Our Staffs

Deborah Payne has maintained over twenty years’ experience in international public health and sustainable development. Deborah graduated from Berea College, with a major in Biology, then earned her Masters of Public Health at the University of Kentucky with a focus on environmental health. She later joined the Peace Corps and served two years in Uganda with Katosi Women Development Trust focusing on water and sanitation education. Deborah helped form the programing of MedWater, an organization based in Ecuador empowering communities to attain...

Jim came to CoCoDA in 2014 after many years in non-profit and community development work. For twenty years, Jim served as a pastor for the Methodist and Quaker denominations with deep connections in social justice movements in the United States and internationally. He also worked for an urban community development corporation for nearly ten years. Coming to CoCoDA has allowed Jim to focus on what he has always enjoyed the most—supporting and empowering the powerless. Jim says, “Working with CoCoDA combines...