EXECUTIVE TEAM
Roy Wooten
Executive Director
Roy began volunteering for The Crucible Project after his initial weekend experience in January, 2009. He served as the volunteer leader of The Crucible Project community in Houston for its first six years and has served in retreat leadership since 2014. Roy and his wife Devra are authors of the book The Secret to Lifetime Love and Life Together Forever couples retreats. He also authored Full Throttle Into Fatherhood and speaks at couples, family, mens, and pastors seminars and retreats across the US and internationally.
Roy earned his B.S. and M.S. in Clinical and Counseling Psychology from Abilene Christian University. He has served as a pastor, ministry executive, coach and counselor for nonprofits and churches. His body of work in Christian relationships was recognized with an Honorary Doctorate from Grace Global Seminary in 2017. He and Devra have two married children and make their home in Houston, Texas.
Byron Myers
Men's Ministry Leader
Byron attended his initial weekend in October 2009. He has been working with The Crucible Project ever since. Byron became a retreat leader in 2014 and assumed the Leadership Development Director role in 2017. He is formerly a 30-year teacher, athletic coach, and Principal at Midland Christian High School. He also has his own coaching business where he develops leaders in management and supervision as well as Christian life coaching.
Byron earned his B.A and M.A. in Human Communication from Abilene Christian University. He has been married to his wife Kathy since 1993. He and Kathy have 3 adult children; a son and two daughters. Byron and Kathy reside in Granbury, Texas
Lisa Modrzejewski
Women's Ministry Leader
Lisa joined the staff of The Crucible Project in early 2020 and is responsible for managing women’s programs & services, leadership development, and community growth. She has been involved with women’s soul work since 2015, staffing and leading at 45+ weekends. Lisa is passionate about providing safe space for women and men to find healing, support, and live out who God created them to be.
Before coming to Crucible, she owned a coaching business where she supported families through the year of pregnancy and birth as a childbirth educator, birth and postpartum coach (doula). She has served in many areas at her church over the years, including the women’s ministry leader, small group leader, and worship team member.
She and her husband Chris were married in 2005 and are raising their four children together in Buffalo Grove, IL. She loves playing the piano, gardening, traveling and hearing people’s stories.
Brittany Duke
Director of Operations
Brittany became a staff member of The Crucible Project in the summer of 2019. She is was responsible for overseeing compliance with regulatory agencies and governing boards, personnel management, assisting in design and implementation of policies and procedures, the ministry's finances, technology, and other business services. Her background is diverse and includes experience in compliance, accounting, personnel management, talent acquisition and business development services in government, oil and gas and church organizations.
Brittany and her husband Keith live in Tomball, TX and are raising 3 children. Brittany completed her initial weekend in August 2019.
Joy Dunning
Women's Ministry Assistant
Joy began her soul work in 2017 and joined the Crucible staff in October 2022. Joy is a graduate of Moody Bible Institute and has spent most of her career with various ministries and non-profit organizations. She is passionate about partnering with others to bring transformation and hope to the world around her.
Joy is a native of the Chicago suburbs but now resides in Green Bay, WI, with her husband Mark, who is a fellow Redwood, and her three children. As a family, they enjoy tackling new projects around the house, spending time with great friends and good food (especially Chicago deep-dish pizza) and cheering on the Chicago Blackhawks.
Grayson Ege
Fund Development Database Manage
Grayson became a staff member in the fall of 2022. He graduated in 2018 from Ferris State University with his BA in Business and Accounting, and as a member of the Professional Golf Association (PGA). Currently, he consults small business owners in developing and executing marketing strategies in Southwest Michigan.
Since his initial weekend in 2017, he completed Shadow Work’s Basic and Advanced facilitation training and continues his mission to bring Soul Work to the next generation. He continues to invest in training and leadership opportunities.
He and his wife, Emy, cherish time with their first child, who arrived in February of 2022, and their 2 adopted dogs.
Volunteer - Brian Heiser
Protocol Coordinator
Brian attended his initial weekend in November 2005. Since then, he has served many times as staff and participant coordinator and is one of the Food Kings for the Chicago Region. Brian also served as the Operations Manager for The Crucible Project from 2013-2016. In his current role, he works with The Crucible staff to update, modify or create protocols for the initial weekends. Additionally, he assists in the development, implementation and reporting of online surveys.
Brian is currently the VP, Sales & Marketing for Ford Gum & Machine company. He has been married to his wife Susan since 1992. They have 2 adult children; a son and a daughter. Byron and Susan live in Bartlett, IL.
