Board of Directors
Pastor Earl Fitzsimmons
Founder/CEO
“Christ said there would always be poor to serve. He didn’t say they had to be hungry.” – Founder/CEO Pastor Earl Fitzsimmons
A follower of Jesus Christ since 1983, Pastor Earl Fitzsimmons battled with addiction until through God’s grace and Alcoholics Anonymous, he is victoriously sober since October 31st, 2006. Pastor Earl integrates principles of the successful 12-step program into discipleship and coaching. Pastor Earl has over 25 years of experience working in the field of discipleship and human relationships. He helps men, no matter their current state in life, understand their role in the Kingdom of God. He has also dedicated his life to ministering to the homeless and low-income families in South Dallas. Through food, clothing, recovery programs, and prayer, Pastor Earl empowers and equips others in seemingly hopeless situations to achieve the impossible.
As a Healthcare Industry leader in growth and business development, Paul has over 30 years of diverse experience. Leading growth, marketing and business development teams focused on supporting Healthcare through business development activities throughout the Patient Care Continuum. Paul has been responsible for developing strategic initiatives that support and accelerate revenue transformation, cost and waste reduction while increasing positive outcomes for patients. Paul currently leads business development for the Healthcare provider segment of Genpact, a $4b digital transformation corporation, with efforts on engaging and transforming patient’s healthcare delivery. Paul has degrees from the University of Rio Grande and Executive Marketing Leadership Studies Program at UCLA’s John Anderson School of Management.
Paul Niday
Executive Director
Maria Fitzsimmons
Director & Volunteer Coordinator
Maria Luisa was born in Mexico and came to the United States as a child and grew up in South Texas. She has experienced great loss in her own personal life and her spirit to serve and overcome is a testimony of God’s amazing grace. She has been an interior designer and consultant for more than 25 years and has been writing since she was a young girl. Always the servant, Maria could be found feeding the homeless all throughout her journey until she arrived at Bring the Light Ministries when she married BTL founder, Pastor Earl Fitzsimmons. They now serve together, Maria overseeing the volunteers and coordinating needs for outreach events.
Scott loves the Lord and is so thankful for His undeserved and overwhelming grace and compassion. Scott has a long history of financial management and accounting. After beginning his career in public accounting, Scott transitioned to corporate accounting where he spent most of his time with high-growth private equity backed companies. He has had a steady progression of roles such as Controller, VP-Finance and CFO. He also managed the financial team for a publicly traded company division. He is passionate about managing teams, developing and executing strategic plans, and building efficiencies through process improvement and technology. Scott attended Texas A&M University where he received his BBA in Accounting and was a proud member of the Corp of Cadets and Ross Volunteer Company. He is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) and Certified Management Accountant (CMA) licensed in the state of Texas. Scott and his wife, Kelly, have been married over 26 years and have three awesome children, Lauren, Sarah, and Luke.
Scott Head
Board of Directors Treasurer
Pastor Lafe Angell
Assisting Executive Director
Originally from the El Paso Texas area, Pastor Lafe moved to Tulsa Oklahoma to attend Oral Roberts University where he graduated in 1993. In 2014, Lafe took on a position at Elevate Life Church in McKinney as a full time Pastor of Servant Leadership. Later, he was led to take the role of Pastor of Missions and Outreach on the same church campus. In 2000, Pastor Lafe became part of the team that launched Elevate Life Church, Frisco, TX. After many years of service at Elevate Life Church, they were blessed to launch a new church in Anna, TX in August of 2019. They began services at Grace Point Family Church in January 2020. Pastor Lafe serves alongside his wife Hope Angell and their 3 children, Callie, Caleb, and Noelle.
As a committed believer, Scott chases hard after God, is a patriot and passionate outdoorsman. He enjoys a great adventure and weaves this into his life. His desire to help people reach their full God given potential is evidenced by his 22-year commitment to Elevate Life Church and the Men’s Ministry. He is most proud of his marriage of 37 years to his wife Darlene. They have a married daughter Brittany and married son Garrett with two grandchildren Tahlia & Grace. He is the Co-Owner of Unclebach Development and its construction company Bellator Builders and has been in the building business and an entrepreneur for 40 years. His greatest hope is to leave a family legacy that can be followed.
