DALE SCHAEFFER has served as district superintendent of the Florida District Church of the Nazarene since his election in 2019. Encompassing over 140 diverse congregations across northern Florida, the district reflects a vibrant mosaic of believers from around the world. Before assuming this role, Dale was lead pastor of New Life Church of the Nazarene (formerly Medford First) in southern Oregon. From 2004 to 2013, he founded and led BridgeWay Community Church of the Nazarene in Illinois. Driven by a commitment to holistic ministry, Dale is passionate about guiding individuals who have distanced themselves from God and the church back into renewed faith and community, extending compassion to the marginalized, and equipping pastors and leaders to thrive in their unique Kingdom callings.

An alumnus of Nazarene Theological Seminary (M.Div.) and MidAmerica Nazarene University (B.A. in Religion), Dale is currently completing his Doctor of Education in Organizational and Adaptive Leadership at Trevecca Nazarene University. Dale resides in Winter Garden, Florida, with his wife, Steph. Together, they have three adult daughters, two sons-in-law, and three grandchildren. In his leisure time he enjoys running, backpacking, traveling, reading, and exploring the intersections of faith and culture.

SHAWNA SONGER GAINES is a follower of Jesus, lover of books, runner of mediocre ability (at best), fan of gluten-free bakeries, wife of a hilarious pastor/theologian, mother of marvelously dramatic children, pastor of a uniquely diverse and intergenerational congregation, author of some books and Bible studies, and neighbor in the curiously creative city of Nashville. She currently serves as the lead pastor at Trevecca Community Church of the Nazarene, a congregation in the heart of Nashville, on the campus of Trevecca Nazarene University. Shawna and her husband, Tim, have a passion for learning from and pouring into the next generation of leaders in the church. She earned her B.A. from Point Loma Nazarene University, M.Div. from Nazarene Theological Seminary, and D.Min. from Lipscomb University. Shawna’s book, The Pastor as Midwife: Life-Giving Leadership for the Healing of the Church, will be released by IVP in June 2026.

RUFUS SMITH, IV has served as pastor of Hope Church, an Evangelical Presbyterian Church in Memphis, TN since 2010. “Jesus-centered and unchurched friendly”, Hope has become a multi-ethnic, inter-generational congregation over the past 10 years. In 2016, Rufus founded the Memphis Christian Pastors Network, an ethnically and denominationally diverse clergy network that seeks to redress spiritual hopelessness and joblessness among under-resourced citizens of Memphis.

Son of the noted Dr. A. Louis Patterson, Jr., Rufus served as senior pastor of The City of Refuge (EPC) in Houston—also a mosaic, inter-generational congregation—for 12 years, and founded The FORGE for Families, a community development center. He was a founding board member of Yellowstone Academy, a private Christian school for under-resourced elementary students and, for three years, was lead chaplain for the NBA’s Houston Rockets.

Rufus studied theology and psychology at Houston Baptist University, and in 2019 received an honorary Doctorate of Divinity degree from Grove City College, Pennsylvania. Crazy about baseball, reading and domestic travel, his main claim to fame is his wife, Jacqueline, of 39 years and their three adult children, two of whom work in Memphis with under-resourced children.

CARLA SUNBERG, a general superintendent in the Church of the Nazarene since her election in June 2017, was ordained on the Russia North District where she and her husband, Chuck, served the Church of the Nazarene for 13 years as pioneer missionaries to the former Soviet Union. The Sunbergs returned to the United States in 2005 and pastored Grace Point Church of the Nazarene in Fort Wayne, Indiana. In 2011, she and her husband became co-district superintendents of the East Ohio District Church of the Nazarene, serving there until her election as president of Nazarene Theological Seminary in 2014.

Carla has a BS in nursing from MidAmerica Nazarene University, a MA in theological studies from Nazarene Theological Seminary, a PhD in historical theology from Nazarene Theological College and The University of Manchester, United Kingdom, and an honorary doctorate from Olivet Nazarene University. She co-authored Faxes from Russia, Reclaiming Eve: The Identity and Calling of Women in the Kingdom of God, and Reflecting the Image: Our Call to Mirror Christ in the World. She is the author of The Cappadocian Mothers: Deification Exemplified in the Writings of Basil, Gregory and Gregory and of numerous articles for various church publications.

Born in Germany, the daughter of missionaries, Carla loves to teach and train leaders for the future of the church and has served as adjunct faculty for a number of institutions. Her heartfelt passion is a life of holiness and service for the Lord. Carla and Chuck have two adult daughters, two sons-in-law, and five grandchildren.