The Good Life With Dr Danny

“PASTOR TRAVIS VACLAVIK - WHY GIVE YOURSELF”

Why Give Yourself?
Pastor Travis Vaclavik
www.westgate-church.org
 
What does it feel like to literally give a part of your self to someone else? Why would a person make such a sacrifice? How has the life of Jesus Christ transformed a man’s heart to be passionate about God’s Word with an aim to equip people to explore and enjoy it themselves? This is the story of Travis Vaclavik, a man of commitment, grace, intellectual gifts, and care for people. All in Jesus’ name.
 
Travis Vaclavik is co-pastor at Westgate Church in Weston. He graduated with honors with his Master of Divinity degree from Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary. He serves on the New England District Association board for the Evangelical Free Church of America. Travis is married to Jessica. They have one son, James.

“JIM POCOCK - ELEVATE NEW ENGLAND”

"Elevate New England"
Jim Pocock
www.elevatenewengland.org
 
How important are mentors? What difference would it make in the lives of young people if mentors were available to them 24/7? Why would someone leave a successful career to focus his life on serving youth? This is the story of Jim Pocock, whose name reaches back generations in the world of rowing known for innovation, craftsmanship, and influence on the sport at the level of Olympic gold medals.
Jim Pocock is President and Co-Founder of Elevate New England. He also serves on the national team Elevate USA helping the Elevate model launch in cities throughout America. An ordained clergyman, he has served as Pastor of three churches, as well as Development officer for a liberal arts college. Jim and his wife Beth live Gloucester and have one son, a daughter-in-law, and a grandson.

“MICHELLE T. SÁNCHEZ - COLOR-COURAGEOUS DISCIPLESHIP”

"Color-Courageous Discipleship"
Michelle T. Sanchez
www.michelletsanchez.com
 
What does race have to do with discipleship? How is it that getting to know Jesus better is to go deeper with him in our racial challenges? Have you heard of racial discipleship? This is the story of Michelle Sanchez. As she shares from her heart, what emerges is that her focus is about your story. Let’s open our hearts as she invites us on the journey of racial discipleship.
 
Michelle T. Sanchez serves as executive minister of Make and Deepen Disciples for the Evangelical Covenant Church. She completed seminary degrees at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, spiritual direction training at Boston College, and field studies on the life and times of Jesus at Jerusalem University College. Michelle is the author of three books with WaterBrook: Color-Courageous Discipleship, Color-Courageous Discipleship Student Edition, and the picture book God’s Beloved Community, all in 2022. She and her husband, Mickey, live with the children in the Chicago area.

“DR. GARY SCOTT SMITH - FAITH AND AMERICAN PRESIDENTS”

"Faith and American Presidents" 
Dr. Gary Scott Smith 
www.amazon.com
 
Where does religion and faith enter the discussion of American presidents? Why might this current period in history be known as a turning point for people in surprising ways? Dr. Gary Scott Smith is the author of the book Religion in the Oval Office: The Religious Lives of American Presidents (2015) and Faith and the Presidency: From George Washington to George W. Bush (2009) both published by Oxford University Press. His op-eds have appeared in the Washington Post, Newsweek, the USA Today, and other outlets.
Dr. Gary Scott Smith is professor of history emeritus at Grove City College. He is also an ordained Presbyterian minister who serves as a parish associate and the director of the mission program at Saint Andrews-Covenant Presbyterian Church in Wilmington, North Carolina. He taught at Grove City College in western Pennsylvania from 1978 to 2017 where he chaired the History Department. He earned his M.Div. at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary and his Ph.D. in History at Johns Hopkins University.
 

“STEVE AND JAN VOLKER - JESUS FILM”

Steve and Jan Volker
Jesus Film
www.Jesusfilm.org
 
If you were given the task of sharing the good news of Jesus Christ in another country, how would you do it? What would you use that has proven accessible and impactful? Steve and Jan Volker have worked on developing the Jesus Film—the go to resource.
 
Steve and Jan Volker have served with Campus Crusade for Christ for over 30 years at Cal-Berkeley, Portland State, and Stanford University. For nearly two decades they have worked with the Jesus Film Project—a film that has been translated into 1673 languages, making it the tool of choice for over 1500 mission agencies and denominations to plant churches internationally.

“DAVE GAMBONE - FOCUS: HOPE IN TIMES OF CRISIS - MINUS 22”

Focus: Hope in Times of Crisis – Minus 22Dave Gambone
www.minus22.org
How many veterans die by suicide every day? What is the military suicide phenomenon? How might the public be educated about this phenomenon? What results do these suicidal decisions create? Answering these questions and producing a movie to raise awareness is Dave Gambone, founder of the Minus 22 Foundation.
 
