Profiles
Board Members
Alberto Martinez Lugo
Chairman
Alberto is a medical doctor and pastor in the Pentecostal Church (Iglesia de Dios Pentecostal M.I.). He emigrated from Puerto Rico to the Dominican Republic in 1962 with his wife Rosalina and among their many achievements; they founded the Iglesia de Dios Pentecostal M.I. denomination in the Dominican Republic. The denomination now has more than 200 congregations. In August 1989, he first worked with Ken Culver during Ken's first mission trip to the Dominican Republic. This was the genesis for the founding of the Foundation for Peace.
Alberto currently lives in Kissimmee, Florida and is one of the Founding Directors of the Foundation For Peace.
Rosalina Cardona Martinez
Vice President
Rosalina is a medical doctor and pastor in the Pentecostal Church (Iglesia de Dios Pentecostal M.I.). She emigrated from Puerto Rico to the Dominican Republic in 1962 with her husband Alberto and among their many achievements; they founded the Iglesia de Dios Pentecostal M.I. denomination in the Dominican Republic. The denomination now has more than 200 congregations. In August 1989, she first worked with Ken Culver during Ken's first mission trip to the Dominican Republic. This was the genesis for the founding of the Foundation for Peace.
Rosalina currently lives in Kissimmee, Florida and is one of the Founding Directors of the Foundation For Peace.
Jeffrey Spragens
Treasurer
Jeff is an attorney and business entrepreneur specializing in apartment, hotel, and shopping center development. Jeff was also active in the pharmaceutical business specializing in production of children's vaccines. Jeff has served on the Boards of the Levine School of Music and Samaritan Inns in Washington, DC and presently sits on the Board of ETOC Corporation, a resort hotel company.
Jeff has been participating in mission trips to the Dominican Republic since 1994 with the National Presbyterian Church and has traveled to the Dominican Republic over 30 times working on a variety of projects. He is one of the Founding Directors of the Foundation For Peace.
In the adjacent photo, Jeff is in the center wearing a hat.
Joy Fowler Spragens
Vice President
Joy is in the financial services industry and previously managed her own investment consulting boutique. Joy serves on 3 boards at the Washington National Cathedral, serves on the Finance Committee at Miami's Trinity Cathedral, and is a trustee of the Washington Bach Consort.
For more than 8 years, Joy has supported the Hogar Goshen orphanage in San Francisco de Macoris , Dominican Republic and has made over 15 visits to the orphanage working with the children in arts and crafts projects, education and spiritual development.
Joy is one of the Founding Directors of the Foundation For Peace.
Cindy Alloway-Culver
Secretary
Cindy is a nurse therapist who became the Associate Pastor for Missions and Pastoral Care at the Presbyterian Church in Morristown, NJ on May 1, 2006. Previously she was the Sexual Assault Response Team (SART) and the Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner (SANE) Program Coordinator for the Morris County Prosecutor's Office in New Jersey. Cindy has been a RN since 1976 and completed a Master of Science in Mental Health Nursing in 1985. She has enjoyed working with children, adolescents, and families in mental health settings in California, Iowa, Maryland, and New Jersey. The mission work in the Dominican Republic inspired Cindy to attend Princeton Theological Seminary and combine her healthcare knowledge with theology. Cindy has developed Parish Nurse ministries in two churches.
She has been serving in the Dominican Republic since 1990. With her husband, Dr. Ken Culver. They have led 13 trips to the Dominican Republic since beginning their ministry relationship with Rosalina and Alberto Martinez in 1989. Each of the trips has included one or more of their three children, Ryan, Ian and Kathryn. The Dominican Republic mission experiences have enriched their children's lives in life-changing meaningful ways. Cindy Alloway is one of the Founding Directors of the Foundation For Peace.
In the adjacent photo, Cindy is on the left.
Kenneth W. Culver
President and Executive Director
Ken is a physician trained in Pediatrics and Allergy-Immunology. Currently he is an Executive Director and Senior Clinical Research Physician at Novartis Oncology (East Hanover, NJ). Prior to that, he worked at the National Cancer Institute in Bethesda, Maryland on genetic research.
