FaithBridge Leadership

Bob Bruder-Mattson

President and CEO

One family can make all the difference, and Bob Bruder-Mattson is living proof.

An amazing Christian family decided to adopt him as a baby from foster care, and he believes their decision changed everything for him. That might be part of the reason why he has so much love for our foster families and support team.

When he’s not leading day-to-day operations here, you might find Bob trying to snag a few prize fish (His favorite is salt water fishing!). He also loves to serve at his church, Stonecreek Church. Originally from Minnesota, he and his wife Sue have three grown daughters and  one son-in-law — Katie, Emily and Gary, and Maddie.

Jessi Esterling, LCSW

Vice president of Operations

Jessi has more than 20 years of experience in child welfare in Illinois and Georgia and considers it her life purpose to reach vulnerable children and families with the love of Jesus.

When she’s not in the office, Jessi loves to head outside — hiking, gardening, swimming, or watching her kids play sports. She also enjoys settling in with a good book. She and her husband Zach have four children, two adopted through foster care.

David Deal

VP of Marketing & Community Engagement

After successfully leading Strategy and Marketing for large organizations, David felt a strong calling to use his skills and experiences to serve others. David truly believes that God has answered his prayers of how to serve by leading him to FaithBridge.

David and his wife, Christine, grew up in Christian families and are both working actively on their faith journeys. Very important to them is to help their boys, Jacob and Lucas, develop a deep faith of their own in Christ. Christine leads the special needs room and David leads a middle school small group at their church.

David loves to spend his free time with his family. Jacob and Lucas play travel lacrosse, which keeps them quite busy throughout the year. The family also loves movie night and any chance to be together, just having fun and laughing. On rare occasion David gets to play golf, which he says always reminds him why he should not play golf.

Kelvin Stewart

Vice President of Finance

If it’s dollars and cents you want to know about, Kelvin is the person to ask. He manages all financial aspects of  FaithBridge and has been doing that for us since 2012.

Kelvin calls the Georgia foothills north of Atlanta home and attends Jasper United Methodist Church. Kelvin has four boys who keep him busy playing sports, watching football and cheering for the Georgia Bulldogs.

John Solberg

Vice President of Youth Opportunities

John has more than 20 years of experience working with vulnerable youth in foster care, group homes, and residential programs. Prior to joining FaithBridge, he served more than 13 years as the Executive Director of a nationally recognized, faith-based program for adjudicated and at-risk youth in Wisconsin.

In his free time, John enjoys visiting his children and grandchildren, who are spread out around the country, attending sporting events, golfing when he has time, and passionately pursuing Jesus. He and his wife Camille have four grown children and three grandchildren.

Sherrie Franks

Director of Human Resources

God has prepared Sherrie for FaithBridge through many years of experience in the Human Resources industry. She has assisted with multi-state and global efforts to grow a staff and develop benefit plans and performance management programs.

Sherrie desires for each team member to feel valued and well-equipped in their individual roles and be able to offer contributions to the overall goal and vision of the organization. In her role, she oversees team member recruitment, onboarding and retention, benefits, performance management, learning and development, HR policies and procedures, and more.

Sherrie is married to her “junior high sweetheart,” Ron and they have four adult children (2 boys, 2 girls) and five grandchildren (3 boys and 2 girls). They are members at First Baptist Church Ellijay and together they have served in ministries to children, youth, and young married couples. When she isn’t tending to FaithBridge HR needs, she can be found enjoying outdoor activities and traveling to visit family.

Ron Nelson

Sr. Director of Church Engagement

Ron has more than 18 years of pastoral ministry experience in Michigan, Arizona, and Georgia and volunteers his time serving as a certified law enforcement chaplain with the Forsyth County Sheriff’s Office.  Additionally, he is an advanced certified chaplain with the Georgia Sheriff’s Association and a certified instructor for the International Conference of Police Chaplains, training chaplains annually in Eastern Europe.

Ron is an avid runner, trains in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, and loves going for long rides on his motorcycle. Most of all, Ron enjoys spending time with his wife, Charla and their two daughters and being actively engaged in his local church.

Elizabeth Lupo

Director of Case Management

Elizabeth has held several case management roles at FaithBridge, first serving as a Foster Family Consultant, later as an Area Managing Director, and now as the Director of Case Management. In her current position, she supports the FaithBridge Area Managers and Consultants as they serve families and children. Drawing on her experience in each role, she also works to create effective processes and systems to ensure quality services are provided for our children in care.

