Executive Director
Brig Gen (Ret) David Phillips – David has served in various roles within Cru Military since 2010. His remarkable 31-year Air Force career has prepared him perfectly for his recent role as Fund Development Director. His deep passion for seeing military families experience the hope of knowing Jesus Christ motivates him to develop relationships and the financial resources necessary to spread the gospel throughout the global military community. David is also developing a plan to integrate local and corporate fund development training to help local teams generate the revenue needed to support ministry expansion in fulfilling the Great Commission.
National Directors
Colonel Ron Rallis, USAR (Retired), and his wife Sherry – Ron retired in 2016 after serving at Fort Bragg (now called Fort Liberty) in North Carolina. God then called him to go back to school—this time to seminary. After graduation, he pastored a small Baptist church in Piedmont, South Carolina. Sherry was the daughter of a service member, a military spouse, and now is the mother of a service member. She has leadership background in serving decades as Ron’s law office manager, a DoD Core trainer, Army Reserve Family Programs Manager, and as the HR Coordinator for 26 Waffle House restaurants in North Carolina. Now, God has called them back to serve the military as the Cru Military National Directors.
Global Directors
Col (Ret) Daryl & Lt Col (Ret) Martha Jones – We are honored to welcome Daryl and Martha Jones as the new Co-Interim Executive Directors of Cru Military. After both graduated from the U.S. Air Force Academy in 1982, they completed 20+ year flying careers with the Air Force before retiring. In 2003, they joined Cru as Associate Staff while serving as local pastors and missionaries in Asia.
Today, as the Global Directors of Cru Military, they have helped establish ministries among military communities in 35 nations. In all this, God has used them as shepherds, servants, and strategists. While these are only brief snapshots of their lives, it’s a little insight into how God has shaped their gifting and motivation on behalf of His glory and prepared them for today.
Chief of Staff
Nick Bair – Nick has been reaching the U.S. military for Jesus since 2002 and has seen many come to faith and grow in their ministry. Growing up in a military home has given him a good understanding of the particular spiritual needs of the military population. That understanding fuels his passion for reaching the global military community for Christ. As Chief of Staff, his education and operational ministry experience have given him unique talents and skills that serve him and the ministry well. Nick and the MSC team focus on developing valuable tools and resources to effectively equip and support staff and volunteers.
Chief Financial Officer
Mike Silva – Mike has been with Cru since 2014. He spent 10 years as a Mustang officer (first as enlisted, prior to being commissioned) in the US Marine Corps (USMC) as a financial Management Officer. Mike was deployed to Iraq in 2004 as a part of Operation Iraqi Freedom. He left the USMC as a Captain in 2005 to plant a church in Japan in the town of Iwakuni, where Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni is located. He and his family served that Marine community for eight years. While serving Cru, Mike also serves as a bi-vocational pastor leading a local church in Orlando. He and his wife Sonya, who also serves with Cru Military as the West AOA, have been married for over 27 years, have four kids (all of whom have experienced the military lifestyle growing up) and one granddaughter. Mike is “Once a Marine Always a Marine” with a passion for seeing the military community reached for Christ.
Human Resources (HR) Director
Karenanne Abbate Payton – Karenanne has served with the Military Ministry of Cru since 2018. As the wife of a retired Army Chaplain, she has a deep love and respect for the unique challenges of military life and the beauty and wholeness only Jesus Christ can bring. She is passionate about equipping teams and developing leaders to reach their full God-given potential. This has been lived out in her decades of ministry experience in various contexts. As the LDHR and Staff Care Director, Karenanne diligently leads her team in stewarding, strengthening, shepherding, and shaping culture for Cru Military’s greatest asset: our people.
Prayer Director
Karen Trimble – Karen has served in various assignments within Cru Military for over two decades. In 2008 when the Executive Director asked her to lead and mobilize prayer in the ministry, she knew God was calling her for this purpose. Understanding that the key to successful ministry is aligning our hearts with His, and this is best done through prayer, Karen began to develop what was an internal small group prayer gathering at the former Cru Military headquarters into a vibrant prayer ministry that continues to grow with a global reach. Karen is passionate about encouraging our team members around the world through prayer and helping to guide and encourage them in the growth of their prayer teams. Partnering with dedicated prayer ministries and prayer partners worldwide on behalf of Cru Military and the military families we serve has invited others to join us as we reach the militaries of the world for Christ.
Creative Director
Joel is the Creative Director, as well as the Internal Communications Director for Cru Military®. In this role, he oversees a team responsible for branding campaigns, initiatives, and publications, as well as managing video productions, social media, print publications, and the organization’s internal platforms. Prior to this, Joel worked on a DOD contract as the Creative Director for the Defense Contract Management Agency, in Fort Lee.