He has been working in the Dominican Republic since 1989. With his wife, Cindy, they have led 13 trips to the Dominican Republic since beginning their ministry relationship with Rosalina and Alberto Martinez in 1989. Each of the trips has included one or more of their three children, Ryan, Ian and Kathryn. Ken is one of the Founding Directors of the Foundation For Peace.
Non-Medical Dominican Staff in the Dominican Republic
Ercilia Yan
Director of Colegio Cristiano Federico Froebel
Ercilia "Chichi" has been Director of the Colegio Cristiano Federico Froebel in Ensanche Quisqueya (Santo Domingo) for 8 years. Prior to that she was a teacher in the same school for 5 years, while attending Santo Domingo University. She graduated in 2001 with a degree in Administration and Supervising Education (Lic. en Educacion Administracion y Supervisora Escolar) from the College of Profesional Education (Colegio Dominicano Educacion Profesional). In 2005, she also undertook additional teaching responsibilities at Escuela de Educacion Basica Villa del Poder in Pantoja (in northwest Santo Domingo).
Ercilia has been working with Alberto and Rosalina Martinez since 1987.
Isidro Yan
Since 1997 Isidro Yan has been volunteering with the Foundation for Peace. Primarily, he has been working to prepare the Foundation's facilities for mission groups, participating in our medicial clinics and construction projects and he has assisted our American staff on a wide variety of projects.
Currently, he is maintaining our facilities in Ensanche Quisqueya and is assisting Greg Penza in coordinating our many mission projects. His contributions to these Foundation for Peace activities have been very valuable over the years. His understanding of the Dominican government and culture has helped the Foundation to strengthen its bonds with its partners and his engaging personality and caring for others has facilitated its growth in the number of people returning each year from the United States.
Besides working with the Foundation for Peace, Isidro is studying at the National University and is employed by Radio VEN (Evangelical National Voice) as a radio host.
Ana Hernandez Vidal & Family
Volunteer Project Assistant
Ana has been volunteering with the Foundation for Peace since 2001. She is enrolled at the Universidad Autonoma de Santo Domingo (UASD) where she is studying cinematography. In 2004, she also began working full-time with Healing Waters (Aqua curativas) as a project coordinator.
Ana has been primarily assisting with the organization and coordination of summer mission trips. She is pictured with her husband, Nelson, and daughter, Jades.
Key US Volunteers working in the US
Wendy Patchin Buttner
Director of Education and Missions Coordinator
Wendy currently teaches math to 6th, 7th and 8th graders in New Jersey. Since earning a BS in Learning and Behavioral Disorders and a Masters in Psychology, she has taught a range of populations, from the very young to college students. She has enjoyed working with students with special needs and those in regular education for 25 years.
During the summer of 2004, she first traveled with the Foundation for Peace to build relationships with the Dominicans and a church in Los Alcarrizos, a community on the western side of the capital, Santo Domingo. The experience was profoundly positive, and her daughter and other family members have joined her each summer since. After that first trip she began volunteering with others to create the Foundation for Peace Education Division. They have undertaken a variety of education projects to support schools in the Dominican Republic. Under her leadership, the Education Division has grown to include the Dominikids and Dominiversity programs and the schools supported by the FFP have expanded from 4 to 9 across the Dominican Republic and into Haiti and Kenya. For more details, please visit the Education section of this site. Wendy now serves as Education Director.
In December 2007, the Board of Directors acknowledged her excellent work in support of the various Foundation for Peace mission programs by appointing her as the first Missions Coordinator. In this role, Wendy will work with mission teams in the US on their preparation for trips to the Dominican Republic and Haiti.
Key US Volunteers in the DR
Greg Penza
Volunteer Mission Projects Coordinator
Greg Penza left a job in New York City last May to volunteer in the Dominican Republic as the Project Coordinator for the Foundation for Peace. He serves the people here in a variety of ways including preaching, forming relationships, and teaching the Bible as well as English classes. He also makes the mission trips possible by coordinating the construction projects and organizing the medical clinics. In addition, he supports the groups as a translator and spiritual mentor.
