Board Members

Roni Pruitt, Ph.D., Director

A pioneer in the field of Member Care with four decades of experience, she served in Asia (China and Japan) and Europe (Hungary and Berlin) for 15 years and brings a lifelong commitment to mission care.

She founded the academic Member Care training program at Columbia International University (USA) as Professor of Clinical Counseling. Her Member Care leadership roles include serving as the North American representative on the Global Member Care Network Executive Board and as a member of the editorial team for The Member Care Journal. She served on professional conference committees coordinating the Global Member Care Conference for ten years and previously the Mental Health & Missions Conference for fifteen years. Serves with IPHC World Missions as a Clinical Mission Care Provider for 25 years, conducting candidate evaluations, placement, and counseling.

She holds a Ph.D. in Intercultural Studies and Counseling Psychology, and a Bachelor’s in Biblical Studies. She is a U.S.-licensed Clinical Professional Counselor and Licensed Clinical Supervisor.

Swee Gim Cheong, Association Board

A senior Member Care leader who has significantly advanced the discipline across Asia through 32 years with Operation Mobilisation (OM)—initially as a missionary and subsequently for 15 years as Regional Member Care Director for East Asia.

She pioneered Spiritual Formation within Operation Mobilisation (OM) and facilitated Silent Retreats in East Asia for a decade. A member of the Asia Member Care Network Committee for 10 years. Her international leadership roles within OM include membership on the International Executive Committee (2006–2014), the International Member Care Working Group (2008–2010), the International People Care Task Force (2014–2016), and the International Spiritual Formation Training Task Force (2019–2021), concluding her retirement in June 2023.

Her professional training includes OM People Care Training, Heartstream Resources Member Care training, and Member Care courses through Columbia International University. She also completed the 30-day Ignatian Spiritual Exercises at Seven Fountains Spirituality Center in Thailand.

Steve Edlin, MFT, Association Board

A forerunner in what later became known as Member Care, he began providing care services to cross-cultural workers in 1977 while serving as a cross-cultural trainer with Agape International Training. His awareness of the unique care needs of missionaries and cross-cultural workers emerged from seven years of field service in England, which informed his commitment to mission care.

He served as Director of Member Care for The Evangelical Alliance Mission (TEAM) for 21 years, where he implemented comprehensive care systems for field personnel. He was also Chairman of the founding Board of Olive Tree Counseling Center, a field-based clinical counseling center for mission workers originally established in Turkey and now located in Hungary. One area of his work has been serving as an Assessment Consultant with Dynamic Church Planting International.

Trained in Marital and Family Therapy, he is a U.S.-licensed Marriage and Family Therapist and Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor, and he brings clinical expertise to Member Care.

Sarah Hay, Association Board

An invigorating leader in Member Care with over two decades of international and organizational experience. She served in Nepal for three years and later spent sixteen years with European Christian Mission (UK), where she serves as Human Resources and Member Care Manager.

A co-founder of The Member Care Journal, the first Member Care publication. Her contributions include teaching in the Master’s in Member Care at All Nations Christian College and Redcliffe College (UK) for ten years, and currently as a guest lecturer.

She serves on the Executive Committee of Member Care Europe, supporting the biennial European Member Care Consultation, and is a core member of the Global Connections Member Care TCK Forum. She has been a chartered member, since 1994, of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development

She holds a Professionals in Mission Certificate from Redcliffe College, has completed the CPCAB Foundation Counseling Course at Gloucestershire College, and is trained in debriefing and coaching.

Ravi David, Ph.D., Association Board

Ravi has made a significant contribution to the field of Member Care, serving across the Asia Pacific region in various Member Care networks. He has traveled extensively across six continents, with a focus on listening to and understanding contextual realities on the ground. These insights inform collaborative conversations and locally grounded responses to mission needs that are contextually appropriate, culturally sensitive, and biblically rooted.

His professional contributions include service on multiple Member Care boards at both the national level in India and internationally. He serves as Program Director in the Practical Theology Department at the Asia Graduate School of Theology, Nepal, and has previously served as an Adjunct Professor of Pastoral Theology and Counseling in Indonesia and at the South Asia Institute of Advanced Christian Studies in Bangalore, India. Over the past 15 years, he has supervised numerous master’s and doctoral research projects.

