Meet Us

Presbyterian Hunger Program Staff

Rebecca Barnes (she/her)
Coordinator

In January 2017, Rev. Rebecca Barnes became the Coordinator of the Presbyterian Hunger Program after serving for 5 years as the Associate for Environmental Ministries (within PHP). Rebecca is a graduate of Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary where she earned a Masters of Divinity and a Masters of Art in Religion in 2011, with a thesis titled: “A Fuller Experience of God’s Grace: How the Sacraments Invite Us to Relationship with, and Care for, the Earth.” While in seminary, she authored “50 Ways to Help Save the Earth: How You and Your Church Can Help Make a Difference,” which was reprinted for distribution to the Commissioners of the 2016 General Assembly of the PC(USA). She also previously served as a young adult intern for PC(USA)’s Health Ministries office and then in the PC(USA) Environmental Ministry program, then staffed Presbyterians for Earth Care and served as the Hunger Action Advocate at San Francisco Theological Seminary (2003-2007).

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Andrew Kang Bartlett (they/he)
Associate for National Hunger Concerns

Prior to coming to the Hunger Program in 2001, Andrew Kang Bartlett worked with non-profit organizations in the San Francisco Bay Area on human rights, environmental health, people-centered development and social justice issues. Kang Bartlett also lived in Japan and East Asia for five years, three of those as a Presbyterian missionary doing community organizing and civil rights work with Koreans in Japan.

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Jennifer Evans (she/her)
Associate for Communications and National Partnerships

Since joining the PHP staff in 2012, Jennifer connects with grant partners and manages communications for PHP such as the PHP Post, other print and online resources, social media, and website. Jennifer has a B.A. in Communication with a minor in Sociology and she’s a yoga instructor. Her passion for social justice, meditation and yoga help deepen her understanding of what we can do to care for ourselves and the communities around us.

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Jessica Maudlin (she/her)
Associate for Sustainable Living and Earth Care

Jessica Maudlin has been with the Hunger Program since 2009. She’s currently the PC(USA)’s Associate for Sustainable Living and Earth Care Concerns. She resources Presbyterians as they address issues of faith, lifestyle choices and sustainability. She works with Earth Care Congregations, congregations that made special commitments to care for God’s earth in four categories: worship, education, facilities, and outreach. Her background includes an emphasis on Liberation Theology.

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Valéry Nodem (he/him)
Associate for International Hunger Concerns

Formerly the coordinator of the Joining Hands RELUFA Network and a Cameroonian human rights lawyer, Valéry Nodem joined the PHP staff in 2011. He coordinates both the international development work of PHP and the global advocacy work of the Joining Hands Initiative. 

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Jenny Oldham (she/her)
Mission Specialist for Hunger Program Support

Formerly a kindergarten teacher, Jenny has worked in a variety of Presbyterian offices, including Worldwide Ministries, Mission Service Recruitment, and Presbyterian Disaster Assistance. Now as a member of the Presbyterian Hunger Program team, she provides administrative support, processes grants and other financial documentation, manages logistics for PHP Advisory Committee meetings, creates or collaborates on interpretive materials, assists with the HAC network, and communicates with congregations, individuals, and others who are interested in hunger action or who support the program’s work. Jenny has raised a daughter, likes ice cream with strawberries, and enjoys playing games with friends.  Her favorite Bible verse is James 1:17, which reminds her that every good gift is from God, including the cucumbers that grow in her yard and health enough to enjoy walking among the trees.

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Eileen Schuhmann (she/her)
Associate for Global Engagement and Resources

Eileen Schuhmann joined PHP staff in 2006. She manages the international grant process and the Together for Justice blog that highlights and amplifies the voices of our international partners. Eileen also creates educational resources on international hunger issues and mobilizes Presbyterians to take action on those issues. She has her BA in International Economics and French from the University of Kentucky and her MA in Sociology from the University of Louisville. Eileen was trained as an organizer at the Midwest Academy. And before joining PHP, she served 3 years in the U.S. Peace Corps in Senegal as a small enterprise development agent.

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PHP Advisory Committee

Advisory Committee members help guide the church’s response to hunger and its underlying causes by serving as advisors to staff. Members review funding applications and make decisions on grants; recommend PHP operating guidelines; promote OGHS and other initiatives to support the work of PHP; encourage others who are engaged in PHP’s work at the mid-governing body level; and suggest the development of programs and strategies for implementing the Common Affirmation on Global Hunger and other General Assembly policies related to hunger and poverty.

Currently serving on the PHP Advisory Committee:

• The Rev. Dr. Neddy Astudillo
• Ryan Atkinson, co-chair
• Eileen Best, co-chair
• The Rev. Frank Dew
• The Rev. Ann Elyse Hicks
• The Rev. Dr. Sunny Kang
• Gloria Lozada-De Jesús
• Vincent Patton
• Derrick Weston

Hunger Action Advocates

Hunger Action Advocates (HAAs) serve presbyteries as educators, motivators, and facilitators of hunger action. They assist congregations and other groups to become engaged with issues of direct hunger relief, hunger-related development assistance, public policy advocacy, education and interpretation about hunger and lifestyle issues, including environmental justice.

HAAs receive a matching grant from PHP. They are accountable to the governing body which calls them. The governing body is expected to provide supervision and to conduct an annual evaluation, which is shared with the PHP Advisory Committee.