By Rachel Johnson
The National Youth Conference office is excited to announce all of our speakers for NYC 2026! For some 10 weeks in advance of NYC, a speaker was announced on NYC social media pages as part of a series titled “Speaker Saturday.” Read below to find out a bit about each of our speakers.
Saturday evening, July 18, opening worship: Cindy Laprade Lattimer is so excited to join us at NYC, coming from Stone Church of the Brethren in Pennsylvania where she serves as pastor. She is grateful her role allows her to listen to stories, learn, write, plan worship, and more. Cindy can often be found holding yarn and a crochet hook, with a cup of coffee close by!
Sunday morning, July 19: Keyon Williamson is currently pursuing a Master of Divinity at Duke University Divinity School. He has helped launch a young adult worship night, helping to create space for his generation to gather in prayer, worship, and community. He is the author of “Seen and Saved,” a Substack blog.
Sunday evening, July 19: Calvin Park serves as the pastor of Brownsville Church of the Brethren in Maryland. He started off his ministry path serving as a youth pastor and has ministered in New England, rural Pennsylvania, and suburban Maryland. Calvin also loves playing video games and roleplaying games like Dungeons and Dragons.
Monday morning, July 20: Dianne Garcia joins us at NYC as an ecumenical guest from San Antonio, Texas, where she serves as lead pastor of Iglesia Cristiana Roca de Refugio. She has training as a mental health counselor and has taken classes at Anabaptist Mennonite Biblical Seminary. She also leads a ministry, Nuevos Vecinos, which supports families in crisis.
Monday evening, July 20: George Hopkins was born and raised in Baltimore, Md., where he serves a nonprofit called BUILD (Baltimoreans United in Leadership Development) and joins us at NYC as an ecumenical guest. He has served in diverse church communities throughout his career and enjoys inspiring people through writing and speaking.
Tuesday morning, July 21: Michaela Alphonse is a minister of Miami First Church of the Brethren in Florida. She enjoys spending time in the park and at the library with her daughter. Michaela is excited to see what music we will experience at NYC!
Tuesday evening, July 21: Dennis Beckner is Annual Conference moderator for 2027. He has spent a lot of his time in ministry serving the youth of the denomination. He is excited to speak at NYC in Estes Park, since he missed his NYC as a youth when it was held in Estes Park!
Wednesday morning, July 22: Kat Armas is a Cuban-American author joining us at NYC as an ecumenical guest. She enjoys using her MDiv background to speak and lead workshops at universities, churches, and other organizations across the country. Kat also has authored two books.
Wednesday evening, July 22: Jeff Seace serves as junior pastor at Riddlesburg Church of the Brethren and has previously worked as a Youth Development Counselor Supervisor in Pennsylvania. Jeff enjoys spending time outdoors, watching movies, and video games.
Thursday morning, July 23, closing worship: Brandon Grady is the pastor of Black Rock Church of the Brethren in Southern Pennsylvania District and has been serving in set-apart ministry for 13 years. He has been totally blind since age 12 and partially sighted from birth. Brandon is excited to return to NYC as an adult, having attending NYC as a youth!
We are so excited to hear from each of these speakers during our week together at NYC! For the full bio of each speaker, visit www.brethren.org/nyc/leadership
#MissionAndMinistryBoard #StrategicPlan #RacialJustice #LoveOurNeighbors #Discipleship #NewTestamentGiving
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Find more Church of the Brethren news:
- The speakers for National Youth Conference 2026
- Brethren and the Declaration of Independence: Denise Kettering-Lane presents an equipping session
- ‘God of grace and God of glory’: A call to worship
- Resolution on weapons transfer is adopted by the 2026 Annual Conference
- Review and Evaluation Committee brings an interim report