Jon Bree – Executive Director
Jon grew up in the Adirondacks and came to know Jesus as a teenager while attending a church youth convention conference. He earned a B.A. in History and an M.A. in Teaching from Plattsburgh State, where he met his wife, Samantha, through InterVarsity Christian Fellowship. After marrying in 2011, they moved to Ithaca, where Sam worked as a medical technologist and Jon taught high school social studies. Jon has also served in various ministry roles, including as a Young Life leader, Kids Ministry Director, and church elder. Jon currently teaches Global 10 at Elmira High School. In the fall of 2024, he answered a call to become Executive Director of Community Faith Partners, with a passion to help unite Ithaca’s churches to serve the Ithaca community more effectively together.
Chuck Tompkins – Chair
Chuck was part of the group that formed CFP in 1999 and has been engaged ever since. He’s been a strong advocate for uniting Christians to serve our community. He served as pastor at Bethel Grove Bible Church in Ithaca for about 20 years but since leaving that position, has been involved in multiple nonprofit organizations that serve both the campus and broader communities. He sees CFP as a key catalyst for the church-at-large serving together where no one church can serve alone. Some describe CFP as the hands and feet of the church and he is delighted to share in that vision.
Alan Pauling – Vice Chair
Alan has been a board member of CFP since 2024. He has lived in Ithaca for many years, graduating from Cornell and working there since 1997. He’s an engineer at the Cornell synchrotron physics lab, designing lab equipment for x-ray experiments. Pretty cool! He attends Bethel Grove Bible church, where he helps with youth group, worship band, teaches Sunday school and on the deacon board. With CFP, he enjoys being a part of the community service projects and getting to meet people from all over the community.
John Hummel – Treasurer
John has been serving Community Faith Partners in various capacities since 2003. His passion for CFP stems from a deep-seated desire to see individuals, congregations and businesses work together to help needy individuals and families in our local community. John has been a CFP board member for 19 years and currently serves as Treasurer. He is a Cornell grad, retired from BorgWarner in 2024 after a 44-year engineering career. John and his wife Audrey reside in Lansing and have been Bethel Grove Bible Church members for 28 years. They enjoy traveling, boating on Cayuga Lake and spending time with their 3 children and four grandchildren. John is an active member of the Finger Lakes Runners Club and is a veteran of 18 marathons.
Ufuoma Thaddeus – Secretary
Ufuoma has served on the board for the past 6 years. She was drawn to Community Faith Partners because of its mission to unite local churches in serving the community’s needs. She has enjoyed witnessing how non-profits function over the past years and has worked to connect her peers at Cornell to community service opportunities. She is excited to see how CFP will continue to grow and showcase God’s love for our communities.
Cassidy Beard – Member
Cassidy graduated from Cornell University in May with a degree in Biological Sciences, focusing on Genetics, Genomics, and Development. She currently work as a medical assistant at Dermatology Associates of Ithaca. As a follower of Christ, she sees medicine as a calling to show God’s love through compassion and service. Her experiences have led her to pursue Physician Assistant school, where she hope to combine my passion for science and relational care. She’s very excited to be part of Community Faith Partners and to serve the local community in a way that reflects the way that Christ gave His life for us.
Rev. Terrance A. King – Member
Rev. Terrance A. King, a South Bronx native and first-generation college graduate, currently serves as Pastor of the Historic St. James A.M.E. Zion Church in Ithaca, NY, and as Associate Principal at Ithaca High School. A committed educator and advocate for youth, Rev. King holds a master’s degree in education from Metropolitan College of New York and is pursuing a Ph.D. in special education at Syracuse University on a full scholarship. He is a devoted father to Jaylen and mentor to many, including his adopted son, Justin. With a deep passion for full inclusion in our schools, churches, and throughout society, Rev. King seeks to leave a lasting legacy of leadership, love, and purpose through his ministry, scholarship, and community engagement.
Hudson Tumey – Member
Hudson serves as a full-time intern with Cru at Cornell, where he mentors students and helps them grow in their faith. As a board member of Community Faith Partners, he’s passionate about serving people from all backgrounds—because that’s what Jesus did. He was drawn to CFP because it lives out faith in action, meeting real needs in our community with love and dignity. He brings a heart for service, a background in campus ministry, and a commitment to connecting faith with everyday life.
Felicia Whatley – Member
Felicia grew up in a Christian home in Tioga County, NY and the most significant part of her testimony is that once she left college, she turned away from her faith and her relationship with Jesus for 13 years. But at the beginning of 2024, she re-dedicated her life to Him and He’s been leading the way ever since.
She is now firmly planted in Ithaca and works at The Salvation Army Corps as a Community Outreach Caseworker and she is a part of New Heart Church; a church plant on Grandview Ave, in the South Hill neighborhood. She’s a worship leader with a passion for Jesus, music and singing, that’s growing rapidly into a love of playing the guitar and percussion. She is also a dedicated plant mom who loves to spend time in nature, and she’s known to enjoy a matcha latte from time to time.
She joined the board because this ministry has a rich history of serving Jesus by serving our neighbors, fighting for justice and equality through connection and community, and is in existence to unite the greater Body of Christ, His Church, in the City of Ithaca and that’s all of that is part of her personal mission; to serve with the gifts that God intended for her to use for His Glory!