Scott Unclebach
Board Advisor
Scott Dabney
Director
As a thirty-three-year sober member of Alcoholics Anonymous, Scott understands the importance of serving others and dedicating your life to being a mentor. As a businessman, Dabney has owned Campion Sales for 23 years. Campion Sales is a leading manufacturer representative firm in security solutions. My role is the leader of new and current business in the southwest region. The IP revolution has changed our industry and Campion Sales is a front runner of these emerging technologies.
As Senior Pastor of New Hope Baptist Church, the oldest African American Church in the city of Dallas, Pastor Damien and his congregation believe New Hope’s mission is, “To know Christ, Grow in Christ, and to share the gospel of Christ with others.” New Hope has a rich history, which encourages the members to be committed to the community it serves through evangelism, missions, and social justice. Williams loves the city of Dallas where he grew up, and that is what drives his commitment to transforming lives one zip code at a time. He is currently serving on the Board of Directors for the Southeast Area of Fellowship of Christian Athletes. He is also the founding member of the Dallas Baptist University African American Student Scholarship Board. Williams is a member of the African American Pastors Coalition, which is a fellowship of numerous churches who work together to address the needs of communities in Dallas. Williams is happily married to Dr. LaStassia Williams, a registered nurse, and has five children.
Pastor Damien Williams
Director
Tad Warren Black
Director
Born 1961 he has always been a part of the Dallas community in many capacities. Warren ‘Tad’ Black is a resident of Highland Park, Dallas County. A graduate of Highland Park High School (Class 1980) and attended Stephen F Austin, Brookhaven College and Dallas Commercial College. He has held Real Estate, Insurance and Automobile dealer licenses in the State of Texas. As an active member of the Dallas Breakfast Group (non-partisan political action committee) he takes in active role in State and local politics. He is an active member of the Dallas recovery and business communities.
Jeff was born in Longview, Texas. After playing baseball at Texas Tech. he completed his undergraduate degree from North Texas. Since high school he’s studied the financial markets and how to build wealth. Jeff and his fiancé Jennifer manage Aisiri Wealth Advisors, a private wealth advisory practice of Ameriprise Financial, LLC. As a father of 5 he loves to go hunting, fishing, and traveling with his family. Jeff has a passion to serve God’s Kingdom through his work as a member of the Board of Directors for Bring the Light Ministries. One of his guiding Bible verses is Romans *;31 “If God is for us, who can be against us.”
Jeff Davis
Director
David Elliott
Director
A south Texas native, David is an entrepreneur who primarily engages in real estate, agriculture, and oil and gas investments; however, his deep passion is working in the addiction recovery community. Personally attending a successful long-term treatment program inspired David to “pay it forward” and open a rehab center of his own. Burning Tree was founded by David in 1999, and now has facilities in Kaufman and Elgin, Texas. Burning Tree continues to effectively serve clients suffering from alcohol and drug addiction. David remains an active part of the recovery community by supporting several addiction treatment-based organizations.
Mike Witte is the owner of Elevated Roofing and has been in the construction industry for more than 30 years. Elevated Roofing is a residential and commercial roofing company helping customers restore their homes after a storm. Mike is happily married with 5 kids, 16 grandkids and is a leader in his business, the community, and his family and is always willing to have the conversation with someone about their walk with God. Having a passion for advancing God’s kingdom, Mike has put his relationship with God at the center of his business and continues to Build The Kingdom One Roof At A Time.
Mike Witte
Director
Carter Morris
Advisory Board Member
As a servant of Christ, Carter has served for many years as a pastor in various roles in the local church and has his Master’s in Christian Education. Together in 2011, He and and his wife Julie have helped establish the work of Grace Bridge in North Texas and Master Cares in Uganda, Africa. Carter serves as the President/CEO of the Master Cares Foundation which oversees the work of Grace Bridge Food Bank and the Master Cares – Africa. Over the past decade, thousands of people have received the basic necessities of life and have been given opportunities to provide for themselves while learning about God’s deep love for them through His Word. They find great joy in life to serve those in need and to help others discover opportunities to serve in their community. Carter Morris is married to his wife Julie and they have three amazing children.
