CCDA Podcast

Welcome to the CCDA Podcast. CCDA is a network of Christians committed to seeing people and communities experience God's shalom.

On this podcast, we don’t have formal interviews or “expert takes;” instead, we have honest, grounded conversations to help you feel less alone in the work and imagine faithful next steps in your own community.

You will hear conversations with practitioners, leaders, scholars, and neighbors who are living out Christian Community Development in real, contextual ways. Our guests draw from lived experience, sharing how faith and CCD are shaping how they are showing up in their context.

We hope you are encouraged and inspired by these conversations. Subscribe today.

Stephanie Ann Vander Lugt is joined by Amy Kuhl to discuss ecological discipleship and creation care. They share how they are caring for the environment with their communities, how creation care integrates with Christian Community Development, and practical ways for people to engage in caring for their environments.

Learn more about the Ecological Discipleship Network at ccda.org/ecological and don’t miss the CCDA Conference in Richmond, Virginia, to connect with other like-minded people.

Stephanie Ann is deeply committed to the intersection of justice, faith, healing, ecology, and personal and communal transformation. With a background in community development and violence prevention—including a decade of working with incarcerated women—she brings compassion and expertise to her work as a licensed clinician specializing in trauma recovery and holistic well-being. Stephanie is the cofounder and executive director of Kinship Plot, a community organization that envisions vibrant communities where people experience resonant relationships through stable housing, shared land stewardship, and creative, hospitable life together. She is also an ordained minister in the Presbytery of the Central Carolinas.

Amy moved to Seattle in October 2022 to manage World Relief’s Resiliency Programs, following her passion to support refugees and displaced people as they rebuild their lives and communities after crisis. She graduated from the University of Michigan with an M.A. in Liberal Studies focusing on gender and globalization, environmental studies, documentary film, and creative advocacy. Prior to her current role, Amy worked overseas in humanitarian aid for nearly a decade supporting displaced people across the world as they moved forward after war and disaster. Over her career she has lived, worked, and studied in 12 countries across five continents. A native of Michigan, Amy loves playing piano and soccer and enjoys being outside any chance she gets—especially if it involves windsurfing, skiing, paddleboarding, rock-climbing or gardening!

Learn more about CCDA and how you can get involved at ccda.org. Connect with CCDA on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn. Follow CCDA on YouTube.

In this special episode, we are taking time to remember the life and legacy of Dr. John M. Perkins, one of the founders of the Christian Community Development movement.

Throughout this episode, you’ll hear from other founding leaders and friends who walked closely with him. These friends include Dr. Mary Nelson, Dr. Barbara Williams-Skinner, Dr. Dolphus Weary, Dr. Wayne Gordon, and Dr. Kathy Dudley. They reflect on his life, his friendship, and how his legacy continues today.

Dr. Perkins showed us what it looks like to follow Christ in community. And as we listen, we are invited to consider what it means for us now, how we carry that witness forward together.

Learn more about CCDA and how you can get involved at ccda.org. Connect with CCDA on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn. Follow CCDA on YouTube.

A Rosa Mani Thomas se le unen Adriana De La Rosa, Clara D. Compean y Chris Ophus para reflexionar sobre sus experiencias como Micah Catalysts y compartir acerca de la Campaña del Testimonio Fiel. Comparten cómo están viendo a Dios obrar en sus comunidades, la belleza que perciben en sus contextos locales y aquello que les infunde esperanza en esta temporada.

Esta conversación se desarrolla íntegramente en español, como un ejercicio de escucha y solidaridad. Las Escrituras nos recuerdan que seguir a Cristo implica acercarse, escuchar y dejarse moldear por aquellas voces que, de otro modo, podríamos pasar por alto. Hemos tomado esta decisión de manera intencional, pues el lenguaje determina la forma en que se narran las historias y qué voces ocupan el centro de atención. Muchas personas en nuestras comunidades se ven obligadas a traducirse a sí mismas constantemente para poder ser comprendidas. Hoy, decidimos bajar el ritmo y escuchar de una manera diferente. Les invitamos a quedarse y acompañarnos, aun si la experiencia les resulta poco familiar. Asimismo, para aquellos a quienes les resulte de utilidad, ponemos a su disposición una transcripción en inglés aquí, para que puedan seguir la conversación.

Obtenga más información sobre la Campaña Faithful Witness de CCDA, National Latino Evangelical Coalition, World Relief, y Undivided en faithfulwitness.us.

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Rosa Mani Thomas is joined by Adriana De La Rosa, Clara D. Compean, and Chris Ophus to reflect on their experiences as Micah Catalysts and share about the Faithful Witness Campaign. They share how they are seeing God move in their communities, the beauty they are seeing in their local contexts, and what is giving them hope in this season.

