Meet Our Team

Ben has over 20 years of human resources experience helping large public and private organizations create a great employee experience and align people with the business and mission. Ben received his B.A. from Furman University and M.B.A. from Vanderbilt University. He lives in Nashville with his wife, Karen, and two daughters. Ben currently serves as an elder at First Presbyterian Church of Nashville.

Katie moved to Uganda over a decade ago with no idea that this would be the place that God chose to build her home and her family. Today, she is a wife to Benji and mom to her fifteen favorite people. Katie and her family invest their lives in empowering the people of Uganda with education, medical care, and spiritual discipleship. She is also the author of two New York Times bestsellers, Kisses from Katie and Daring to Hope.

Don serves as the Chairman of Amazima’s board. He is a classically trained marketer who has translated a consumer products background into building award-winning customer benefit driven businesses. He has profitably grown billion-dollar brands, successfully launched new businesses and products, and led several nationally recognized real estate development projects. Don received his J.D. & M.B.A. degrees from the University of Texas. He lives in Franklin, TN with his wife, Kari, and their five children.

Dr. Megan Allred is a dentist in Nashville. She gained her B.S. in Chemistry from Murray State University and her Doctor of Dental Medicine from the University of Kentucky. She joined the board initially as an intern through the Nashville Young Leaders Council, before becoming a board member. Megan and her husband, Cecil, are the parents to two daughters. The Allred family are active at their church, Christ Presbyterian Church, Music Row. Megan has previously served on medical mission trips to Nicaragua, Honduras, and Kenya. She is a former volunteer with End Slavery TN and The Make a Wish Foundation of Middle TN.

Ryan Harris is the Head of Middle School at Franklin Road Academy in Nashville, TN. Previously, Ryan taught and coached a variety of grade levels in Williamson County (TN) Schools prior to becoming the principal of Nolensville Elementary School. He and his wife Angie live in Brentwood, TN, and have twin girls. The Harris family is quite involved in their church, First Church of the Nazarene, in downtown Nashville where Ryan is an adult Sunday School class teacher.

Jill has over 20 years of experience as an estate planning attorney and CPA assisting clients with their personal planning goals.  Jill received a B.S. in Accounting from the University of North Carolina at Wilmington and her J.D. from Wake Forest University.  She lives in Wilmington, North Carolina with her husband, Jon, and their son, Braxton.  Jill and Jon also have five nieces who were adopted from Jinja, Uganda.  Jill and Jon are active members of Port City Community Church.

John has over 30 years of financial, accounting, and strategy experience helping large public and private equity owned companies create value through a keen focus on people, partnerships and processes. John received a B.B.A in accounting from Sam Houston State University and is a CPA in Texas.  He lives in Colleyville, Texas with his wife, Leslie, and has an older son and daughter and is an active member of his church.  John serves on the Fort Worth Christian Cardinal Education Foundation as their president and has served as Chairman for the Fort Worth Christian Board of Trust.

Holly has 20 years of experience in education. She received her B.S. in Chemistry and her M.A. in Teaching from the University of Memphis. In 2018-2019 Holly worked at The Amazima School in Jinja, Uganda teaching chemistry and other sciences.  She lives in Spring Hill, TN with her husband and five children.

Raised in Nigeria, Daniel has over 14 years of engineering, design, construction, and operations experience across two continents. He received his B.S. from LeTourneau University and M.S. from the University of Texas at Tyler. After living in Uganda for 10 years and serving with Amazima, Daniel, his wife Corinne, and their son now live in Elverson, PA. They are active members of Brick Lane Community Church.

Rachel Weir, a Tennessee native, is the CEO for Amazima Ministries. Having adopted a daughter from Uganda and lived there for many years, Rachel knows firsthand the transformative power of excellent education and discipleship. Her journey began in 2018 after she moved to Jinja to work with Heal Ministries where she was deeply moved by the warmth and resilience of the people. With a professional background with HCA Internal Audit and a profound personal connection to Uganda, her passion for Uganda has only accelerated over time. She is the wife to Trey Weir and mother to three children: Hope, Hudson, and Hunter. She and her family have relocated from Jinja, Uganda back to Franklin, TN.