MEET OUR TEAM

Rev. Romeo K. Dabee was appointed JFK Airport Community Minister December 1, 2011.  Pastor Dabee provides ministry outreach from Christ for the World Chapel, a ministry of the Council of Churches of the City of New York. Pastor Dabee will continue in a 47-year line of airport chaplains going back to the beginning of this ministry in 1964.

Pastor Dabee was ordained by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America in 2005 and has served as pastor of Gloria Dei Evangelical Lutheran Church, New Hyde Park. Prior to moving to Gloria Dei in 2008, he was Associate Pastor of Our Saviour Lutheran Church, Jamaica. Pastor Dabee also serves as Interim Minister in Redeemer, QueensVillage and St. James-St. Matthew's in South Ozone Park, Queens, NY.

A native of Guyana, Pastor Dabee holds a Diploma in Public Management and a B.Sc. degree in Accountancy, both from the University Guyana in Turkeyen, Guyana, S.A. He earned his Master of Divinity degree from the Lutheran Theological Seminary in Philadelphia in 2005 and a Master of Sacred Theology degree there in 2012 with a thesis on Ecological Ethics. He completed Clinical Pastoral Education at Episcopal Health Services of New York in 2001.

David H. Benke is the retired President/ Bishop of the Atlantic District of the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod, having represented the eastern half of New York State for the denomination and its two million members from 1991 to 2015. Ordained into the Holy Ministry in the Missouri Synod  in 1972, he has served previously as Pastor of St. Peter’s Lutheran Church in Brooklyn, New York from 1975-1991 and co-terminously with his President’s responsibilities from 1997 to present.  Bishop Benke has served on the Board of Christ for the World Chapel and as a member of the Council of Churches, City of New York since the late 1990s.

David is happily married to Judy, who retired as Vice President for Church and Community Relations at The Lutheran Care Network, New Rochelle, New York.   She has most recently served on the Board of Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service, and chairs the board of The Center for Urban Education Ministry.  The Benkes reside in Oakland Gardens, Queens, where they can be seen driving a retirement sports car on the way to and from New York Mets games.

Deborah Brown has worked at the Port Authority of NY & NJ at JFK since 2017. Her enthusiasm for serving others through civic, private and professional settings started off at a young age and continues through her various volunteer roles today. Deborah’s background is quite extensive in business development, entrepreneurship and management. After raising her sons, she returned to complete her college education and transitioned into the field of aviation in 2008.

Deborah holds an Advanced Diploma in Life Coaching from AACC, a Bachelors Degree in Business and Economics from SUNY Empire State College, Masters Degree in Human Services Leadership from St. Joseph’s College and Graduate Certificates in Advanced Negotiations, Conflict Resolution and Industrial/Organizational Psychology from Notre Dame University, Cornell University and Northcentral University.
Deb and her husband have a blended family with five children and reside in Suffolk County, Long Island. In her spare time, Deb started a non-profit ministry, runs retreat programs for women and is currently writing a book for beginners looking to develop a deeper prayer practice through the art of Spiritual Direction.

Rev. Dr. William (Bill) Shillady is the Executive Director/CEO of the United Methodist City Society.  Bill possess a BA in Religion and Business from Lebanon Valley College, a Master of Divinity from the Divinity School at Duke University and a Doctor in Ministry Degree, Drew Theological School.

Bill has been a pastor of three churches in the New York Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church.  He served at Asbury Crestwood UMC in Yonkers, NY, the Mamaroneck UMC on the Sound Shore, and the Park Avenue UMC in NYC.  In 2008, he became the executive of the United Methodist City Society, a multi-faceted mission program agency of the United Methodist Church in the metro area. Their programs range from children and youth, social service agencies, addiction recovery services, affordable housing, and managing a cemetery.  The agency covers from cradle to grave.

Bill has held many offices and served on many boards.  He is on the Mayor’s Faith leaders advisory council.  He is a member of the Bricks and Mortals Board of Directors, an agency helping churches to utilize their properties in creative ways.  He is the treasurer of the Council of Churches of the City of New York.  He has been a pastor to the Clinton family since 2002.   Bill enjoys HO model trains and reading.

Morris Gurley is a graduate of Duke University and Harvard Law School. He was in the banking and investment field in New York City with Chemical/Chase Bank from 1962 to 1987. He specialized in the field of Trusts and Estates and headed the Personal Trust Department at the time of his retirement in 1987.

