TMP Staff

Dr. John Sowers

President

Portland, Oregon

John was born in Little Rock, Arkansas. He attended college at Ouachita Baptist University, going from there to Trinity Evangelical Divinity School and Gordon Conwell Theological Seminary.

He wrote his doctoral thesis on the crisis of Fatherlessness in America.

John is passionate about the people God has put in his life, namely his wife, his family and his friends, as well as seeing young people live out their destiny.

Melanie Bartlum

Executive Administrator

Portland, Oregon

Melanie was born in Fort Huachuka, Arizona. She attended Northern Arizona University and holds a BS in Photography.

She's worked with The Luis Palau Association and been involved in church-based mentoring for nine years.

Justin Zoradi

Marketing Director

Portland, Oregon

Justin was born in San Luis Obispo, California. He attended Westmont College in Santa Barbara, California where he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Communication Studies.

He completed Masters degree in Peace and Conflict Resolution from Portland State University with an emphasis in international development in post-conflict regions.

Along with working at The Mentoring Project, Justin is also the Director of a non-profit organization called These Numbers Have Faces that provides college scholarships for township youth in Cape Town, South Africa.

Benjamin Malick

Portland Program Coordinator

Portland, Oregon

TMP Board

Donald Miller

Founder, Executive Board Member

Portland, Oregon

Donald Miller is the author of A Million Miles and A Thousand Years, Blue Like Jazz, Searching for God Knows What, Through Painted Deserts, and To Own A Dragon. He is the founder of the The Mentoring Project and serves on President Barack Obama's task force on Fatherhood and Healthy Families. He lives and works in Portland, Oregon.

Kurt Nelson

Board Chair

Portland, Oregon

Kurt Nelson grew up in Tacoma, Washington and graduated from the University of Puget Sound in 1975 with a BA in Economics and Accounting.

He has been employed for 32 years in Lumber Industry Sales in both manufacturing and wholesaling operations.

Kurt and his wife Donna have two children.

Dr. Louise Harris

Board Member

Minneapolis, Minnesota

Louise is involved with the Mentoring Project because she believes in the cause, having grown up herself without a father and having seen the affects of fatherlessness on young men (and now adult men) who grew up without a solid or positive role model.

Louise received her Undergraduate and Masters degrees, as well as her PhD from the University of Minnesota in psychology and organization effectiveness and currently works as a Strategic Planner.

Dave Fels

Board Member

Portland, Oregon

Dave was born in Burbank, California. He attended San Diego State University, and graduated with a degree in Communication Studies. He chose to be a part of the Mentoring Project to give young men the same opportunities he had as the son of an amazing father.

He currently lives in Portland, OR with his wife Noelle and his daughter Averi and son Thomas.

Shaun Garman

Board Member

Portland, Oregon

Shaun grew up in Orange County, California and Portland, OR. He began coaching basketball with fatherless kids, and has mentored one of the young men in his neighborhood for the last seven years.

Shaun is the pastor at Red Sea Church in North Portland.

Shaun and his wife Daisy have seven kids: Amanda, Zachary, Noah, Chloe, Elijah, Moses and Solomon.

Brian Mosely

Vice President

Allen, Texas

Brian grew up in Plano, Texas. He graduated from Baylor University with a Telecommunications degree and is now a Senior Producer at Bluefish TV and Director of The RightNow Campaign.

He is married to his high school sweetheart, Julie and they have two children, Abbye and Grant.

Larry Shallenberger

Board Member

Author, Teacher

Larry grew up in Erie, Pennsylvania and attended Trinity College in Illinois.

Larry worked in children’s mental health for seven years before becoming a pastor.

He is married to Amy, a former single mother. They have three wonderful children, Alex, Nate and Cole.