Alf Rhea
Alf is currently the President of Business Innovations out of Norcross, Georgia. BI is a full-service firm that develops logo branding and marketing gift items for almost any industry in the world. He began his career working for Arthur Andersen in public accounting and is a CPA. He left public accounting to join BCD Travel in the corporate travel industry. As President and Chief Operating Officer of BCD Travel, he was a part of a leadership team which saw the company grow over a nine-year period from $45 million to over $500 million.
Alf is a graduate of Samford University with a Bachelor of Arts in Accounting and Masters of Business Administration degree. He is married to Loraine and they have five children and one granddaughter. Alf is an Elder with Perimeter Church located in Johns Creek, Georgia.
Alf shares on his experience with Wellspring Group below.
I have been through two men’s battle groups. When I first signed up for Wellspring, I remember telling my group I wanted to feel and really care for those close to me. I was doing good things but my authentic heart was so locked up that I couldn’t really go deep with those close to me. God used the Wellspring process and the men in my group to help me take the “make it happen and got it together” mask off and be real with those around me. I’ve felt genuine and have been able to share my weaknesses to my family and my men’s group. They have protected me and propelled me into my role in God’s larger love story. Also, I’ve seen God provide more genuine missional fruit with those in my business domain in these past two years than in the previous 15 years. And it is not me making it happen. Finally, I’m still a work in progress and having a genuine fellowship of brothers around me (who also have learned to be vulnerable) has set me on a different mission and even when I fall, they are there to help me back up. I’m accepted for who I am, not what I do.
Beth Lee
I am a Chattanooga, TN gal, born and raised. My professional career began in the entertainment industry in television and motion picture production. After tiring of freelance work, I attended law school and became a labor and employment litigator. I met my husband, Will, while he was a third year OBGYN resident at Vanderbilt. We married and moved away from Nashville but yet found our way “home” 7 years ago. We have been married 16 years and have two teenage boys, Cooper and Patrick. After our boys were born, I stopped practicing law full time while continuing to work in various law related jobs on a part-time basis. When the Lord brought us back to Nashville, I became in-house counsel for a national franchise. I resigned from that job after a couple of years and not so patiently waited to see what the Lord had for me. It turns out that He had Larry and Mary Bolden, Wellspring Group and the Battle waiting for me! A sweet and life changing surprise!
Wellspring Group and the Battle process has transformed my heart and my life. I was raised in a Christian home and came to know the Lord as a young girl but yet didn’t understand or appreciate how deeply I am loved and that God delights in me. As a reluctant participant at my first Battle retreat, I had very low expectations and was proven dead wrong. The Lord used that first retreat to reveal a mystery about my heart that was impacting the way I parented my two boys and the poor way I was relating to my husband. My heavenly Father pursued me through the Battle material and my fellow teammates. The deeper I dove into the process, the more alive my heart became. Before Battle, I was able to easily access negative emotions and rarely, if ever, experienced deep, satisfying joy. After being introduced to the idea that the Lord loves me for who I am and not for the items I check off my to-do list or my professional successes, I was released from a life of striving and launched on a journey to uncover the role that God had for me to play in His larger story. I was expecting that role to be something in my skill set..something I was familiar with. Go back to practicing law or find a job helping a business to grow as their in-house counsel. Dead wrong again. That role presented itself as an unexpected call from one of the pastors at my church, West End Community, with the suggestion that I interview for a staff position with the church. After much prayer and determining that this was indeed the role He was calling me to, I accepted a position working with our church’s women’s ministry, small groups and supporting our Battle groups. My newly re-calibrated heart was being drawn to a life of serving Him and others. Since joining the church staff 2 years ago, I have had the privilege of walking with women through celebrations and hardships, all the while honing my heart pursuing skills learned through Battle. I no longer see relationships as transactional but as opportunities to share my heart and to experience deep community with others. My role as a Board member is another way the Lord has asked me to step into His larger story. It is a privilege to serve on the Board of a ministry that has been instrumental in my spiritual and personal growth and a ministry that I have seen transform the lives of others in a real and tangible way.
Bryan Taylor
Bryan Taylor has more than 20 years of experience in portfolio management and design. He is a principal of Cornerstone Management and currently serves as the firm’s Chief Investment Officer and Chief Executive Officer. Mr. Taylor oversees all operations, and is Chairman of the Cornerstone Investment Committee.
Bryan has become a frequent writer and speaker on the global economy and US markets. He has been a conference speaker at Christian Leadership Alliance, Association of Business Administrators Christian Colleges (ABACC), Council for Christian Colleges & Universities (CCCU), Missio Nexus and other Christian nonprofit seminars across the country. He also writes a periodic market commentary called the Palantir.
Dustin Britt
Dustin graduated from Samford University with a degree in Business Administration. After graduating college, he spent several years working at a marketing firm in Birmingham, AL directing website strategy. While still in Birmingham, Dustin also served as International Program Director of Lifeline Childrens Services, helping families adopt children from China, Ukraine & Guatemala. In 2006 Dustin was offered the opportunity to work for Matchstic, a branding firm located in Atlanta, GA. Dustin spent over 7 years at Matchstic as Director of Brand Strategy, and also obtained his MBA in Marketing while there. Dustin met Larry and Wellspring Group through his role at Matchstic, during a particularly challenging season of life that brought Dustin face-to-face with his pain, fears and who God is as a pursuing Father. Dustin currently works in marketing at Chick-fil-A in Atlanta, directing Integrated Media. In 2016 Dustin and his wife Katie adopted their son Isaac from China, watching God weave together a beautiful story from the past.
Judy Keappler
My education and experience are in Childhood Education, and Christian Counseling. I graduated from Berry College with a B.S. in Early Childhood Education, and went on to earn my Masters in Education from Georgia State University. After Mark and I married, I was an educator in public and private schools for many years. The hectic pace of marriage and raising children eventually led me to leave my education career to devote my time and energy to family.
In 2005, in the midst of church and family life, I entered the Wellspring process and began living from a fully integrated heart. It was from this fullness that I began to make life decisions that satisfied my deep desires. As I encountered my deep desires with God, I found that my desire for Kingdom impact was being blocked. Tapping in to this deep desire led me to pursue a Masters in Professional Counseling from Richmont Graduate School, and open a private counseling practice. I have deeply enjoyed walking with others as they seek more freedom for their hearts. Recently, God has opened up a desire for more Kingdom impact and led me to become a Certified Professional Counselor Supervisor, where I am impacting the next generation of counselors.
Mark and I live in Atlanta, and have been married for 36 years. We enjoy our two adult children, and delightful, new son-in-law. In my spare time, I love to connect deeply with people, and pursue adventurous travels with family and friends.
Paul Barber
Paul has been married to Vicki for 35 years and they have 4 grown children and three young granddaughters. He is from Opelika, AL and met Vicki at Auburn University. They’ve lived in Birmingham since 1985 and are active at Altadena Valley Presbyterian Church. He spent 25 years at McGriff, Seibels and Williams, one of the largest insurance brokers in the US. Paul left McGriff in 2016 to mentor young business leaders at The Center For Executive Leadership. Paul was called back to business in 2017 when EBSCO (a Forbes Top 200 Privately Held Company) asked him to lead their insurance agency Valent Group. Paul continues to mentor young businessmen and focuses on spiritual & character formation and leadership development. Paul also seeks every opportunity to disciple men in the context of business. He is passionate about his discovery late in life that to make disciples you must first truly become one. The Battle For Men’s Heart retreat 6 years ago led to significant healing from a childhood of neglect. Paul, at 57 is now on a path to living out a story he was always meant for; a life of healing, joy, purpose and passion.
