JAMIE BESTER, Director of Revitalise Australia | Catalyst, Tasmania

Jamie is the Director and a Lead Consultant of the Revitalise Australia Program. He is an ordained Minister with the Anglican Diocese of Tasmania and leads a working group for the Diocese, developing new ministries throughout the state.

Jamie has a science and business background, previously working as a consultant to rebuild failed businesses and start new ones. These experiences and gifts have transferred into ministry roles focusing on church planting and parish revitalisation.

Jamie studied Ministry & Theology at Ridley College and completed the City to City Asia Pacific Church Planting Intensive and Preaching Incubator prior to planting Southern Beaches Anglican Church. Until recently he has led the Anglican Parish of Clarence South in Hobart through a season of revitalisation before starting full-time with City to City.   

Jamie is married to Claire and has seven children (yes, that’s right!) covering a wide range of ages. When he's not spending time with his family he loves nothing more than exploring Tasmania's rivers and lakes with fly- rod in hand.  

Jamie and Claire have a deep God-given passion to serve the Lord with a particular call to develop organic ministry opportunities, believing that God is planting His plans into the hearts of local communities and cities for the growth of the Kingdom.

MARK KEOWN, Revitalisation Consultant, New Zealand

Rev Dr Mark J. Keown is the Revitalisation Consultant in New Zealand. He is also the Director of Evangelistic Leadership at Laidlaw College and a Presbyterian minister who presently attends Massey Presbyterian. He is passionate about evangelism, apologetics, discipleship, church planting, and revitalisation.

He has served in a variety of spaces in evangelism, children’s and youth ministries, worship, and as Minister at Greenlane Presbyterian and Mt Roskill Baptist Churches.

Mark has written a number of articles, essays, blog posts, and books including Congregational Evangelism in Philippians (2008), What’s God Up to on Planet Earth? (2010), Philippians, EEC, 2 vols. (2017), Jesus in a World of Colliding Empires, 2 vols. (2018), Discovering the New Testament 3 Vols (2018–21),Understanding Mark’s Gospel (2022), Reading the New Testament (2024), Galatians (2024), Pneumaformity (2024), and Jesus as the New Joshua (forthcoming).

Married to the Rev Dr Emma Keown from Northern Presbytery, and owned by Redmond the dog, he loves cycling and playing in his band, Already Not Yet.

BEN CONNELLY, Revitalisation Consultant, Canada

Ben is a specialist consultant supporting our work across all countries, with a special focus in Canada. He is a pastor, author, and equipper. He is honored to serve everyday disciples, ministry leaders, and church planters across the world through The Equipping Group, and to help lead Salt+Light Community and Plant Fort Worth, both in Fort Worth, TX.

Ben has written/contributed to several books, workbooks, articles, and publications, has overseen church planting efforts for multiple organizations, and has also taught university and seminary classes.

He and his wife, Jess have three children and at times, host short-term foster kids too.

KRISTINA KETTLETON, Revitalisation Consultant, Youth and Children

Kristina is the children and youth lead consultant for our Revitalisation program.

Kristina is an ordained Anglican deacon and has spent many years in several ministries including 6 years as the Youth Ministry Development officer in the Tasmanian diocese, the executive officer of Anglican Camping Tasmania, several roles leading youth ministry and helped develop strategic long range plans for denominations. Kristina also spent 11 years serving as a leader at South-East Anglican in Tasmania, as part of a team leading a large parish through change and renewal.

She also works with the Anglican diocese of Melbourne as a project officer for the “Reimagining the Future” project with a focus to revitalise churches.

RENATA VAN DER WAL, Operations Manager

Based in Nelson, Renata serves as the Operations Manager for City to City Australia. With a background in administration and church ministry, she is passionate about supporting gospel-centred church growth. She also works part-time for the Anglican Diocese of Nelson and attends a local Anglican church.

Renata’s faith is central to her life, and she is deeply grateful for the undeserved grace of God, which continues to shape and sustain her.

Originally from Christchurch, Renata enjoys reading, musicals, and making music—whether singing or playing guitar, piano, violin, or ukulele. In her spare time, she loves spending time with friends, watching movies, and playing games.

ROD MORRIS, Lead Consultant

Rod is a Lead Consultant within the Revitalise Australia program. He has worked in corporate management, corporate change and management development roles, and prior to joining City to City, served in a range of ministry roles within various churches and parachurch organisations, including a training role with the International Fellowship of Evangelical Students in Europe. Rod has an enduring interest in developing people for Christian ministry, particularly in the areas of leadership, preaching, and bible study groups, and together with his wife, Karen, has written a book on small group bible studies called ‘Leading Better Bible Studies’. He has degrees in Theology, Economics, Adult Education, Professional Development, and Professional Supervision, and has conducted ministry training workshops internationally and around Australia.

LEE HINKLE, Lead Consultant

Lee has lived in Fremantle, Australia since 2015 when he and his family moved from Indianapolis, Indiana U.S.A. Lee was called by the Westminster Presbyterian Church of Australia to plant a new work in Fremantle (a sub-city of Perth). Lee was able to make this move with the help of Mission to the World , the sending arm of the Presbyterian Church of America. Prior to moving to Australia, Lee spent 15 years serving in churches in the United States. He served in roles including youth pastor, equipping pastor, formation pastor.  Serving in churches of 50 members to 4500 members. 

After moving to Australia Lee has pastored a unique church plant/relaunching of a 120 year old congregation. This work began in 2016 with 30 average attenders and a median age of 70. Today Fremantle Church average Sunday morning attendance is 90 with the median age of 35.  Lee has worked hard to honour the legacy of the church while not being held back by its heritage.  The church is currently a Church of Christ/ WPC church.