This conversation is entirely in Spanish, as a practice of listening and solidarity. Scripture reminds us that to follow Christ is to draw near, to listen, and to be formed by the voices we might otherwise overlook. We chose this intentionally because language shapes how stories are told and whose voices are centered. Many in our communities are constantly translating themselves to be understood. Today, we’re slowing down and listening in a different way. We invite you to stay, even if it feels unfamiliar. And for those who would benefit, an English transcript is available here so you can follow along.

Learn more about the Faithful Witness Campaign by CCDA, National Latino Evangelical Coalition, World Relief, and Undivided at faithfulwitness.us.

Learn more about CCDA and how you can get involved at ccda.org. Connect with CCDA on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn. Follow CCDA on YouTube.

Christina Foor is joined by Pastor Wilber Marenco, who shares his story of detention in the South Florida Detention Facility, also known as Alligator Alcatraz. He shares his story of migration, reflects on his church’s response in this moment, and how this experience of detainment has affected him, his family, and his community.

Learn more about Pastor Wilber’s detention here.

Learn more about The Faithful Witness Campaign and how you can get involved. 

April 12-19, 2026 is Locked in Solidarity, as CCDA’s National Awareness & Action Week on Mass Incarceration. We invite you to join us by learning more and loving those affected by incarceration in your community. Then, we encourage you to courageously take a step to host awareness events and advocate for them in your spheres of influence. Learn more at ccda.org/lis.

Learn more about CCDA and how you can get involved at ccda.org. Connect with CCDA on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn. Follow CCDA on YouTube.

Sam Heath is joined by Bianca Tylek of Worth Rises and Rev. Dr. Kevin Riggs of Franklin Community Church to discuss mass incarceration and CCDA’s Locked in Solidarity Week. They discuss the profitability of prisons, stories of people behind bars, and ways that we can get involved in this work.

Bianca Tylek is one of the nation’s leading experts on the prison industry, the author of The Prison Industry: How It Works and Who Profits, and the Founder and Executive Director of Worth Rises, a national non-profit dismantling the prison industry and ending the exploitation of those it touches.

Rev. Dr. Kevin Riggs (Pastor Kevin) has been the Senior Pastor of Franklin Community Church for more than thirty years. He is also the founder and Executive Director of Franklin Community Development and the Williamson County Homeless Alliance. All three organizations are located in Franklin, TN.

Sam Heath spent ten years teaching high school history before moving into the organizing and advocacy world with Equal Justice USA, a national nonprofit doing work on death penalty repeal, restorative justice, and community safety. He is the founder and Executive Director of The Commonwealth Justice Coalition. He and his wife Rachel have three energetic kids and still live in Charlottesville, VA.

Learn more about CCDA’s Locked in Solidarity Week and how you can get involved at ccda.org/lis.

References made in the episode:

• PPI’s Follow the Money article: https://www.prisonpolicy.org/reports/money2026.html
• Read Today! - The Best Day of My Life
• Learn about the End the Exception campaign

Learn more about CCDA and how you can get involved at ccda.org. Connect with CCDA on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn. Follow CCDA on YouTube.

The Christian Community Development Association began with a group of Christians who shared a common commitment to live out the love of Christ in marginalized communities, not from a distance, but in proximity, and as neighbors. Dr. John M. Perkins has been called the Moses of the movement, living out Christian Community Development before there was an association or a philosophy.

Dr. Perkins passed away on March 13, 2026, at the age of 95. Throughout his life, he encouraged and inspired countless people to live a life of reconciliation, justice, and restoration.

In this episode, we will share audio from a Bible Study that Dr. Perkins led in 2009 about 1 John 2-3. During this session, he encouraged us to receive the grace of God, to love others, and to count it all joy during trials. We hope that you are encouraged and inspired by his call to love God and love our neighbors.

Learn more about the John and Vera Mae Perkins Foundation at jvmpf.org and read a tribute to Dr. Perkins on the CCDA blog ccda.org/a-tribute-to-dr-john-m-perkins.

Learn more about CCDA and how you can get involved at ccda.org. Connect with CCDA on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn. Follow CCDA on YouTube.

Scott Overpeck is joined by Pastor Nathan Walton and Marti Williams to share about Richmond, Virginia. They reflect on how churches and nonprofits are collaborating, the importance of telling the truth, and how God is moving in Metro Richmond.