In 1985, he co-founded the National Center for Victims of Crime which works to aid and to protect the rights of victims of violent crime. He has been involved in the passage of major legislation such as the Son-of-Sam Law and the Anti-Stalking Laws. Under his leadership, this coalition grew to include not only victims groups and agencies, but also city government, law enforcement, the religious community, and labor unions.
From 1984-2000, he was Chairman of the Distribution Committee of the Annie Laurie Aitken Charitable Trust which supported many of the major institutions in New York City. In 1986, he co-founded the Brain Trauma Foundation/Institute of Neurosciences which specializes in the field of neurological research and treatment.

He sits on numerous Boards of Directors including the Metropolitan Opera, the Roosevelt Institute, and the Lay Advisory Board of the New York Board of Rabbis. He was involved in the formation of the Commission of Religious Leaders of the City of New York in 1999. A United Methodist, he has been active in the New York Annual Conference serving on the Board of Trustees, the Bishop's Fund and other committees.

Cheryl Jones, LEED Project Manager for Royal Waste Services, has worked at JFK Airport for over 20 years. Her past roles were held at Hudson General, AMR Services and Worldwide Flight Services. In addition to her role at Christ for the World Chapel, Cheryl serves on JFK Rotary Club, The Boy Scouts of America Aviation Board and LGA Kiwanis where she was honored as Distinguished Past President during her three-year term.

Cheryl holds several degrees from high school and college. As a single mother to her son Kevon, she is extremely proud of his collegiate accomplishments in Computer Science at York College.

Cheryl is currently serving as the V. President of the LGA Kiwanis and happy to be making a difference for the Children & Community in the East Elmhurst & Corona area.

Cheryl’s motto is “No matter what job you do, be your best at that job. Don’t let anyone make you feel worthless, especially if you know you are doing your best. No one is perfect or on their ‘A’ game all the time. Everyone has an opinion so don’t take it personal or let it take you out of your game.”
 
Cheryl is an active volunteer within the JFK community and beyond.

Henk J. Guitjens has more than 40 years of sales, marketing and management experience in the international airline & airport industry. Mr. Guitjens is currently the Director of Aviation Development for Global Elite Group, Inc., and was a Director Aviation Development for Avinor Oslo Airport.

Formerly, he was the Special Advisor to the President (2009-2013) and the Chief Marketing Officer (1997-2008) for JFKIAT LLC Terminal 4. Prior to that, Mr. Guitjens served as Senior Vice President of Sales & Marketing for World Airways (1995-1996) and Vice President & General Manager NA for Martinair Holland (1970-1995).

Mr. Guitjens was the President for JFK Chamber of Commerce in 2002-2003, and was awarded "Man of the Year" in 2001. He is an Advisory Board member of Vaughn College and an Advisory Board member of York College.

Mr. Guitjens is a Director and member Executive Committee of the Netherland-America Foundation (NAF), and has served on the Organizing Committee of the Peter Stuyvesant Ball (the NAF’s major fundraiser) since 2006 and as its Chair since 2012.
In 2016, Mr Guitjens was appointed Knight in the Order of Oranje-Nassau, a Royal honor, by the Dutch Monarchy in recognition of his extraordinary service to society.

Henk Guitjens is a graduate from the University of Tilburg, with a major in French Language.  He is fluent in Dutch, English, French, and German and conversant in Italian and Spanish.  He resides in Amityville, NY with his wife Adriana.

Joseph (Joe) Morra, is a native New Yorker born in Ozone Park, Queens. Joe is the General Manager for Royal Waste Services where he has been employed for over 30 years.

An active member in the airport community, Joe has served as JFK Rotary President, Vice President and in Community Relations. Joe is President of JFK Chamber of Commerce where he served as Vice President for several years. He is also an active member of KAAMCO Cargo and was an honoree for The Boy Scouts Air Explorers in 2007.

Joe has two sons and resides in Mineola, Long Island.

Marianne Fazio is the Administrative Assistant to Pastor Romeo Dabee at Christ for The World Chapel. Born in Hilversum, Holland, Marianne came to America with her parents just before the age of two. Brought up in the Protestant Church, she participated in all the Church activities including her Church Youth Group.

Marianne has been working at John F. Kennedy International Airport for over 20 years.  She began as a volunteer at Our Lady of the Skies Catholic Chapel was then asked to work for both the International Synagogue and Christ for the World Chapel in 1998.

Marianne lives in Ozone Park, NY with her husband, Tony.  They have 3 children and 7 grandchildren.

Frank McIntyre is the Business Manager of JFK Airport Chamber of Commerce and works for Royal Waste Services.  Frank has over four decades of community service in South East Queens.  As a patrol officer and soon thereafter as Detective Community Affairs Specialist in the 105 Precinct, Frank has participated in development of tactical plans and strategic management of youth-oriented programs.  In his retirement, Frank served as District Director of the South East Queens Greater New York Council of the Boy Scouts of America and Finance Director for Queens Council.

