Greg Swinney

Statewide Ministry Director / Senior Campus Minister

Has it been that long?  Twenty-three years ago, Greg was a minister in Oakley, Kansas when he was invited to move to Kearney and serve as Campus Minister at the Lighthouse.  He and his wife, Laurie, packed up their belongings and headed north with their then toddler daughter, Beth to experience life on the UNK campus.

Greg brought with his an undergraduate degree from Nebraska Christian College and a graduate degree from Cincinnati Christian Seminary, and dove head first into the role of campus minister.  His academic background, his love for college students, and desire to grow the Kingdom have equipped him to lead CSF in his current role as Statewide Ministry Director.  He has since added a second graduate degree from the University of Nebraska - and a son, Nathan to his list of accomplishments.

Greg’s role with CSF is that of an equipper of the staff and student leaders and one who will assist in casting the vision for the organization of reaching the 65,000 college students of Nebraska and in other parts of the world.  This work keeps him very mobile, traveling to Omaha, Lincoln, and Norfolk to step into teaching roles and offering guidance and encouragement to the CSF staff on those campuses.

Over the years Greg has worked to provide quality materials for Bible study and personal spiritual growth. His writings have found their way into publications such as the Christian Standard, the Lookout Magazine, and the Nebraska Speech Communication Journal. Most recently his book, The Solid Foundations Spiritual Notebook, (now with over ten thousand in print) was published by Standard Publishing. Available through Amazon.com, this book gives an individual a tool to help grow spiritual through journaling.  The Joyful Surrender, a personal study on the biblical teaching on baptism, has found it's way to individuals and Christian colleges across the country.  His book Taking Education Higher is used as a textbook on several campuses in classes preparing students for campus ministry,

Kyle Dellevoet

UNK Campus Minister

In July 2007, Kyle and his wife Jody moved to Kearney with their three young sons, and within 48 hours he was headed off to Indiana with a vanload of students for the National Student Leadership Conference.  The whirlwind started when he felt called to leave his position at Campus Life in Lincoln and return to UNK where he had received his undergraduate degree just a few years ago.  Actively involved in CSF through his college years in Kearney, he knows from the inside out how critical this campus ministry is to the students at UNK. 

After graduation, he continued to be involved with CSF as a prayer partners and mission trip sponsor.  When the opportunity came to join the staff, Kyle recalled, "It was 12 years ago this fall, but I remember it like it was yesterday.  I pulled up to Centennial Towers West with a few boxes full of belongings and a million questions, hopes, and fears.  That fall UNK became my new home.  For a small town boy it was a little overwhelming: a new school, a roommate I had never met before, and a brand new faith that was only a couple months old.  It didn’t take long to realize that college would throw hundreds of choices in my direction.  Thankfully, with the help of a good friend, one of the first choices that I made was to become involved with Christian Student Fellowship.  Looking back now I can honestly say that only a handful of decisions in my life have been as important as that one."

 Kyle now brings his passion for worship, teaching, and discipling young people to the CSF team.  By the way, since he and Jody unloaded that U-Haul last year, they now have FOUR sons!

Dan Walter

UNL Campus Minister

Since joining the staff at CSF in July of 2000, Dan tells of how God has been teaching him so many things......here are just a few he talks about..........

     "First, remember where you’ve come from. I attended UNL back in the early 1990’s (How many years it took really isn’t relevant). When I was 21 years old, I came to the realization that I was spiritually bankrupt. I had been running my own life for about five years, and wasn’t doing a very good job of it. It was the ministry of CSF that helped me re-focus on God and on His plan for my life. I want to remember every day I go to campus that there’s a 21 year old kid somewhere on campus going through exactly what I went through, and be available to help them get on track with God.

     Second, remember who means the most to me. First, I’m amazed by our God and how He richly blesses life and what a ride relationship with Him is. I’m still blown away by the fact that the creator of everything desires so much to know us and have us know Him. After Him is my family. God has blessed me with such a wonderful wife. On our wedding day, July 16, 1994, I knew that I had achieved one of the greatest coup’s of all time. Since that time, God has blessed us with Lindsay (born August 10, 2000) and Gabe (born June 19, 2003). To think that God would entrust kids to me!

