About – Foundry Collaborative

We believe strong ministry needs support.

Foundry Collaborative wasn’t dreamed up in a boardroom or retreat center—it started from time spent at an Annual Conference, sometime after 11pm, when the three of us (John, Quinten, and David) were running on fumes and a glass of bourbon, still trying to figure out how to move 1,000 people through a voting process with something vaguely resembling order.

We’d spent the day buried in the logistics of room setups, communication flow, and making hundreds of gallons of coffee. And honestly? We loved every minute of it. Somewhere in between rearranging platforms and optimizing traffic patterns, we found ourselves talking about a deeper need we’d all seen in our own work: how little support exists for Executive Pastors, Executive Directors, and operations leaders in the church world—especially in congregations that can’t afford a full-time staff member for that role.

We’ve each served in executive roles in our ministry settings. We know what it’s like to carry the weight of staffing, structure, strategy, and stewardship. We’ve felt the late-night stress of a big decision and the early-morning scramble to solve a problem no one else knew was coming. And we also know how much lighter that load can feel when someone’s in it with you.

So we started Foundry Collaborative. It’s our way of leaning into the connectional spirit of the United Methodist Church and helping churches and nonprofits build systems that actually serve their mission—not the other way around.

This work isn’t flashy. Most of it happens behind the scenes: onboarding new pastors well, cleaning up governance structures, building strategic plans that make sense and get used, or just helping a team breathe easier because someone else is carrying part of the weight. But we believe this kind of support makes ministry stronger, healthier, and more sustainable for the long haul.

We’re not consultants who drop in, give you a binder, and disappear with nothing more than a whiff of hope and a stack of invoices for you to pay. We’re partners who walk alongside you, sleeves rolled up, showing up with spreadsheets and snacks, ready to make good things happen.

That’s our story (or at least how we are telling it!)—and we’re grateful you’re here for it.

Meet the Team

We are normal people. Promise.

Co-Founder & Lone Lay Person
David is a husband, dad, church executive, and the kind of guy who genuinely enjoys a good governance document. (He only knows of three other people with leather-bound, personalized, tabbed copies of the United Methodist Book of Discipline —Foundry’s own John and Quinten have the other two!) He co-founded Foundry Collaborative with John and Quinten to help churches and faith-based nonprofits move from just keeping up to boldly moving forward. David currently serves as Executive Director at Asbury United Methodist Church in Birmingham, Alabama, where he leads finances, facilities, and operational strategy with a deep belief that structure should serve mission—not the other way around. David received Onboarding Certification through Emory University’s Candler School of Theology’s Center for Christian Leadership. He found his faith—and his wife—at Camp Sumatanga, which still holds a sacred place in his life and has the honor of serving as a Trustee for Sumatanga. These days, he’s also a backyard chicken wrangler, cocktail experimenter, and proud girl dad to Sadie and Scarlett (so many Taylor Swift lyrics to remember…).

Co-Founder & Resident IT Guru
John brings both heart and structure to Foundry Collaborative. As an elder in The United Methodist Church and staff member with the North Alabama Conference—where he serves in Connectional Ministries and as Conference Secretary—John knows a thing or two about keeping things connected, organized, and mission-focused. John specializes in system development for websites, policy development and governance, and event management with a particular knack for the (let’s be honest) thrilling world of voting logistics. Whether he’s untangling web infrastructure or smoothing out parliamentary wrinkles, John’s goal is simple: make complex systems work seamlessly so organizations can focus on what matters most. Outside the office, John shares life with his wife, Claire, their son, Eli, a cat named Beans, and a pug named Winnie (who is most definitely in charge). He enjoys traveling and, in true church policy aficionado fashion, unwinding with a good read of the Book of Discipline—because some people binge TV; John binges bylaws.

Co-Founder &
Client Engagement Expert

Quinten is the kind of leader who brings spreadsheets and soul to the same table. As co-founder of Foundry Collaborative, he’s known for turning half-baked ideas into mission-aligned blueprints—and then helping teams actually pull them off. A strategic thinker with a pastor’s heart, Quinten is the go-to guy when your dreams need a practical plan (and a budget that makes sense).

He currently serves as Executive Pastor at Bluff Park United Methodist Church, where he oversees everything from finance and facilities to adult ministries and care teams. If it happens behind the scenes, there’s a good chance Quinten has his fingerprints—and probably a color-coded chart—on it. A commissioned deacon in the United Methodist Church, Quinten’s calling has taken him from campus ministry at Birmingham-Southern College to championing a local food-focused nonprofit through a season of major growth.

Originally from Western New York, Quinten proudly reps the University at Buffalo and Duke University. He also reps the Buffalo Bills with just as much fervor—win, lose, or snowstorm. Quinten is married to Kelly, and together they’re raising their daughter, Maisie, with love, laughter, and a healthy respect for both game day rituals and bedtime routines.

Why "Foundry"?

In the early days of the Methodist movement, John Wesley’s headquarters in London was called The Foundry—a literal cannon foundry converted into a place of preaching, gathering, healing, and sending. It became the launch point for a movement defined by practical grace, structured discipleship, and a deep commitment to transforming lives.

We chose the name Foundry because it reflects our roots and our purpose. We exist to help churches and faith-based organizations forge what’s next—to shape structure, leadership, and strategy in ways that fuel mission, not frustrate it.

Just like Wesley’s Foundry, we hope to be a space where strong leadership is formed, faithful ideas take shape, and the church is equipped to meet the moment with courage and clarity.

Foundry Collaborative, LLC

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Birmingham, Alabama

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