Frank is an active member of JFK Airport Rotary since 1998 serving as Vice President, President and currently as Treasurer.  He has organized and coordinated several charity events including JFK Rotary’s Annual 5-k Run at the JFK Airport, Children’s Holiday Party for 400 Special Needs students and the annual Ladies Golf Outing at Brookville Country Club .

He is currently a member of August Martin High School Advisory Board, JFK Christ for the World Chapel, Queens Council Boy Scouts of America, Special Events Committee  member of  JFK Chamber of Commerce and a member of the LaGuardia Kiwanis .

Frank lives in Seaford, Long Island with his wife Susan.

Phil Jensen is the Vice President of Business Development and Industry Relations for Worldwide Flight Services (WFS), a global company whose North American headquarters are located at JFK Airport in Jamaica New York. Phil has served in other aviation related positions at JFK and LGA airports in the capacities of General Manager of Northwest Airlines and KLM and Director of Services at Evergreen EAGLE. Phil has a BS Degree in Business Management and more than 35 years of aviation management experience.

Phil has served in the capacities of President at the Kennedy Airport Airline Management Council (KAAMCO), President of the JFK Chamber of Commerce, Board Member Council Airport Opportunity and currently serves on the JFK Air Cargo Association Board. He has been the recipient of various industry awards and recognition including Honoree Bishop Wright Aviation Award, JFK Chamber of Commerce Businessman of the Year, KAAMCO Cargo Person of the Year and Lifetime Achievement award from the JFK Chamber of Commerce. As 2000 JFK Chamber President Phil established the Chamber Scholarship at what is now Vaughn College. In 2014 Phil Received the Yolan DePhillips Award for “exemplifying Honor, Respect and Greatness in the workplace and beyond”. Other industry memberships include the JFK Rotary, JFK Brokers and Freight Forwarders Association and Long Island Import and Export Association.           

Bill Huisman is a native of Queens, and has been serving as the Executive Director of the Aviation Development Council since 2002.  Bill has over 45 years of aviation experience, which includes a 27-year career with Delta Air Lines, here in the New York City area.  Bill was also a member of Delta’s Aircraft Incident Response team and participated in Delta’s humanitarian response to aircraft incidents in 1986 and 1987.  He also worked closely with airline partner, Swissair, during the recovery and relief efforts directly following the Swissair 111 tragedy in 1998.

As head of the Aviation Development Council (ADC), Bill directed several important business development, airport security, and community outreach programs on behalf of the region’s aviation industry and the Port Authority of NY & NJ.  These included the Queens & New Jersey Air Services Development Offices, the Airport Community Watch Program and various other management & community outreach programs. Bill also served as the facilitator for the New York Community Roundtable (NYCAR) which is a community-based organization dealing with aircraft noise and airport environmental concerns.

ADC also offered a community-based, small grant program called Airports Do Care, which targeted grass-roots, not-for-profit organizations that focus efforts on youth education, youth leadership development, and cultural enrichment for young people.
Bill currently serves on the board of the Queens Council of the Boy Scouts of America; Christ for the World Chapel-JFK, and Kiwanis Club of LaGuardia Airport. Bill also serves on a community advisory board for Vaughn College of Aeronautics & Technology and the Queens Botanical Garden.

Bill & his wife Elizabeth reside in White Plains.  They have two adult children and three grandchildren.  Bill's hobbies are music (which he shares with his wife), tennis, reading, and enjoying his grandchildren.

Verdia M. Noel is the Director of Business Development NY, Council for Airport Opportunity. As an aviation professional for thirty-six (36) year, Verdia has worked at both LaGuardia Airport and John F. Kennedy International Airport, in positions of leadership within aviation support services and airport airline operations for companies that provided services for millions of passengers traveling through the NY/NJ Metropolitan area.

Verdia has been recognized for business acumen and outstanding community service, from the aviation industry, community-based organizations, Queens Borough President Office and NY City Council, NYS Senate and NYS Assembly, and US House of Representatives, over the years. Verdia’s accomplishment recognitions include recipient of the Bishop Wright Aviation Industry Woman of the Year Award, Women in Aviation and Top Women in Business Honoree and KI Super Distinguished Past Lieutenant Governor.

Verdia earned a Bachelor of Science Degree in Management from St. Francis College. She enjoys reading, music, traveling and learning to play golf.
Verdia resides in Valley Stream, New York. Her proudest accomplishments are being the mother of four children, four grandsons, and one great-grandson.