     Third, remember why you do what you do. I absolutely love campus ministry. When I think of where our students are going, what they’re learning, and how they’re living life, I get so excited. We have an opportunity to radically change the business, educational, governmental, financial, scientific and philosophical establishments of the world—not to mention the Church, through the students that we minister to. What an honor! What a responsibility!

     Fourth, HAVE FUN! The Christian life isn’t meant to be dull. We’re meant to enjoy life to the fullest! To help people recognize that is a blast!

     Finally, don’t be so long winded. Still working on that one...."

Rachel Charley

UNK Women's Ministry Director

Rachel joined the CSF team in 2005 as an intern, but it was apparent from the beginning, she was made of something "special."  When her internship was not even completed, the Board of Directors eagerly invited her to come on staff as Women's Ministry Director for CSF at UNK.  Living on the girls' floor at CSF the first several months gave her a unique insight into the hopes, dreams, and struggles of the young women on the UNK campus. Hailing from Maryville, Missouri, she grew up rooting for the Northwest Bearcats - and still does - but Rachel is settling into the "Husker nation" quite well.

After attending Northwest Missouri State University for a year, Rachel soon decided her plans to pursue a degree in business management were not what God had planned for her.  She transferred to Ozark Christian College to prepare for campus ministry, and graduated in May of 2005, eager to jump in with both feet.

Rachel knows well the rewards and challenges of living a life of ministry as her dad, Roger, has been serving as a campus minister for 20 plus years. She has experienced first hand the kind of impact at God has on the University Campus and knows from the inside how important this crucial mission field is to the growth of God's Kingdom.  

 Rachel says, "College years are a pivotal part of everyone's life. For many, it is the point in their life when they must decipher between living their parents' faith, and defining their own. It is so exciting to see students desire to dig deeper into God's word!  They continually challenge me as I watch their faith become real and personal, and to see them seeking God's will for their life in everything they do."

Julie DeFor

Northeast Community College Ministry Coordinator (P/T)

Julie has spent most of her life around college student as her dad, Bill Miller, has taught at Nebraska Christian College for over 40 years. She practically grew up  in the dorms at NCC, then went to college herself, supported her husband through his master’s degree and now is teaching at a college. 

Julie has spent the last three years as the Drama Instructor at Nebraska Christian College in Norfolk, Nebraska, enjoying every minute with the kids.  The result has been the development of deep mentoring relationships with many of her students.  This experience -  coupled with her passion for the lost -  has led her to the CSF position of Campus Minister at Northeast Community College in Norfolk.  She is ready for the challenge and excited about what God is doing at Northeast.

 Her husband, Tim, is the Associate Minister at First Christian Church in Norfolk.  They have hosted small groups in their home for about seven years and love to entertain guests.  They plan to use this gift while ministering to the students at Northeast. 

Julie says, “Campus ministry is where God has led me to serve Him.  It's a place where He moves in the lives of students so powerfully and has chosen to place me in their paths.  I don't want to be anywhere else!  The time we spend together like Tuesday night services, service projects, Bible Studies, and mission trips are truly life-changing experiences.  God meets us where we are, sin and all, and builds a community where we can be real, get to know each other and support each other on campus.  I hope that you will support CSF with your prayers.  God loves these students so much and so do I."

 Tim and Julie have four kids:  Keriann (14), Marshall (12), Grant (9), and Lauren (6).  When she is not busy with Tim and the kids, she enjoys hanging out with her college students, reading Scripture, exercising, crafting, decorating, singing, and having coffee with her girlfriends!

Jessica Springer

Northeast Community College Ministry (P/T)

Jess' face has been seen over the past few years leading girls' Bible studies, chatting on Tuesday night gatherings, and at all kinds of social activities, and in August 2008 she was added "officially" to the CSF staff.  She and husband, Greg, are passionate about reaching college students for the Kingdom; they came to Norfolk from Purdue University where they were active in the campus ministry there.  Though the transition from a large university to a community college was difficult, Jess found herself loving the students and wanting to spend more and more time with them.  Her passion is reflected in what she said recently: "I haven't been able to imagine my life apart from campus ministry.  I feel it is a call on my life that I cannot ignore."  What a great asset Jess is to the CSF ministry team!