Ravi holds a PhD in Practical Theology from the University of Auckland, New Zealand. His doctoral research was published as Mission Possible: Challenges for Indian Christian Mission Leaders in the Twenty-First Century. He is a certified Spiritual Director and is professionally trained in chaplaincy, counseling, debriefing, and trauma healing.

Antonia is a pioneer in the development of Member Care in Brazil, with a decade of service in Angola. She initially served in Angola as a seminary educator and later provided care for victims of war following the outbreak of conflict. She served for ten years as a leader in the Integral Care for Missionaries Department of the Brazilian Association for Transcultural Mission and currently provides personal and group-based care for missionaries.

She previously served for 13 years in student ministry in Brazil before transitioning into theological education. At the Evangelical Missions Center, she served for 17 years as a faculty member, Dean, and, for a period, Director.

Antonia holds a bachelor’s degree in Portuguese and English, a Diploma in Mission from All Nations Christian College (UK), a Master’s degree in Theology from the Baptist Theological Faculty in São Paulo, Brazil, and a Doctorate in Missiology from the Asia Graduate School of Theology in Manila, Philippines.

Her doctoral research focused on active care for missionaries serving in contexts of suffering and was published in Portuguese as Missionários Feridos: Como Cuidar dos Que Servem (Hurting Missionaries: How to Care for Those Who Serve).

Antonica van der Meer, D.Miss., Association Board

Credentialing Board

Rosie Button, Credentialing Board

She has extensive experience, serving in Member Care for 9 years, and served in missions for 33 years, with 15 years invested in theological education abroad in Zambia, Zimbabwe, and Uganda.

Serves as Course Leader of the MA in Staff Care and Wellbeing (Member Care) at All Nations Christian College (UK), which was previously located at Redcliffe College, where she taught in Biblical Studies and Member Care. She has taught in higher education for 28 years. She is a co-founder of The Member Care Journal, the first professional journal in the discipline, and serves on its editorial board.

Her Member Care roles include Resources Coordinator and pastoral care team member with Refugee Highway Partnership Europe from 2020-2023, and she is currently Member Care Coordinator for Pioneers, UKI.

She holds a BA (Hons) from the University of Cambridge, an MA from All Nations Christian College (OU), a Postgraduate Certificate from the University of Cambridge, a Postgraduate Diplomia ILS from Aberystwyth University and is trained as a Level 1 debriefer with Le Rucher.

Laura Mae Gardner, D.Min.,

Association & Credentialing Boards

A distinguished leader in the development of Member Care in North America with more than 50 years of experience. She served for two decades in Mexico with Wycliffe Bible Translators, translating the New Testament into an indigenous language.

As an early pioneer in the discipline of Member Care, she established the first Member Care department, integrating Member Care into the organization's institutional framework. She subsequently served at Wycliffe as Intl. Vice President for Personnel, overseeing global crisis response initiatives.

Her influence on the discipline has been extensive. She has served on numerous boards and has advised multiple organizations in establishing Member Care departments. A lecturer in the Member Care degree at Columbia International University for a decade.

A prolific reader and writer, she reads a book a week and has authored about 1,200 articles and contributed to more than 250 published articles and chapters in books. Most recently, she co-authored Global Servants: Crosscultural Humanitarian Heroes, Volumes I-III, with Dr. Lois Dodds.

Her professional training includes a bachelor's degree in Bible and Music from Prairie Bible Institute (Canada), linguistic training at the University of Oklahoma, a master's degree, and a Doctor of Ministry in Counseling from Denver Seminary.

Harry Hoffmann, Credentialing Board Advisor

A pioneer in the field of Member Care with nearly four decades of cross-cultural experience, his first visit to China in 1990 marked the beginning of a 23-year engagement in China.

His contributions to Member Care began in 2001 with the founding of The Well Member Care Foundation, the first international Member Care Center supporting cross-cultural workers. In 2006, he assumed leadership of the Global Member Care Network, shaping the emerging discipline. In 2008, he co-founded and served as Chairman of the China Counseling Association, contributing to the development of counseling and Member Care frameworks in China.

In 2020, he launched an online platform offering courses in Member Care and leadership (harryhoffmann.global). In 2025, he founded La Siesta, a community-based Member Care Center in Thailand, dedicated to holistic support for cross-cultural workers.

He completed undergraduate studies in Engineering and holds university degrees in Mandarin Chinese (Sinology) and Sociology from the University of Berlin, as well as a degree in Theology in Leadership from Norway.

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