Meet the Team

Bob has been involved with Sports Friends from the very beginning and has faithfully served the ministry as a supporter, prayer partner, short-term team member, and Ambassador. In February 2022, he took over the role as Global Leader for the Sports Friends ministry. Bob and his wife, Ann, bring a great love for and commitment to the ministry. They are excited about working to continue to build God’s kingdom as Bob assumes this new leadership role. Bob brings proven executive leadership skills to the role, and holds graduate degrees in both business (MBA) and law.

Berhanu has been a pioneer in the development of sports ministry in Ethiopia and led the development of the Sports Friends ministry in Ethiopia. He now provides support for Sports Friends’ growing ministry in other countries in East and Southern Africa. He served as Vice President of the Ethiopian Football Federation, President of the Addis Ababa Football Federation, and was also a committee member for the Confederation of African Football. Prior to joining Sports Friends in 2002, Berhanu served for 17 years with the Southern Baptist Mission, where he directed various development and ministry projects.

Kyle led the development of the Sports Friends ministry in Nigeria and now provides leadership to Sports Friends’ growing ministry in other countries in West Africa. He has served in West Africa for over 20 years and provided leadership to a number of community development and transformational ministries in multiple countries in the region. Kyle joined Sports Friends in 2006 to help launch the ministry in West Africa. He is an avid sportsman and has coached volleyball, soccer, and basketball teams at various levels of play. Kyle attended the University of Wisconsin at Milwaukee and Grand Rapids Theological Seminary. As a result of his pioneering work in using sports as a tool for peace in Nigeria, he was invited to participate in the Yale University Summer Peace Fellowship in 2011.

Cat began her career working as a photographer on a cruise ship, traveling to more than 50 countries all around the world. In 2009, she felt God calling her to use her gifts for something greater than herself, and applied to join SIM as a photographer. In 2010, she moved to Thailand to serve as SIM’s Communications Coordinator for Central and Southeast Asia. During that time she fell in love with the ministry of Sports Friends, and stayed in Thailand for a further 7 years serving as Sports Friends’ Director of Communications. She is currently based in the UK, and continues to lead our communications efforts out of her home town near Manchester.

Bryan began working with SIM’s Sports Friends ministry in 2014 and and loves working alongside a diverse and global team who are passionate about making disciples of Jesus Christ through sports. Prior to working with Sports Friends, Bryan served with several organizations through short-term ministry which shaped her passion to help create opportunities for churches and individuals to be involved in global missions.  As she helps lead the mobilization effort at Sports Friends, she loves training and working alongside individuals and church partners who are interested in serving with the ministry. She also helps to mobilize the care of Sports Friends workers as well as prayer for the ministry. Bryan currently lives in Charlotte, NC and serves as our Director of Mobilization.

Ben is from Newcastle upon Tyne, England. He studied an undergraduate Degree in Sports Management and then completed another Bachelor Degree in Theology and Crossing Cultures at Oak Hill College. Ben joined the Sports Friends family in 2014 and has worked short-term in a number of fields before starting this role. As a UEFA B coach Ben currently coaches with Gillingham Football Club and has coached in a number of academies across Nottingham, London and Kent including the Junior Premier League. He currently lives in Kent, England with his wife Sandeep. Ben has a passion to see our 12,000+ coaches around the world best equipped to use a ball and Bible to make Jesus known around the world.

Ishaya leads our team on the ground in Nigeria and supports the expansion of the ministry in West Africa. He began serving with Sports Friends as a volunteer in 2007. He loves sports, youth and sharing his faith with people, so Sports Friends is the perfect fit! Ishaya served as Director of Development at Jos ECWA Theological Seminary, as well as in the department of theology, having earned a BA degree in Pastoral Studies and an MA in Theological Studies. He is also a regular guest on radio commentaries for various Radio Stations in Plateau, Nigeria. He loves to use his gifts in leadership and coordinating people/events to see the life-changing gospel of Jesus Christ shared with young people, their families, and their communities.

Laurie moved to Senegal, West Africa in 2009 to fulfill the calling God put on her heart to serve Him among the least-reached. She eventually met her husband, Philippe, a Senegalese missionary and former soccer player, and together they joined SIM with the desire to establish SIM’s Sports Friends ministry in Senegal. In 2013, they officially started Sports Friends Senegal and worked alongside Senegalese churches for 8 years to establish a solid foundation for the ministry to flourish. Laurie, Philippe, and their two children now live and continue to serve with Sports Friends among Immigrants and Refugees in Charlotte, NC. Laurie also thoroughly enjoys using her gifts, and her BS in Accounting, to serve as Administrator and Treasurer for the Sports Friends global ministry.

Tripp earned a B.S. degree in business administration from the University of North Carolina where he was a Morehead-Cain Scholar and an MBA degree from the Harvard Graduate School of Business. Prior to co-founding Sports Friends in 2002, Tripp worked as an investment banker specializing in advising corporate clients in mergers and acquisitions and various capital raising options. Tripp and his family lived for multiple years in both Ethiopia and Southeast Asia as Sports Friends began ministry in these locations. From 2002 to 2021, Tripp provided overall leadership to the SF ministry as it expanded to serve hundreds of thousands of young people on five continents. He currently serves as a global ambassador for Sports Friends. Read Tripp’s book, Soul Brothers, for an inspiring account of God’s work in Tripp’s and Berhanu’s lives, including the initial launch and early growth of Sports Friends