Dave Gambone is a Massachusetts native who served 5 years of Active Duty in the United States Army as a Wheeled Vehicle Mechanic from 2013-2018. He was medically retired from the army after sustaining injuries during a training incident in which his neck was fractured. Dave lives in Central Massachusetts with his wife and two daughters.
 

“DR. KARL JOHNSON - CHRISTIAN STUDY CENTERS”

Christian Study Centers
Dr. Karl Johnson
www.cscmovement.org
What is a Christian Study Center? Where are they? Why do they exist? How does God guide a man from career in Outdoor Education - including a 5000-mile cross-country bicycle trip, a 21-day National Outdoor Leadership School course, mountaineering expeditions in Latin America, and ten weeks aboard the Sea Education Association sailing school tall ships -  before building Christian Study Centers across the United States? This is the story of Dr. Karl Johnson.
 
Dr. Karl Johnson is the Executive Director of the Consortium of Christian Study Centers. Prior to that he served as Founder of Chesterton House at Cornell in 2000. He received his bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees from Cornell University and served for ten years as the inaugural Dan Tillemans Director of the Cornell Team and Leadership Center. In 2008, Karl became a founding board member of the Consortium. He served as board chair for five years. Karl and his wife Julie live in Ithaca, New York.

”DR. LOZA TADEESE - DISCOVERY”

"Discovery"
Dr. Loza Tadesse
www.tadesselab.mit.edu
How does a girl growing up in Ethiopia discover her intellectual gifts that one day lead her to Stanford and MIT? This is the story of Dr. Loza Tadesse, a story of faith, family, friendship; and a process that led from the Horn of Africa to the upper midwestern region of America, to the sunny west coast, and the Northeast. A journey where the tiniest observations may influence the future of humanity.
 
Dr. Loza Tadesse is an assistant professor at MIT in the Department of Mechanical Engineering . She is the Principal Investigator for The Tadesse Lab at MIT. She received her PhD in bioengineering from Stanford University and was a medical student at St. Paul Hospital Millennium Medical College in Ethiopia. She is listed as a 2022 Forbes "30 Under 30" in health care, received many awards including the Biomedical Engineering Society (BMES) Career Development Award, the Stanford DARE Fellowship, and the Gates Foundation “Call to Action” $200,000 grant for SciFro Inc., an educational nonprofit in Ethiopia, which she co-founded. She is married to Dr. Iwnetim Abate. They have one daughter, Mary.
 

“ROBIN JONES GUNN - TELLING PEOPLE ABOUT GOD’S LOVE”

Telling People About God's Love
Robin Jones Gunn
www.robingunn.com
 
How hard could it be to write novels for teens? What happens if you do something and God does even more? This is the story of Robin Jones Gunn. When Robin  was in first grade her teacher wrote on her report card, “Robin keeps the entire class entertained at rug time with her stories.” Even with such an early affirmation, Robin didn’t seriously consider becoming a writer during high school or college. She was more intrigued by the idea of traveling to foreign lands and telling people about God’s love. As an adult, while on a camping trip with their church youth group, Robin grew concerned when she saw what the girls were reading in their tent. The 13 year-old girls challenged her, saying, “If you don’t want us to read these books then you should write novels for us. We’ll even tell you what to write. How hard could that be?” 
 
Robin Jones Gunn is a best-selling author and speaker. Over the past 30 years she has written more than 100 books with 6 million copies sold worldwide. To her great delight, Robin’s books are doing exactly what she always hoped to do – they are traveling around the world and telling people about God’s love. She is doing the same. Over the past fifteen years Robin has been invited to speak at events around the US and Canada as well as in South America, Africa, Europe and Australia. Robin and her husband have two grown children and have been married for over 35 years. 
 

“J. MARK RAMSEYER - MISSIONARY KID TO HARVARD LAW PROFESSOR”

Missionary Kid to Harvard Law Professor
J. Mark Ramseyer
www.hls.harvard.edu
 
How does a boy who grew up in Japan as a missionary kid one day become a professor at Harvard Law School? What are pressures that missionary kids face? How do understanding another culture and knowing a language fluently shape a person’s outlook? This is the story of Mark Ramseyer. A life of discovery, sensitivity, and a courageous spirit. When Psalm 31:24 says, “Be strong, and let your heart take courage, all you who wait for the Lord!” Mark responds with a clear, “Yes.”
 
J. Mark Ramseyer is the Mitsubishi Professor of Japanese Legal Studies at Harvard Law School. He spent most of his childhood in provincial towns and cities in southern Japan, attending Japanese schools for K-6. He returned to the U.S. for college. Before attending law school, he studied Japanese history in graduate school. Ramseyer graduated from Harvard Law School in 1982.