As he thinks about the future he says he is currently on the 2 to 40 year plan for working with the Foundation for Peace and will stay until God calls him elsewhere. He is grateful for this experience to grow in faith even as he is given the opportunity to serve.
1st Corinthians 2:3-5
"And I was with you in weakness and in fear and much trembling and my speech and my message were not in plausible words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, that your faith might not rest in the wisdom of men but in the power of God."
Kristin Hamner
Volunteer Missionary
Kristin Hamner is a recent graduate of Midland Lutheran College where she completed a degree in Youth and Family Ministry. She has participated in multiple Dominican Republic Mission trips since she joined the FFP in 2003. In addition, she has honed her skills for ministry in the Spanish language on two mission trips to Argentina and through work with a Spanish-speaking congregation in Fremont, NE. Kristin is in the center of the adjacent photo.
Kristin's activities include, preaching, teaching VBS, leading a children’s worship service, and teaching English classes to over 500 students. She also helps with the summer missions groups serving as translator, enthusiastic co-leader, and Bible study leader. She is also known to be randomly singing joyous songs with the kids while we work.
She feels blessed because on a daily basis God gives her a lesson, an opportunity, or an experience that lets her know that she is right where she is supposed to be. What more could anyone ask for?
"Worship God, Love Jesus, Trust the Holy Spirit, Serve Others, Help Earth, And Enjoy Life. What else is there?"
–Roxie Davis
Ruth Jensen
Missionary Educator
Ruth grew up in the church hearing about missions; in high school she had the chance to go on her first international mission trip to Mexico. That trip, as well as several more in the next few years, was a very influential factor in her decision to pursue a degree in Spanish and English as a Second Language Education.
After graduating from the University of Nebraska at Kearney, she came into contact again with Kristin Hamner, a high school friend who was working as a missionary for the Foundation for Peace. In 2006, after a few conversations with Kristin and lot of prayer, she decided to go to the Dominican Republic for the summer to work as an intern. She fell in love with the Dominican people, the ministry, and the way that the Foundation works hand in hand with the communities for the goals of the people, not just a prescribed formula of ministry. Like the Word says in James, we need to treat the whole person spiritually and physically.
Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to him, "Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed," but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it?
James 2:15-16
After that summer, she went home to fundraise and returned to the Dominican Republic in October to teach English. Since then, Ruth has taught English during the school year to over 200 students in preschool through seventh grade in the FFP schools in the communities of San Miguel and Tres Brazos. During the summer , she has loved helping to staff and translate for summer mission teams. She feels blessed to be a liaison between the American mission teams and the Dominicans and Haitians she and the mission teams have come to serve.
Eryn Fredrick
Volunteer Missionary Educator
Eryn Fredrick graduated from James Madison University in 2002 with a dual degree in Special Education and Psychology. She has spent the past four years teaching high school special education students in New Jersey. As she traveled to the Dominican Republic in April of 2006, God began to unveil His plan for her life. He planted a seed in her, a seed that would grow into her ministry in the Dominican Republic with the Foundation for Peace.
Eryn joined Woodstown Presbyterian for a ten- day mission trip in July of 2006, and decided to resign from her positions as teacher and coach at Egg Harbor Township High School to move to Santo Domingo. Eryn is now teaching English classes in the communities of Pantoja and Tres Brazos, along with assisting in the school in Ensanche Quisqueya where she lives. Eryn is also working on the development of an English curriculum to be used in the various schools.
Outside of education, Eryn has goals of starting a youth group in Pantoja and assisting with youth programs in other communities. In addition, Eryn will serve as one of the in-country staff members for the mission teams traveling from the United States. Eryn loves her work in the Dominican Republic, and truly enjoys the people, culture, and the lessons she learns daily. She feels extremely blessed to have the privilege of being a missionary in the Dominican Republic and plans to stay until God calls her somewhere else.