Volunteer - Larry Korbus
Operations Support
Larry embarked on a life-changing journey after attending his Initial Weekend in March of 2012. He immediately entered the 2-Year Transformation Program and served as the Staff and Participant Coordinators for many Initial and 2nd Level Retreats for years thereafter.
Although trained as an architect, Larry began his career in the fields of engineering and the graphic arts. But, after a spiritual conversion, he was re-educated at The Moody Bible Institute and served as an associate pastor of an evangelical church in a suburb of Chicago. His gift of administration, eye for aesthetics and heart for people have uniquely equipped him to serve The Crucible Project since 2017.
Larry and his wife Linda were married in 1988 and have invested years in building and enjoying a fulfilling marriage. They spend their free time traveling, cooking, entertaining and bike riding with their dogs. Larry and Linda reside in Westchester, Illinois.
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Linda Oury
Board Chair
Linda joined the board January 2020. She did her initial Crucible Project weekend in 2019 having participated in another soul work organization by staffing weekends beginning in 2010. She was initiated in soul work after seeing the transformative changes in her husband through his Crucible involvement. Together, they have seen the impact on a marriage that uses The Crucible Project principles has had on them and others. Linda is semi-retired from a long career of managing child care centers for Bright Horizons in both the US and the UK. She is committed to servant leadership and wishes to use her business skills to bring lasting value and honor God. Linda lives in Wheaton with her husband and has four married children and six grandchildren. She is a graduate of Wheaton College, serves on the board of the Wellspring Alliance Church, and has twice served on the board at New Moms, Inc. a Chicago non-profit organization that is changing the future for young moms experiencing poverty and homelessness.
Jimmy Lindsey
Jimmy joined our board in December of 2015. He is the President of Linro Investments, Black Capp Management, Blue Capp Management and Silver Capp Management and is also the Vice President of Gold Capp Management in Midland, TX. His work in the auto and commercial real estate industries has kept him busy, Jimmy still finds the time to volunteer.
In addition to serving on this board, he also serves on the Board of Directors for Unlock Ministries in Midland. Jimmy completed his initial weekend in October, 2011. He has staffed over 30 weekends and is on the local Midland Leadership team.
Kenny Cox
Kenny joined our board in January of 2017. He is CEO of Cox Family Holdings, the parent company to small and medium sized businesses. Experiencing divorce, Kenny served as the Volunteer Director of the Divorce & Relational Recovery Ministry at Willow Creek Community Church in Crystal Lake, where he continues to teach on recovery and transformation. Kenny is a graduate of The Crucible Project Two-year Transformational Program and the Spiritual Formation Program through the Transforming Center of Wheaton, IL.
Through his own family of origin traumas, he intentionally lives out his mission to help men seek meaning and healing for their lives so that they can unlock their unique purpose and legacy. Kenny completed his initial weekend in June of 2013 and developed his personal 2-year Transformational Program mission around Gospel Patronage.
Scott Schnurr
Scott joined our board in 2016. He is President of DRF Trusted Property Solutions, a faith-based organization specializing in property solutions for residential and commercial properties. Scott serves clients throughout Northern Illinois, Northwest Indiana and Michigan.
He previously worked with McDonald’s Corporation in multiple operations roles and has a long entrepreneurial history.
In addition to his extensive charity work with groups like DuPage PADS, Habitat for Humanity and OrphaNetwork, Scott is a certified Crucial Conversations & Crucial Accountability trainer. He and his wife, Lisa, live in Lombard, IL with their 3 children. Scott completed his initial weekend in 2013.
Peter Aldrich
Peter is Chief Information and Operations Officer for Cage Data, Inc., a managed service provider offering information technology services to small and mid-size companies located through-out the northeast. Peter holds a degree in Christian Education and Psychology from Houghton College and has served in a variety of positions in local churches, from full-time pastoral staff to a volunteer management team member. With a strong entrepreneurial background, Peter started Cage Data in 2007. Peter brings years of technical expertise, knowledge, and best practices from the IT industry.
Peter completed his Initial Weekend in March of 2016. After years of searching for authentic community, he finally felt at home with The Crucible Project. Peter completed the Two-Year Transformation Program in 2019 and has staffed multiple weekends through the US and one weekend in Kenya. Peter has been married to Dawn for 38 years and together they’ve raised two adult children. They enjoy celebrating family with them and six grandchildren.