Elizabeth loves the opportunities she has to interact with foster families; she is inspired by their faithfulness as they fulfill God’s calling on their lives. In her free time, Elizabeth enjoys traveling with her husband Tim. Together they have traveled to all seven continents. She also enjoys hiking, spending time outside, and serving at Passion City Church.

Katrina Campbell

Director of Training

Want to grow your faith in some amazing new ways? Katrina Campbell can tell you: foster care is one of the best ways to do it.

Katrina doesn’t just know this because of her job; she knows this because she and her husband were foster parents for many years. Since 2009, she’s also been manager of our foundations and advanced foster family trainings; Katrina also oversees training teams.

She and her husband Chuck are very active members at Liberty Church, one of our partner churches. They have two grown children and two grandchildren.

Shana Eller

Director of Home Development

Shana first came to FaithBridge first as a foster parent, later joined as a part-time contractor and then joined us full time several years ago. She and her husband share a passion to help children in need – they have served with local children as well as a ministry that builds transition homes in Ukraine for years. In her role, Shana works with foster and adoptive families during the licensure and annual re-licensure process to maintain their home compliance, and to set them up for success. She also oversees our Child Life History program, working with the state to ensure that foster children who are eligible for adoption have all of their required documents.

Shana and her husband, Shane serve in many capacities at their church, First Baptist Church of Woodstock. They enjoy life with their two adult children and son-in-law and when she isn’t helping families on their fostering or adoption journey, you might find her on the beach, reading a book or just simply spending time with her friends and family.

Chuck Campbell

Director of Community Care

Churches can make a big difference in the life of a child. That’s the message Chuck Campbell loves to share as manager of church recruitment and relations.

An active member of Liberty Church’s pastoral team, he’s been serving his Marietta church for over 20 years in the youth and children’s ministries. He and his wife Katrina have two grown children, two grandchildren, and have also fostered and provided respite for foster children. When he’s not working, he heads for the Great Outdoors, doing mountain biking, kayaking, hiking, or golf.

Frederick Zak

Director of Church Engagement

Frederick (known as “Zak” to his friends) is a passionate servant/leader who has dedicated his life to helping fathers, families, and children in Metro Atlanta. Zak has worked as both a pastor and a social services director for a foster care agency. He developed two signature programs: the 3 on 3 Fatherhood Basketball Tournament and the Fatherhood Connection Jobs Program, both of which aim to support fathers, families, and children in his community.

Zak and his wife Rena have two adult children, and one grandson. In his spare time, Zak loves to play and watch basketball games with family and friends. He is a strong believer that faith in God is the foundation for life and his favorite biblical text is Romans 8:28: “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.”

Jenny Wood

Director of Youth Opportunities

Jenny is a Licensed Professional Counselor with more than fifteen years of experience serving as Executive Director for a leading Independent Living Program, helping teenagers prepare to live independently.

In her current role, she continues to help young adults who have experienced foster care on their journeys to independence. Jenny is originally from Long Island, New York and was raised in a large, loving family of nine girls, five of whom were adopted. Jenny is married to Mark, and enjoys spending time riding horses with her daughter, Jordann. She feels blessed to have the opportunity to support young adults fulfill their goals and find purpose in their lives.

Rebecca Rothman

Director of Donor Relations

Rebecca speaks the language of generosity. She loves to connect people to their God-given purpose through opportunities to give. As an adoptee, foster parent, and adoptive parent, Rebecca has a unique passion and perspective for children in vulnerable situations.

Over the last decade, she has used her story and skills to serve children and families at a global non-profit as a development leader. Rebecca has earned a bachelor’s degree in accounting, master’s in business administration as well as being Certified in Fundraising Management from the Lilly Family School of Philanthropy at Indiana University.

Rebecca and her husband Mark have been married for fifteen years and reside in central Florida with their four children. In her rare spare time, Rebecca enjoys traveling, reading, writing, serving at their church and advocating for children.

Katrina George

Director of Marketing & Communications

Katrina felt a calling to ministry in her teens and she considers her journey to FaithBridge a blessing from God.

Her experience serving as Director of Communications in two large churches (one in New England and one here in Georgia), combined with time at a large social services agency truly prepared her for her role at FaithBridge.

When she isn’t writing newsletters, creating social media posts or managing the website at FaithBridge, she and her husband, Chris, can be found cheering their New England sports teams, watching college football, or creating something fun in the kitchen. They love all things outdoors and live with their dog, Fenway, in Alpharetta.