Willow Chicago Staff

Chi Chi Okwu

Chi Chi Okwu serves as the Compassion and Justice Pastor at Willow Chicago, overseeing all social justice outreach initiatives, both local and global. She is passionate about mobilizing the church to engage in the fight against injustices such as education inequality, human traf¬ficking, homelessness and poverty. In her spare time, Chi Chi enjoys watching Alabama football, trying new restaurants and traveling.

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Drew Brown
Sunday Producer

Around the turn of the century, Drew Brown immigrated from London and was brought into the church as a bootblack and to help with laundry. The clergy quickly noticed his fondness for Vaudeville and talkies, and felt his Dickensian background could help shape Sundays for the church.

(That's the background Drew wishes he had. He really just loves writing, performing arts, film, and creating great experiences that bring people closer to God.) Drew now lives in Lakeview with his Xbox.

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Esther Chae

Esther Chae is the Promiseland Pastor at Willow Chicago. She grew up as the youngest in the family, so she always longed to have younger siblings to play with and care for. But instead of having more kids, her mom opened a home daycare. Needless to say, she was always surrounded by "younger siblings" and loved it. So getting to be part of the spiritual formation of children is a blessing and honor that resonates with the core of her being. She feels privileged to come alongside families and witness their spiritual journey and help equip them any way she can.

Though she grew up most of her life in Northern California, she has come to love Chicago (though not its winters!) and considers it home. She and her husband, Daniel are grateful to be raising their young daughter in this wonderful city and truly enjoy its many parks, sights, and sounds.

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Francis Wyatt

Francis Wyatt is the Worship Pastor of Willow Chicago. He believes that the arts can be a tool of cultural restoration for the city of Chicago. That desire is seen through music, dance, visual arts and spoken word that lifts the human heart and creates an environment of togetherness rather than division. He lives in Chicago with his wife, Cheryl. They have two adult children, April and Brandon

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Jeremy Chia

Jeremy Chia is the Community Care Pastor of Willow Chicago. He oversees the various care ministries that connect with people navigating spiritual, emotional, relational, and financial distress. His passion is to embody a radically inclusive Gospel that communicates care, dignity, and hope to all. He was raised in Toronto, Canada where an appreciation of curling and dog-sledding was birthed. Jeremy and his wife, Karen, recently welcomed their beautiful and feisty daughter, Brooklyn.

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Jon Klinepeter

Jon Klinepeter is the Pastor of Willow Chicago, the urban campus of Willow Creek Community Church. He is driven by a core belief that God has created all people with inherent worth and value, and our human systems need to reflect that truth. This is expressed through his efforts to reconcile racial inequality, give voice to the marginalized and show the radical love and grace of Jesus to all people. When not working to that end, Jon loves spending time with his talented, artistic wife Christina and their two sons, Gabe (7) and Will (6).

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Jordan Dowell

Jordan Dowell serves as the Next Generation Pastor. What's that you ask? Well, he oversees the ministries for our Jr. High, High School, College and Young Adults. Jordan says its a unique and exciting opportunity to come alongside students and young adults and see them onward in their spiritual journey whatever age they are - potentially all the way from Jr. High to Adulthood! Jordan grew up in Michigan before moving to Chicago, and now he calls these bustling streets and distinctive neighborhoods home. However, that's not to overlook the fact he still seizes every opportunity to pitch a tent alongside a Michigan stream.

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Melissa Mullins

Melissa Mullins serves as the Communications Director at Willow Chicago. She has the privilege to share how God is moving in the church and the ways He is affecting lives in our community. In that process, she is inspired by the many talented artists she gets to collaborate with to tell those stories. Melissa and her husband Mark have grown up all over the Midwest, but now call Chicago home.

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Melissa Porter

Melissa Porter serves as Promiseland Operations Coordinator where she recruits and trains volunteers, organizes the behind-the-scenes aspects of Promiseland, and manages the chaos of Sunday mornings. She loves that her job can range from creating spreadsheets to designing a giant chalkboard Prayer Wall. Hailing from the great state of Georgia, Melissa knows the best spots in Chicago to get cheese grits and peach cobbler. When Melissa is not working, you can find her performing improv around the city.

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Rick Wood

Rick Wood is the Discipleship Pastor at Willow Chicago. He is a total people person and this position allows him to talk to people all day long about the Bible and taking their next step on their faith journey. What can beat that?! When Rick is not working, you can find him – still with people, of course – only on the basketball court. A recent resident of Chicago, Rick still proudly cheers on the IU Hoosiers from his roots in Indiana. And over the last few years his two adults daughters and their husbands have moved to Chicago area as well – so he and Karen, his wife, have their whole family, including Buddy, their beagle, in the city.

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Tammy Campbell

Tammy Campbell serves as the Executive Assistant. She loves meeting people and hearing their stories, which probably comes from moving around a lot in her upbringing as a Navy kid. Tammy also has a love for nerdy past times such as of organizing, working with calendars and spreadsheets. She and her family, Rob, her husband and 3 adult children also recently had their television debut on Family Feud.

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Tim Jones

Tim Jones serves as the Operations Coordinator at Willow Chicago. He was born and raised in the city of Chicago and believes it is the best place to develop as a leader. Tim is responsible for creating and maintaining the operational processes & relationships that drive Willow Chicago in the areas of budgeting, facilities, and city policy compliance. Tim loves what he does because it involves bringing people together to accomplish something greater than themselves. Tim has one wife; Carla and two daughters, Caygan and Cambridge that he cherishes and adores.

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Chris Siebold

Chris Siebold serves as the Music Director for Willow Chicago, where he writes and arranges the music you hear on a Sunday morning. The rest of the week you can see Chris on any combination of stages throughout the city. When he isn't writing, teaching, arranging or playing – he loves to sail or spend time with his wonderful dog, Bucky.

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