God has given us a passion not only to bring children into a right relationship with God, but to disciple them in His Word and establish them in Bible-teaching churches to become mature in their faith. Child Evangelism Fellowship® believes there is no more pertinent or effective work. Our heart is to assist and lift up the local church to see her doing the work God intends for her to do.
North Alabama Chapter
Child Evangelism Fellowship® has been reaching children in ministry since 1937. The North Alabama Chapter is a local CEF® chapter that operates under the governance of CEF® of Alabama, and in accordance with the guidelines set by CEF® USA Ministries. The local chapter is governed by both the Local Committee and Staff, who serve in a relationship that best benefits the chapter. Our chapter covers five counties and our vision is to see active ongoing ministry in each and every one of them. Our counties include Madison, Jackson, Marshall, Dekalb, and Etowah, Lauderdale, Colbert, Franklin, Marion, Limestone, Lawrence, Winston, Morgan, and Cullman.
What We Believe
The fact that a young child can comprehend the simple message of salvation and become a child of God is the foundational principle of CEF®. Everything else that we do is based upon this fact. The good news of Jesus Christ is the power of God unto salvation. We must present it clearly and accurately. You can read our Statement of Faith to know more about our Biblical principles.
Our Staff
Jim Simoneau, Local Director
Jim’s story with CEF began in the spring of 1962 when a young college student presented the Good News of Jesus Christ at a Good News Club in Columbia, SC! God continued to work in Jim’s life through Godly parents and a godly church that was evangelistically focused. Through the years, he particularly worked with children’s programs from missions’ projects like 5-day clubs, camps, and overseas missions’ projects beginning in his teen years and throughout his ministry as a Senior Pastor.
While serving as a pastor in Montgomery, Alabama, he became very involved in Child Evangelism Fellowship Good News Clubs where he led one of the three clubs for at least 5 years. Between the three clubs over that time, he personally saw 25 children make professions of faith in Christ and many more made professions of faith over that time at our other clubs.
As a pastor, part of his burden was to lead people to Christ and to help equip his members to share their faith and make disciples. Jim finds that Child Evangelism Fellowship helped them achieve those goals and now he want to help other churches and other pastors to evangelize and disciple and to build the local church through conversions of these children, their families, and even the communities around them.
CEFofNAL@gmail.com
Jennifer Wade, Assistant Local Director
As a child, Jennifer believed on Jesus as Savior from her sin during a GNC in her home. As a teenager, she attended CYIA and taught 5-Day clubs each summer. Next, she came on CEF staff and also went overseas with CEF until she graduated from Southeastern Bible College and CEF‘s Children’s Ministry Institute. Then, Jennifer became the Local Director of CEF in our area (formerly NW AL) until 2000 when Bruce and Jennifer moved to MA. Finally, after 21 years of teaching boys and girls the good news plus training adults and teenagers to share the Gospel with children through their church in MA, they moved to NE TN for 1 1/2 years where Bruce retired from Eastman. And now they were FINALLY able to move back here!
In TN, while reading through the Old Testament, God renewed Jennifer's vision for CEF using Judges 2:10 - After Joshua died “there arose another generation after them who did not know the Lord.” Jennifer wants to do ALL that she can to help another generation know our LORD. She is determined to “complete the task the Lord Jesus has given her-the task of testifying to the good news…"
cefofnal.ad@gmail.com
Kathryn Burleson, Good News Club Coordinator
& Teacher Trainer
Kathryn trusted in the Lord Jesus as her Savior at the age of four. She grew up in a strong Christian family and in Bible believing church; she didn’t realize until she was an adult that the lessons she heard and loved in children’s church were CEF materials. Kathryn‘s close family consists of her parents, sister, bother-in-law, three little nieces, and schnauzer (Liesel).
In 1997, Kathryn began serving with CEF as a summer missionary with the Christian Youth In Action program and served every summer until college. During her college years, Kathryn coordinated the summer ministry for Northwest Alabama and taught in the clubs. She graduated from Bryan College in 2005 with a degree in Christian Education: Leadership and with a minor in Bible. Kathryn came on staff in Northwest Alabama as Local Director in 2005. In the fall of that year, she attended and graduated from CEF’s Children’s Ministry Institute, an intense three month training held at the CEF headquarters in Missouri. Kathryn served as the Local Director from 2005 until the fall of 2019 when she changed staff roles to be the Good News Club Coordinator & Teacher Trainer. During her years serving on staff, Kathryn took the CEF preschool course and also became certified to teach CEF’s Teaching Children Effectively Level 1 and Level 2 courses. Kathryn has a passion for the children and for seeing fellow believers become equipped to reach children for Christ. She is excited and eager to see what God is going to do this year and in the future through the Good News Clubs and through His people.
CEFofNAL.gnc@gmail.com
Ronda Little, Office Manager & Bookkeeper
Ronda is married and has 2 grown children. She and her husband David have lived in the Huntsville and Madison area since 1985. Ronda’s degree is in Industrial Engineering, and she is a retired homeschool mom.
She came to faith in Christ as a child, but it was as a young adult that she had a desire to study God’s Word in-depth and inductively. This led to a passion for teaching the Word to others.
Ronda has been involved with CEF since around 2007. She helped launch GNC at Heritage Elementary in 2014, where she currently serves as co-director, teacher, and admin/record keeping.