Julie Davis
Julie currently serves as the Athletics Director at Wheaton College, Wheaton, IL. A 1991 Wheaton graduate, Julie played women's basketball as an undergrad and earned a Bachelor's Degree in Psychology and then a Master's in Educational Leadership from Aurora University. She oversees a large staff and sizable budget with experience in staff management, problem solving, strategic planning and facility development. She came to soul work through another organization in 2015 and staffed numerous weekends before staffing several of the inaugural Crucible Project weekends for women in 2019. She had a desire for her own soul work after seeing the impact of TCP on her husband and their marriage. She and her husband, Don, also attended the Dare to Soar weekend in 2013. Julie is passionate about the intersection of faith and soul work and is currently completing a two year certificate program in Spiritual Direction with the Christos Center. She and Don have been married 30 years and live in Wheaton with their RV trailer, Babs.
Mark Hollingsworth
Mark is COO and Principal of LoSasso Integrated Marketing, serving North American and global clients. A graduate of Trinity International University, with a BA in business and holds an MBA from Keller Graduate School of Management. A personal crisis brought Mark to The Crucible Project, and he completed his initial weekend in May of 2016. Since then, he has graduated from the 2-year Transformational Program, has led groups, and continues to serve staffing weekends. He is passionate about soul work and is certified in Narrative Focused Trauma Care through the Allender Center. He and Michelle, his wife, live in Chicago. They have three grown children and two grandsons. Together they founded The Soul Reserve, a ministry focused on helping marriages and relationships thrive.
Chris Cleghorn
Chris joined our board in 2009 and served as Executive Director with responsibility for building and expanding The Crucible Project from March 2015 to May 2019. He ran day-to-day operations, providing strategic direction and adopting best practices in nonprofit management. Chris previously led marketing and fundraising for Easter Seals’ national headquarters for 25 years. He also headed marketing and resource development for the International Fellowship of Christian Jews and Feed The Children. Having served on the boards for Outreach Community Ministries, Growthtrac Ministries and the regional board for his denomination (The Christian & Missionary Alliance), he also served in his local church. Chris did his initial Crucible Weekend in March, 2007, and has completed the Two-year Transformational program.
He lives in Wheaton, IL with his wife, Ruth.
David Leali
David joined our board in 2023. He is a Senior Vice President of Cornerstone National Bank & Trust with locations in the Chicagoland area. David completed his initial weekend in March of 2016.
In addition to his work with The Crucible Project, David has volunteered with Habitat for Humanity, Willow Creek Community Church, and World Vision.
He and his wife Deonna have been married for over 27 years and live in Crystal Lake, IL. (Deonna completed her initial weekend in March of 2023.) They have two beautiful adult children, one currently living in the Chicagoland area and the other serving in the US Navy.
Lina Reed
Lina joined the board September 2023. After seeing how The Crucible Project impacted her husband, Lina decided to start her own journey. Her initial weekend was in October 2016, then a second weekend in 2018 and staffing in 2019 with different organizations. She staffed her first Crucible Weekend in 2021.
Lina´s experience with Crucible has been very transformative. She is committed to continue her own growth and is a key collaborator in starting Crucible’s work in Spanish for women in Mexico.
Lina was born and raised in Mexico, married to Matthew, and has two children in College (Sam - 21 and Beca- 19). She has a total of 15 years of experience in the private sector. Six in Mexico City in the area of education and nine in the Chicago area in Human Resources. She has been a full-time missionary for a total of 18 years and is an ordained Minister. Lina and Matthew live in Tenancingo, Mexico with their five dogs.
Nicole Selevredes
Nicole is President of Federal Supply USA, a family owned and run business since 1931. Federal Supply USA supplies commercial kitchen equipment and supplies to prisons across the US. She is involved with the financial side of the business, handling all banking and account relations. Her background expands from the financial side to purchasing, warehouse and human resources.
She joined our board in 2023. After noticing the changes in her husband after his initial weekend with The Crucible Project weekend, Nicole had to try for herself. After attending her initial weekend in 2020, she has hit the ground running. She has completed 1st and 2nd growth groups and continues to volunteer for weekend retreats.
Nicole has been with her husband for over 15 years and lives in Evanston, IL.
RETREAT LEADERS
Brandon Brunson
John Casey
Chris Cleghorn
James Henderson
Peter Aldrich
Kenny Cox
Kim Rush
Terri Stafford
Greg Huston
Bob Locascio
Lisa Modrzejewski
Byron Myers
John Owen
Kamahl Godfrey
Shannon Rose
Tony Bradburn
Judson Poling
Chadd Schroeder
Bill Snyder
Barry Thomas
Terrance Foster
David Nelson
Roy Wooten
Chris Modrzejewski