Board Members

Board President - Timothy Mills, MBA, PMP

Timothy Mills is the Data Center Operations Manager for Enterprise IT Operations at Cardinal Health's (a fortune 16 company) headquarters in Dublin, Ohio. Mr. Mills has over 20 years in IT, electronics, food processing, food service, telecommunications, and healthcare distribution industries.  He has held leadership positions as Director, Manager, or Project Manager in the disciplines of Manufacturing, Operations, IT Operations and Customer Service.

Mr. Mills is a founding member of Hope Support Services, Inc. a 501 3c non-profit organization dedicated to issues related to infertile and adoption.  The services provided include training, professional speakers, and networking.  Mr. Mills is also an original board member for Oyate Concern, Inc.

Mr. Mills was raised in Dayton, Ohio.  Mr. Mills is a certified Project Manager (PMP),  and graduated with a Master of Business Administration (MBA) from The Ohio State University (1992) and a Bachelor of Science in Electronics Engineering Technology (BSEET) from DeVry Institute of Technology (1985).  He has been married to Peggy Ann Mills for 20 years and has three children, Jamie, Drew, and Corey.  He has been a member of Xenos Christian Fellowship, a large non-denominational church in the Columbus, Ohio area, for over 20 years.

Contact Timothy Mills

Board Vice President - Lorraine Thomas

Loraine Thomas graduated from Tabor College, a Christian Liberal Arts College, with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Elementary Education and minors in Bible and Psychology.

Ms. Thomas taught school for 25 years on the Pine Ridge Reservation.  She owns and operates the family cattle ranch that has been in her family since 1924.

“At 19 years of age I dedicated my life to the Lordship of Jesus Christ.  My senior year in college, the Lord revealed to me that my ministry was to be among my beloved Lakota people.”

Ms. Thomas attends the Christian Community Center in Clinton, Nebraska, where she has been a board member for 15 years.  She is the mother of 2 children and the grandmother of 4 grandchildren.

Contact Lorraine Thomas

Treasurer - Timothy B. Koehler CPA (inactive)

Timothy Koehler, CPA (inactive) is the current Treasurer for Oyate Concern.  In his professional life he is a corporate executive at UnitedHealth Group in Cleveland, OH where he is responsible for distribution of UnitedHealthcare's specialty products nationwide.  He has been working for UnitedHealth Group (a Fortune 100 company) for 8 years, and has served in a variety of roles.  Prior to his service at UnitedHealth Group, Mr. Koehler was a practicing CPA in the audit function at Deliotte and Touche LLP in Minneapolis.

Mr. Koehler was raised in Wooster, Ohio and graduated with honors from The Ohio State University (1992).  He holds a BSBA with a major in Accounting. He has a wife Danielle and two children Emily Claire and Liliana Hope. He is a member of Grace Church of Eden Prairie, a large non-denominational, evangelical church that serves the Minneapolis metropolitan area.

Contact Timothy Koehler

Field Director - Robbie E. Dyer, LSW

Rob has been working with at-risk youth for over 18 years, as a Friendly Town host home, Group Home House Parent, Foster Parent and inner-city ministry volunteer in both Cleveland and Columbus, Ohio.  Rob served as a Medical Social Worker in two different inner-city hospitals in Columbus, Ohio over the course of 8 years.

Rob co-founded Oyate Concern, a ministry dedicated to serving the people of the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota.  Oyate Concern's first meeting was held for children ages 5 - 18 on the evening of January 16, 2002.  Oyate Concern was incorporated as a non-profit 501c3 corporation, in March of 2003.

Rob's education includes a Bachelors Degree in Social Work from Malone College in Canton, Ohio received in 1994.  He graduated with 2 years of vocational training in Carpentry and Remodeling from the Wayne County Schools Career Center in Smithville, Ohio in 1984.

Contact Rob Dyer

At Large - Jim Swearingen

Jim Swearingen has been the Executive Director of Urban Concern, Inc., a ministry of Xenos Christian Fellowship, since it's formation in 1990. It's mission is to work with individuals in the inner city to break the cycle of poverty and hopelessness. Urban Concern is committed to raising up leaders who will play an active role in restoring their community. 

Urban Concern is a holistic ministry including a Christian elementary school for low income families, Bible Studies, After School Programs, Job Training, housing, and home church planting.

Mr. Swearingen serves on the board of the Christian Community Development Association (CCDA), and Dayspring Christian Community Development Corporation. 

Mr. Swearingen has been married to Kathryn Swearingen since 1984 and they have three children Sara,  Amy,  Alex.  HE has a BA in History from The Ohio State University (1984).

Contact Jim Swearingen

At Large - Greg Loesch

Greg, his wife Lynne and three children, Daniel, David, Lauren live in Bellville, Ohio.  Greg has 12 years of business experience in management and sales and currently works as the Assistant General Manager at Ramada and Comfort Inn. He and his family attend Ontario Christian Fellowship which is in Mansfield Ohio.

Greg graduated from Ohio State University (MS) and later from Ashland Theological Seminary with a Master’s of Divinity degree.  He has been involved in lay and paid ministry for over 25 years.  While living in Columbus, Ohio Greg served on staff with First Community Church doing youth and camping ministry.  He worked leading home churches at Xenos Christian Fellowship and served as Executive Director of the Pregnancy Decision Health Center, a ministry serving the physical, emotion and spiritual needs of women and teens experiencing crisis pregnancy.  During and after his training at Ashland, Greg served for four years as Associate/Youth Pastor at Church of the Saviour in Wooster, Ohio.

Greg has also served on a variety of Ministry Boards – Search Light Care, a Christian foster care ministry; Heartbeat International, a ministry serving the needs of crisis pregnancy centers world-wide; Flood Gate Vision, a ministry bringing cooperation and collaboration between churches and pastors in greater Columbus.  He currently serves as Chairman for Board with Youth for Christ, North Central Ohio. As of November 2007, Greg joined the team of elders at the church they attend, Ontario Christian Fellowship.

Contact Greg Loesch

Secretary of the Board  - Dave Powers

David B. Powers (Dave) is currently employed with the Ohio Department of Transportation(ODOT).  In his 18 years with ODOT he has been responsible for operations and employees in part of the materials testing laboratory.  He also is responsible for working with state contracting associations and their member contractors in developing and maintaining standards and policies for the control of quality processes used by contractors in the ODOT construction programs.  Dave worked for an engineering consultant and in manufacturing as an engineer for 8 years prior to working for ODOT.

Dave made Christ his Lord in 1984 and has been a home church leader and teacher at Xenos Christian Fellowship in Columbus for 10 years and a member for 20 years.  Dave enjoys any ministry work that is hands on and practical.

Dave earned his Civil Engineering degree at Ohio State University (BSCE) in 1979 and his Professional Engineers license in 1988.  Dave has been married over 25 years to his wife Valerie Powers (Lammers) (PhD in Materials Science, OSU, 1979 and 1990) and has four children, Stephen, Chris, Ann and Kate.

Contact Dave Powers