Lee is ordained for Christian ministry by the Presbyterian Church of America, the Westminster Presbyterian Church of Australia and is an accredited minister in the Churches of Christ Western Australia. Lee holds a BA in Youth Ministry and Biblical Studies with additional course work from Reformed Theological Seminary.

Lee has been married to Shannon for almost 30 years and has one son and daughter-in-law who live in the United States and four daughters who live in Fremantle. 

DAVID RIETVELD, Lead Consultant

David has worked in local church ministry for almost 30 years. He has worked in Sydney, Tasmania, and Victoria. He is ordained as an Anglican and Baptist. He has worked in big and small churches, while they were growing or, at times, declining. He has planted congregations and closed churches, led a merger, built a new church building, and sold others. He has followed predecessors who fell into misconduct, and transitioned churches back into health and growth. He has worked with Anglo and ethnic congregations and staff. David's broad experience will help him empathise and walk alongside your church, whatever season you are in.

David is a published author - his book Being Christian after Christendom explores four questions: Where are we? How did we get here? What went wrong? What is the solution? This book is a dialogue between sociology, philosophy, history, and theology about the state of the world, and the church's role.

David commenced a PhD and has published journal articles on listening to preaching. He is also trained to lead Intentional Interim Ministry with TMAA, and in Conflict Management with the Alban Institute.

David has a heart for cross-cultural mission. He has led partnerships between Australian churches, and sister churches in Cambodia, Myanmar and Uganda. He was the chair of CMS Tasmania.

David is married with four adult children.

TIM LOFTIS, Lead Consultant

Tim started his ministry career and has been working in paid church ministry since 1978. He was ordained as a Baptist pastor in the US in 1983, and felt the call of God to Australia shortly after that time. He and his family arrived in Australia in 1986, and planted the Suburban Baptist Church in the western suburbs of Melbourne in 1987. Over the last 37 years, the church has grown to be a multi ethnic, family church of over 300 people in the booming suburb of Wyndham.

In 2019 with the help of City to City and a launch team out of the mother church, Suburban successfully planted a church in downtown Werribee. Tim has also been a member of the Heathdale Christian College board where he served in various ways for 27 years. He has been part of our ministry coaching church planters for the past 4 years and is also a consultant for our Revitalisation program.

CAMERON MUNRO, Lead Consultant | Trainer

Cameron is a Lead Consultant for the Revitalise Australia program.  He is also a Trainer in our Incubator training programs for Church leaders. He is committed to seeing Christ proclaimed, “admonishing and teaching everyone with all wisdom, so that everyone may be presented fully mature in Christ” (Colossians 1:28).

Born and raised in Sydney, Australia, Cameron became a Christian at age 13. He worked as a Physiotherapist before training for vocational ministry at Moore Theological College and Fuller Seminary.  His doctoral thesis explored the challenge of equipping churches to address key challenges presented by contemporary Australian culture to discipling children and youth.

For over twenty years, he has pastored churches in Sydney, Wollongong, and, most recently, beautiful Adelaide. He has also been involved in church planting as a pastor within the Trinity Network of Churches for fourteen years. He has also served as an adjunct lecturer at Bible College SA, teaching subjects related to leadership, worship, and contextualising local missions. 

He is currently studying towards an MBA.

Cameron is married to Karen, and they have four adult children.

CLAIRE BESTER, Admin

Claire works as the Administrator of Revitalise Australia. Married to Jamie, she has served alongside him as City to City church planters and in parish ministry roles within the Anglican Diocese of Tasmania. Together they have four school-aged children and have co-parented a further three to adulthood.

Claire is a Built Heritage Advisor with a love of the built environment. With degrees in Australian & Architectural History, qualifications and experience in Cultural Resource Management, and an active membership with ICOMOS Australia, Claire is part-way to completing a Masters of Architecture.

Having become a Christian at age 28, Claire is thankful to be known and loved by God and feels so privileged to use her gifts to serve alongside the greater City to City team in reaching and revitalising Australia and New Zealand.

When not organizing the Revitalise Australia team, Claire can be found spending time on their family farm in South-eastern Tasmania, drinking coffee, op-shopping, and swimming in the ocean (but not all at the same time!)

TAARIKA CHANDY PAKKI, Admin

Taarika is the Communications Coordinator for City to City Australia. Her role includes developing communications strategies, maintaining social media presence and other front-facing comms, and assisting the team around delivery of events, programs etc. She also assists the Revitalise Australia team and Coaching team with their administrative needs.

Taarika previously worked in the development sector in India for 10 years and enjoys being able to communicate in creative ways to get more people interested in the things that matter.  Working with City to City Australia is giving her the opportunity to communicate about the most important thing - the grace and love of Jesus Christ.

Taarika is married to Felix, an assistant pastor in the city of Bombay, and together they have a son Avy. Taarika is currently absorbed by finding different ways to entertain her son, drinking copious amounts of tea, and reading as many pages of a new book as she can before she falls asleep. 

PETE GREENWOOD, Trainer

Pete Greenwood is the planter and pastor of Inner West Church in Flemington, Melbourne. He loves helping people see how the Gospel transforms all of life, and how everyday Christians can live with missional intentionality. He finds great joy in God's generous gifts of good coffee, great beer and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.

Though his church ministry has a focus in the Kensington/Flemington area, Pete has long nurtured a passion that the western suburbs more broadly would see a movement of spiritual renewal as new churches are planted, established churches are renewed and Christians gain a new willingness to be on mission. To that end, in 2019 he helped start a prayer movement of pastors and planters called Together for the West. Pete also works one day a week to help network and resource church planters and pastors in the West with the great tools and training that City to City Australia has to offer.

Pete is husband to Jackie and dad to Jonathan.