all things outdoors. Ken has served as a church board member, treasurer for non-profit organizations, and public school board member. Ken is deeply committed to WMF’s mission, and serves regularly on the Navajo Nation in Arizona, USA. Ken lives in Versailles, KY, and has four adult children.
Artist Ambassadors
Word Made Flesh Artist Ambassadors believe deeply in WMF’s mission of walking in solidarity with and among persons experiencing extreme hardship and vulnerability. Our ambassadors in the practice of their art exemplify the same Spirit in which WMF does its work. They are to us extensions of our community, assisting WMF in enacting the Good News of Jesus.
Kristina Erny
Artist Ambassador
Kristina is Assistant Professor of English and Director of the Creative Writing program at Asbury University. She was a member of a servant team with Word Made Flesh Sierra Leone, an experience which made a profound impact on her life. She continues to be involved with Word Made Flesh on an ongoing basis and generously shares her artistic experiences and expertise with our WMF community.
A third culture teacher’s kid raised in Seoul, South Korea, she has spent much of her teaching career abroad with her husband and three kids. After graduating with a degree in English Education, she has subsequently served as a higher level English Literature International Baccalaureate teacher in Taejon, Indianapolis, and Seoul.
In 2010, she received her MFA in Creative Writing from the University of Arizona. Her creative work is the recipient of numerous awards and is published in The Los Angeles Review, Tupelo Quarterly, Yemassee, Bluestem, Booth, and Jelly Bucket, as well as other places. Her poetry manuscript, Wax of What’s Left, has been a finalist for many poetry prizes. She is interested in otherness, motherhood, third culture, identity, place, translation, among other things.
She joined the faculty of Asbury University in 2018-19. She is married to visual artist Benjamin Erny and together they are raising three children.
Kellie Haddock
Artist Ambassador
Kellie is a singer, songwriter, wife, and mom. A former widow, Kellie has lived through tragedy and found hope and joy on the other side. Her emotive music draws from real-life stories of beauty, heartache, and hope.
Visit her website: https://www.kelliehaddock.com
Karisa Keasey
Artist Ambassador
Karisa is a studio artist with a heart for people and a passion for creating. She is inspired by the beauty in this world, and broken by its hurt. But to her, it is not enough to be broken by the things we see; she believes we must aspire to change and be a part of the solution. And so, believing that art is a universal catalyst for change, she paints. She strives to paint stories that have been neglected to be told. She then uses such stories to spread awareness, to raise funds to fight injustice in the world, and to provide a space for voices of people experiencing oppression and hardship to be heard. (See The Least of These Project.)
Karisa received her degree in Fine Arts from George Fox University where she also became acquainted with the people and work of Word Made Flesh. WMF is so thankful for Karisa’s partnership with us as an Artist Ambassador. See some of her work featured in The Cry.
Aaron Strumpel
Artist Ambassador
Over the years, Aaron Strumpel has been able to partner with communities that he’s met and with whom he’s felt deeply connected. Word Made Flesh has become one of these communities and after having encountered them at Missions Week at George Fox University, Aaron was invited to lead worship at several large WMF staff gatherings and yearly Holiday shows. He’s visited the communities in Peru and Buenos Aires. This new season at WMF marks renewed interaction and collaboration for Aaron and we are excited to present his musical work here on our website!
Learn more about Aaron’s partnership with Word Made Flesh or read Aaron’s reflection in a recent edition of The Cry.