OUR LEADERSHIP
Dan DeGroat: Executive Director
Dan DeGroat trusted Christ when he was six years old. He went to camp every summer as a child, and beginning at age 14, served the next six summers as a camp counselor. He graduated from Middle Tennessee State University in 1974 with a degree in biology, and began a career as a Park Ranger before entering Christian camping ministry full-time in 1978. Since then he has directed three different camps in Tennessee and Texas. Dan served five years as a Christian Camp & Conference Association (CCCA) Section President, and a term on the CCCA Board of Directors. In 1996 God stirred his heart for the children of the Former Soviet Union. He and his family moved to Khabarovsk, Russia where they lived for a year and a half, traveling and teaching extensively. Dan has been to more than 30 countries, and currently spends about 20% of his time traveling for the purpose of training youth camping leaders, particularly in the least-reached world. He and Becky married in 1974. They live in Texas, and have three children—Michael, married to Melissa; Sarah, married to Sean Davidson; and Ryken, college student. Ryken was adopted from a Russian orphanage at the age of two. Dan has always enjoyed the out-of- doors: backpacking, whitewater canoeing, motorcycle riding, and travel. He is Chairman of the Board of Elders at his church, and conducts seminars and workshops at home and abroad.
Stan Gillespie: Retired, now Volunteer
sgillespie@GlobalOutreachGroup.org
Stan was born to missionary parents in Alaska and he accepted Jesus as Savior at a very early age. His Bible training came from home, a Christian high school, and Multnomah Bible College. After serving at several ministries, the Lord moved Stan and his wife, Ginny (see bio below) back to Alaska where he took on the leadership of Victory Bible Camps in 1974. They found their years there challenging and very rewarding. During their thirty years in that position, the ministry expanded to take on another camp facility and then moved to run multiple camps from each of the two facilities. Eventually the camping ministry became independent from its parent organization. In 1995, Victory Ministries was asked to host 32 children from Siberia at the camps in Alaska. This started an international outreach to the Russian Far East with American staff going to Russia and internationals coming to Alaska. Stan has served on the Board of Directors for CCCA and on the Regional Board for American Camping Association. In 2004, Stan and Ginny resigned their positions with Victory Ministries and joined the staff of Global Outreach Group. Stan served as Partnerships Director before retiring in 2017, and now volunteers remotely from Wasilla, Alaska. He travels several times a year to international destinations, training camp leaders. Besides being a natural encourager of international leaders, another of his specialties is consulting on camp site and facilities development.
Becky DeGroat: Donor Communication
bdegroat@GlobalOutreachGroup.org
Becky is the one in the middle in the photo; she wanted to introduce you to the whole family! None of us serve this ministry without the loving support of our families. Becky graduated from Middle Tennessee State University with degrees in Education and History. She has been involved in Christian youth camping since 1978, serving at two different camps, and living with her family in Russia for a year and a half in 1996-7. She has expertly homeschooled her three children, and currently serves Global Outreach Group part time in Donor Communication. She interfaces with Ginny (below); together they keep the financial side accurate and above reproach. If you are a donor, Becky is the one who printed and mailed your receipt.
Ginny Gillespie: Bookkeeping & Finance
ggillespie@GlobalOutreachGroup.org
Ginny was born and raised in Bellingham, Washington, where she accepted the Lord as her Savior at the age of five. Her spiritual life was influenced by her mom, her church youth group, Youth For Christ Club, and Christian camps in Washington. After business college, she moved to Portland, Oregon where she met Stan. She knew her life would probably take her to Alaska some day, and involvement in Christian camping ministry because Stan warned her of this when he asked her to marry him. Sure enough, in 1973 Stan was asked to move to Alaska and direct Victory Bible Camp. Ginny took on the finances for the camp in addition to many other responsibilities. She especially enjoyed serving on the Décor Committee and in leadership for the Alaska Section of the Christian Camp & Conference Association. The Gillespies’ three children were raised at Victory Bible Camp and all are involved in the Lord’s work in some capacity. In 2004, the Gillespies joined Global Outreach Group. Ginny works remotely from Wasilla, Alaska.
Sherm Roth: Prayer, Media, & Database
As a college student desiring to serve the Lord, Sherm traveled to Alaska during summer vacations. That’s when he was introduced to Christian camping at Victory Bible Camp where he worked as a cabin group counselor. After college he and his wife, Cosetta, moved to Anchorage. They enjoyed spending their summers at the camp, and for more than 10 years during the winter months they were also involved in local youth ministry. He later enrolled in graduate school at Northern Illinois University and studied counseling. After graduation he worked as a high school counselor, and later was a school administrator. His career in education spanned both public and Christian schools. Now retired, Sherm and Cosetta live in Bellingham, Washington. But he’s not really retired! He holds Global Outreach Group up in regular prayer, provides database oversight and management, as well as video editing. In his own words: “It is a wonderful privilege to be able to share, in tangible ways, GOG’s significant ministry of training and equipping Christian camp leaders throughout the world. Truly, Christian camping is ‘the most effective means of reaching the most receptive hearts’.”
Board of Directors
Mr. Bruce Bruinsma, Board Member
President/CEO, Envoy Financial. Pasadena, CA & Colorado Springs, CO
Dr. Danny Price, Board Member
Pediatrician. Tyler, TX
Dr. Wendel Weaver, Board Member
Professor, Oklahoma Wesleyan University. Bartlesville, OK