Meet Our Board
Mike Adkins
Board Chair
Pastor Mike Adkins is originally from Detroit, Michigan, and has served in ministry for ten years. He is a graduate of Rhema Bible College in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma. An avid sports fan, he loves all things Michigan and supports his favorite teams whenever he can. He has been married to his wife, Gabrielle, for eleven years and they have three precious daughters, Londyn, Logyn, and Lakyn. Mike is the Director of Small Groups at Opendoor Church, and he and Gabrielle are passionate about serving families in various life circumstances. We believe strong and courageous families reflect the very heart of God and we want to see the heart of God in each family we encounter.
Steffen McGhee
Board Vice-Chair and Program Committee Chair
Born in Virginia and raised in North Carolina, Steffen is the proud husband of Tenisha and father of Christian, Carter, and Cole. Steffen attended grade school in Pitt County and went on to attend Pitt Community College before transferring and graduating from East Carolina University with a BSW. He then went to work with at-risk youth as a school social worker in Lenoir County. Next Steffen returned to Pitt Community College to further his career working with youth as a program coordinator for the VISIONS Career Development and Scholarship program.
Currently, he serves as PCC’s Minority Male Success Initiative (MMSI) Specialist working to create an inclusive and productive environment for students of color to experience academic, personal, and professional success. In the community, alongside his wife, Steffen is the proud owner of East Carolina Kiddie College, a five-star childcare center in Winterville. Steffen is passionate about impacting youth, especially black and brown youth, and being a positive example in the community. He is an entrepreneur who believes in helping empower economically disadvantaged families through education, mentorship, and collaboration.
Ashley Smith
Budget, Finance, Development Committee Chair
Ashley has three children, Noah (9), Winnie (5), and Matthew (4), and she has been married to her husband Chris for over fifteen years. In 2019 she left her full-time position as the Director of Alumni and Development Services at Pitt Community College to become more purposeful with her family. Since then she has worked part-time with several local non-profits, and she now works with a national non-profit telehealth organization that specializes in helping underserved individuals receive quality healthcare. She is excited to be a part of the work Nehemiah is doing to impact our community.
David Damm
Board Treasurer
David is the co-founder of Carolina Wealth Management, Inc, serving as a senior investment advisor to individuals and the chair of the firm’s Investment Committee. For over twenty years David has written investment articles, hosted seminars and helped people develop prudent investment practices for their investment and retirement accounts. In 2018, he was interviewed and published in an article, “Educating the Public on Investing Leads to a Successful Wealth Management Firm,” in the January edition of Advisors Magazine.
David is certified as an Accredited Investment Fiduciary (AIF), by the Center for Fiduciary Studies in association with the University of Pittsburgh’s Center for Executive Education. He received a BS from Appalachian State University and an MBA from East Carolina University. Born and raised in Greensboro, NC, David and his wife, Lori have three children and currently live in Greenville. He is active in the community and has participated on many local and national boards and committees. In his spare time, he enjoys spending time with his family, reading, and traveling.
Deana Kennedy
Board Chaplain
Alongside her husband, Greg, Deana founded Opendoor Church in Winterville, NC in 1986. Originally from a Wesleyan background, the Kennedys realized the bountiful blessings of worshipping in harmony with other theological expressions on the foundations of a Christ-centered belief. Opendoor Church is a non-denominational, multicultural, and multigenerational congregation with a passion for equipping the saints for ministry as expressed in Ephesians Chapter 4.
Deana holds a Master’s in Divinity from Beacon University, and Certification in Non-profit Management from Duke University. In 2015, their son, Aaron was set in place as Lead Pastor of Opendoor Church. Deana continues in full-time ministry at the church with a passion to develop leaders and followers in their relationship with God and their involvement in carrying the church outside the walls and into the community.
Chris Smith
Chris was born and raised in Greenville, North Carolina. He attended East Carolina University for both his undergraduate and graduate studies, completing his degrees in 2003 and 2008 respectively. He received his Certified Public Accountant’s license the same year he graduated with his Master of Science in Accounting. Chris has served at the Vidant Health Foundation for more than five years and has been the vice president of finance and operations since 2019. Prior to that, he worked in the public accounting industry for thirteen years, focusing on taxation, financial analysis and consulting engagements.
Chris is very involved in local ministry opportunities, serving at Covenant Church as a worship leader, chair of the finance committee and member of the church council. Additionally, he serves as treasurer of the Connect Community Center, a 501(c)3 dedicated to local outreach ministry. A father of three, Chris and his wife, Ashley, reside in Winterville, NC.
Heather Fleming
Heather Fleming is the principal of Opendoor Education, which exists to provide quality Christ-centered education and care for children ages birth through fifth grade. She is a graduate of Meredith College and has experience both in the public education and private education sectors as an educator and administrator. Heather is a wife and mother of four children and is a member of Opendoor Church, where her family have been members for nine years. She is a Greenville, North Carolina native, but she also spent fifteen years in the Raleigh area, where she began her career in education. In her free time, Heather enjoys watching her children play sports, spending time with family, and traveling.
Greg Fleming
Greg Fleming’s bio description placeholder
Janie Rouse
Janie W. Rouse was born in Sumter, South Carolina. She received her Bachelor of Science Degree from Claflin University in Orangeburg, South Carolina and a Master of Social Work Degree from the University of South Carolina. She earned her Doctor of Ministry from Charlotte Christian College and Theological Seminary in Charlotte, NC.
Dr. Rouse was employed for 11 years with the Sumter department of Social Services where she specialized in the investigation of child sexual abuse. In 2005, Dr. Rouse retired as Associate Warden for Programs from the SC Department of Corrections, Turbeville Correctional Institution, a 1,378-bed medium male facility where she supervised program security staff, education, recreation, medical, mental health and substance abuse services and the Youthful Offender’s Program.
Since moving to North Carolina Dr Rouse worked as a mental health vocational counselor with the Department of Vocational Rehabilitation and as a Facility Service Worker auditing mental
health and substance abuse group home. She retired from Duplin County Schools as a certified school social worker at Charity Middle School in Rose Hill, NC.
Dr. Rouse currently serves on the ministerial staff at York Memorial AME-Z Church in Greenville, NC. Where she serves as Minister of Outreach. She recently completed her studies as a Christian Leadership Coach.
Married to Dr. Lawrence L. Rouse, they are the parents of 3 children, Lawrence Lee, Retrick Smith, and Whitney. After working with families and individuals during different life
stages and assisting them to work through many of life crisis’s which hinder them from being productive citizens. I understand the important of creating and maintaining healthy families and
after witnessing the positive impact it has on creating healthy, happy and functioning family members I am excited to be a part of this awesome endeavor.
Ayanna “Mickie” Whitfield
Mickie was born and raised in Eastern North Carolina. She has lived and worked in Pitt County as a nurse for twenty-four years and a nurse practitioner for eight. She is a two-time graduate of East Carolina University. She and her husband Michael have been married for 24 years. They have two children, Cyanni and Miguel, as well as a fur baby named Azuri. The Whitfields have served in various ministry leadership roles at Victory and Dominion World Outreach Center in Snow Hill for more than twenty-five years. Mickie has also served as a volunteer mentor for teen moms in YoungLives, and currently she is serving veterans at the Greenville Health Care Center.