Nathan Walton (PhD, University of Virginia) is a pastor in the Evangelical Covenant Church and serves at East End Fellowship in Richmond, Virginia. He also hosts the East End Fellowship Podcast and is the author of the forthcoming book, "Embodying God's Multiethnic Kingdom: Live Out the Diversity of Heaven Every Day."  As a graduate of Duke Divinity School and former board chair of the Center for Nonprofit Excellence, Nathan offers consulting, coaching, and trainings for faith-based organizations. He and his wife, Diamond, have two daughters and live in Richmond, Virginia.

Marti Williams has lived in the Metro Richmond, VA area her entire life and moved to Southern Barton Heights in Richmond’s Northside in 2005. Louis joined her as the other half of her pair (See Luke 10:1) after they married in December 2008. Since then, they have lived and served their beloved community in the Northside of Richmond, VA, for 20 years before moving to Midlothian, VA in December 2024. Marti has 20+ years of experience in retail and human resources management in Fortune 50, 100, and 500 companies. She’s the cofounder and president of Into The Neighborhood, a local 501c3 nonprofit, and is certified in Christian Community Development with CCDA, Certified BALM Family Recovery Life Coach and Facilitator, and has her certification with NonProfit Learning Point.

Learn more about the CCDA Conference and CCDA members can register today to secure the lowest rate.

Learn more about CCDA and how you can get involved at ccda.org. Connect with CCDA on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn. Follow CCDA on YouTube.

Dr. Lorenzo A. Watson is joined by Wayne “Coach” Gordon to reflect on the history of CCDA and the CCD Philosophy. Coach shares his story and how he got involved in CCDA, the history of the CCD Philosophy, and how he’s seeing God move in his neighborhood in North Lawndale.

Wayne Gordon is a graduate of Wheaton College and Northern Baptist Theological Seminary. He received his Doctor of Ministry degree from Eastern Baptist Theological Seminary. In 1975 Wayne moved to North Lawndale, located on Chicago’s Westside. At that time, North Lawndale was the 15th poorest neighborhood in the U.S. He was a teacher and coach at Farragut High School, also located in North Lawndale. Wayne and his wife Anne have raised their three adult children: Angela, a graduate of Taylor University, Married to Nate George, lives in Chicago and is a school teacher; Andrew a graduate of Baylor University and a trader with the Chicago Board of Trade, married to Stacy, and Austin graduate of Azusa Pacific University, living and working in New York City. Wayne and Anne, along with some local high school students, founded the Lawndale Community Church. Today, LCC has over 1000 worshipping families and Wayne continues as Pastor Emeritus.

Dr. Lorenzo A. Watson serves as the CEO/President for the Christian Community Development Association, headquartered in Chicago, IL. He is an experienced community development professional; a leader, teacher, and scholar who has long centered his work at the intersections of wholeness, education, and Biblical justice.

Learn more about CCDA and how you can get involved at ccda.org. Connect with CCDA on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn. Follow CCDA on YouTube.

Michelle Ferrigno Warren is joined by Joshua Park of Genesis Church of Fayetteville to reflect on their experience in CCDA’s Flourishing Congregations Initiative and how God is moving in the city. They share about what loving mercy and doing justice looks like and how cultivating partnerships in the city helps the church move from doing community outreach to community development.

Learn more about CCDA’s Flourishing Congregations Initiative at ccda.org/fci.

Michelle Ferrigno Warren is the President of Virago Strategies, a consulting group which provides strategic engagement and project management support for churches and non-profits stepping more deeply into the work of public justice. She has been working in Christian community development for over 30 years utilizing her skills as an educator, worship leader, non-profit manager, public policy specialist & faith-rooted organizer & activist. She is an adjunct professor at Denver Seminary and a Senior Fellow with The Dietrich Bonhoeffer Institute. She is a fierce advocate for justice and has shared much of her journey toward civic engagement and activism in her books, The Power of Proximity, Moving Beyond Awareness to Action, IVP 2017, and Join the Resistance, Step Into the Good Work of Kingdom Justice, IVP, 2022.

Joshua Park is the Director of Outreach and Worship at Genesis Church of Fayetteville, where he has served for the past three years helping lead dignity-first, asset-based community development rooted in an Imago Dei theology. In his role, Joshua helps translate conviction into strategic practice—building relational pathways that strengthen neighborhoods through uniting and mobilizing churches, non-profit service providers, and government entities to support people in moving from vulnerability to stability and freedom. Originally from Memphis, Josh earned a B.A. in English from the University of Memphis and spent a number of years living abroad teaching English in multiple countries. His commitment to community development began in college and has taken many forms throughout his life. After battling addiction in his own life for 25 years—and experiencing poverty and homelessness firsthand—Joshua found freedom in Christ and a clear calling to invest in others seeking their own way out.

Learn more about CCDA and how you can get involved at ccda.org. Connect with CCDA on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn. Follow CCDA on YouTube.