CEFofNAL.bookkeeper@gmail.com
Bisi Chukwudile, Children's Ministry Specialist
We'd like to introduce our newest staff member: Bisi Chukwudile! She is serving as a Children's Ministry Specialist working to reach children in our clubs by assisting GNC teams trying to start or re-start and by teaching in those clubs with the teams as they get established.
Bisi spent much of her life in her home country of Nigeria before moving to the United States. She is married to Tony Chukwudile, the President and Founder of CEM, which operates a similar vision to CEF. God has enabled her to gain empathy and compassion regarding the hearts and souls of children and has developed a program for teaching babies the Word of God.
Bisi has a wealth of over 30 years of experience in ministry: to youth and children in Nigeria, with CEF of Illinois, and teaching and training children workers in many countries of the world. She was saved at the age of 12 and has a passion for God and a heart for children. Her mission is to bring children the saving knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ and to disciple them to stand for Christ in today's world.
Hello! If you are new to Child Evangelism Fellowship (CEF) in North AL, we invite you to check out this video with Jim and Kathryn to learn a little bit about the local CEF ministry and what's happening right now.
We would love to hear from you! You can contact us at cefofnal@gmail.com or 334-399-1733.
Local Committee
Across the United States, faithful believers with vision and godly character lead the CEF® work in their states and local areas. Fulfilling the call of God in their lives, they direct the ministry by serving on local committees and state boards. The desire of CEF® is to enlist, equip, and encourage a team of qualified leaders to fulfill God's purpose and expand His work.
Tag Glenn, Committee Chairman
Jean Sarver, Treasurer
Jean attended church with his parents as he grew up. He was baptized at age 9. Jean recalls, “I remember the pastor coming to our home and teaching me from the Bible. I knew about the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. I knew that Jesus died for my sins. I knew that only God can forgive sins. I knew that only God could save my soul.” He was an active leader in his church's youth ministry through high school. He thought he was a good Christian. In college in 1962, he left the church and went his own way for many years. Jean says, “I don't think I was saved at age 9. If I was, I wasn't much of a Christian. Praise God - I became a born-again Christian in 1999 on the first day I attended worship service in 23 years!!! How can I explain this? God was merciful and never gave up on me. Thank God for my wife, family, and friends who prayed for me.” Jean has served as a CEF volunteer since March 2008 when invited to join the Local Committee in Huntsville. Since that date, thousands of kids in the counties of North Alabama have heard clear presentations of the Gospel (and many have been saved) given by staff members and hundreds of volunteers (men, women, and youth) who have a servant's heart for God and people. To Jean, “It is a privilege working with all these folks and to be a part of the local and world-wide CEF ministry. And it is still amazing that God uses me - a sinner saved by His Grace. All glory and honor to God!”
Anita Bynum, Prayer Coordinator
Anita Bynum grew up in Mississippi where she earned B.S. and M.S. degrees in Science. Her work in school teaching, substituting, tutoring, and volunteering fit well with her roles as a mother and being the wife of a Civil Servant. Madison County has been home for more than 20 years after living in Florida, Georgia, Virginia, and Germany. Because the Lord revealed Himself to Anita when she was a young child, she believes in ministry to children and that Biblical knowledge is life-changing.
Dana Farris, Secretary
Dana grew up in Decatur, and she came to faith in Christ at the age of 12. After graduating from Athens State College and then from UAB with an early childhood education master’s degree, She taught kindergarten and first grade in Decatur City schools until retiring. Dana served as preschool leader at Central Baptist Church and later as Preschool and Children’s Ministry Director at Parkview Baptist Church. Dana is passionate about and absolutely loves teaching about Jesus! Her prayer and vision for children is that they will know and honor God, setting their hope in Him alone, so that they will live as His faithful disciples for His glory.
Kathy Leach
Kathy first was introduced to CEF approximately 36 years ago. She has served on our local committee and has taught weekly Good News Clubs for many years. She is a wife, mother of three, and grandmother of eight. She is now enjoying the privilege of teaching the children of the children that she taught many years ago. Kathy also shares with others how Teacher Training through CEF has been a benefit in so many ways— in her family, in her church, and in the neighborhoods! Seeing children come to Christ by sharing God’s Word is her greatest passion.
Jenny Frith
Jenny Frith is a wife, mother, nurse, abstinence educator, speaker, children’s ministry leader, and most importantly, a follower of Jesus Christ. Jenny loves to share about God’s grace and mercy at youth rallies, women’s ministries, churches, and conferences. As the former Nurse Manager and Director of Pure Connections at Choose Life/HPRC, she has taught thousands of teenagers each year about the physical and emotional consequences of sexual activity. Her state-approved curriculum is currently being used in high schools throughout Alabama. Jenny also loves the international mission field and has traveled to Haiti for medical missions and to Romania to teach at women’s conferences and youth events. Jenny’s heart beats for Jesus, reaching the lost, and setting the captives free.
Bruce Wade, Advisory Member
Bruce Wade will join the CEF of North AL committee in 2024 as an Advisory Member on the finance sub-committee. After 30+ years in Polymer Research & Technology with Monsanto-Solutia-Eastman Chemical, Bruce retired in 2023 from Eastman. In August, he and his wife, Jennifer, moved back to the area to be closer to Jennifer’s family. Bruce believed on Jesus as his Savior from sin as a teen when a neighbor from the church he attended reached out and lived Jesus before him as a Sunday school teacher. God has given him a spiritual gift of giving and skills using technology to support the needs of CEF of North AL.
Our Partners, In Action
