Servant Leadership Team
Pastor Brad Whipple, Seaport Community Churches, Groton, CT
Pastor Chuck Tyree, Norwich Alliance Church, Norwich, CT
Daniel Dyer, Work&Learn, Inc., Kairos Prison Ministry.
Robert Navaraj, Seaport Community Church, Work&Learn, Inc., Arise CT
William Tremel Thomas, Cornerstone Christian Center
William Smith, St. Andrew Presbyterian Church, Always Home, Rotary Club of Mystic, Greater Mystic Chamber of Commerce
Pastor Brad Whipple, Vice President
Brad and his wife Debbie currently lead Seaport Community Church in Groton, Connecticut; a congregation they planted in 1989. Brad’s deep passion for reaching people with the message of Jesus Christ has been the driving force behind his ministry for over 30 years. Whether it is supporting a missionary called to a foreign land, planting a church, or driving to Sturgis, South Dakota to minister to bikers, Pastor Brad’s heart is for people to find the healing promised in the Gospel.
PB (short for “Pastor Brad”) is also a sought after authority in church planting and ministry training. He was one of the first trainers for the Assemblies of God Church Planting Boot Camps, teaching planters how to start new churches. This equipping ministry has taken PB to many regions of the United States and around the world to places like Spain, Ghana, Venezuela, South Korea, China, Pakistan and India.
Brad is a graduate of Zion/Northpoint Bible College and Central Bible College. He has been ordained by the Assemblies of God for over 30 years. In his free time Brad loves to pray at Bluff Point and to ride motorcycles.
Daniel Dyer, President, Treasurer
Dan is a graduate of Yale and Harvard Business School. He lives in Mystic, CT. He worked for Westinghouse atomic power and IBM process control. Was founder and CEO of an international computer time sharing company, took it public and sold it to Contel. Was a member of the board of directors and chair of the board of governors of Opportunity International, a Christian-based microfinance nonprofit, for six years. It has grown to serve 18.7 million families in 33 countries in 2022. Was co-founder and manager, Jobs Partnership Greater Washington. Was a founder and has been active in management of Work&Learn, Inc. since 2009. He has been active recruiting for Kairos Prison Ministry.
Robert Navaraj, Vice President, Secretary
Robert Navaraj is a Human Resources Professional He and Audrey and their daughters live in Prague, Czech Republic. He is a board member of a few mission organizations in New London County including ARISE-CT, Work & Learn, Inc and UnityCT. His passion is to inspire people to help overcome their limitations and reach their highest potential. Robert and Audrey are members of Seaport Community Church.
Bill Smith, Board of Advisors. Over the past 30 years, Bill served as a senior manager in the consumer package goods and IT industries; and was most recently Vice President & General Manager for Hewlett-Packard in their Imaging & Printing Group. He also worked at Kodak, Sterling Drug and Bristol-Myers. Prior to entering the
corporate world, he taught marketing at the University of Connecticut.
During his corporate career, Bill was responsible for managing core franchise brands such as Lysol,
Kodak film and HP’s inkjet supplies. He launched over 50 new products, was named the New Product
Marketer of the Year by the American Marketing Association and received awards for excellence in Public
Relations and Project Management.
Following his retirement, Bill moved back to his hometown of Groton, CT in 2011 and was the past interim
president of the Greater Mystic Chamber of Commerce. He presently serves on the board of directors for
5 non-profit organizations.
Bill has an undergraduate business degree from UConn, an MBA from the University of Texas, and is a
Certified Fellow in Church Administration from Union Seminary
William Tremell (“Mel”) Thomas, Executive Director, Board of Trustees.
He is Head Deacon, Cornerstone Christian Center, Milford, CT 06461.
He and his wife Lisa Watts Thomas have 3 children and 2 grandboys.
He served 30 years of a 45-year sentence. God turned his life around while he was in Connecticut’s Garner Correctional Institution. He defied prison plans and records. It was then and there that he met Jesus. And now he serves Him.
