Avant Leadership

Phil was appointed as President and CEO of Avant Ministries in 2023. He is a graduate of Moody Bible Institute and Columbia International University Seminary and School of Missions. He and his wife, Lori, have a long history with the organization.

In 2022, they celebrated the milestone of 30 years of service, having joined CAM International (which later became Camino Global) in 1992. They served as church planters in Mexico City before being called to Camino's home office in Dallas in 2002. During his time there, Phil served as Director of Mobilization, Director of Organizational Development and Communication, and Executive Vice President/COO.

At the time of Camino's merger with Avant in 2019, he was the Integration Director, facilitating the logistics of uniting both organizations. He then served approximately 4 years as Avant’s US Director and Vice President of Public Ministries. Phil also serves as the Board Chair for Missio Nexus, an assocation of mission sending agencies and churches, of which Camino Global was a founding/charter member in 1917. The O'Days live near Avant's headquarters in Kansas City, MO and have three young adult children.

Kenn is our vice president of global ministry outcomes. He and his wife, Doreen, joined Avant in 1994. They served in Spain as church planters and trained national leaders in a bible institute from 1996 to 2003. Then they left Spain to lead the first Short-Cycle Church Planting team in Poland. After their team planted the church there, he was appointed the European director for Avant. Kenn has a Bachelor’s of Religious Studies from Ontario Bible College, a Master’s of Cross-cultural Communication from Columbia International University, and a Doctor of Philosophy in Intercultural Studies, also from Columbia International University.

Candace joined the Avant Ministries team in 2016 and is the Vice President of Member Care. Candace received her bachelor’s in history and psychology in 2007 from Baylor University in Waco, Texas. After graduating, she was sent to Ecuador as a missionary with SIM. In Ecuador, Candace felt called to a pursue missionary care and returned to the States to get further education. She has since graduated with her Masters in Theology and Ministry (2013) and PhD in Clinical Psychology (2015) from Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena, CA.

Candace’s husband, Gerry, is an ordained minister in the Free Methodist Congregation. While living in Pasadena, CA, Gerry and Candace were involved in church planting, Gerry as a pastor and Candace involved in lay leadership. Candace and Gerry currently live in Kansas City with their two young and active daughters.

Ashley Bingham joined Avant Ministries as Chief Financial Officer in 2026. She is a graduate of Pittsburg State University, where she earned an undergraduate degree in Marketing and a Master’s degree in General Administration. Ashley is a Certified Management Accountant (CMA) and a member of the Institute of Management Accountants.

Ashley’s commitment to global ministry is rooted in a family legacy of prayerful advocacy and steadfast support for missions. This lifelong foundation cultivated a deep-seated passion for the Great Commission, leading her to her first short-term mission in Huanchaco, Peru (2015), and an upcoming mission to Santiago, Chile.

She brings a seasoned background in financial leadership to the executive team, having previously served as the Director of Finance and Accounting and as a member of the Board of Directors for a nationwide professional services organization.

The Binghams reside in the Northland area of Kansas City, Missouri, with their daughter.

Mike became the Canadian executive director for Avant in 2015. In this role, he oversees all the activities at Avant’s Canadian Service Centre in Winnipeg, Manitoba. Mike has a bachelor’s in Intercultural Studies from Briercrest College where he met his wife Carolyn. Both Mike and Carolyn grew up on the mission field. Mike’s family served in Austria with GEM and Carolyn’s family served in Bolivia with Avant. In 1993, Mike and Carolyn were appointed by Avant to serve in Bolivia with the Guarani and 15 years later moved to Uruguay as leaders of a Short-Cycle Church Planting team. In total, their family served in South America for 20 years. Mike and Carolyn’s five children are active in ministry with their oldest son Devan becoming a fourth generation missionary to serve in Bolivia with Avant.

Curt and his wife, Karen, grew up as missionary kids in W. Africa, where they met at boarding school in Ivory Coast. They have been missionaries since 1991 and served for many years in Quito, Ecuador, raising their 3 children there. Curt has broad experience and background in media and global leadership. In 1983, he graduated with a bachelor’s degree in communications from Michigan State University and in 1999 completed a Master of Arts in Intercultural Studies from Wheaton College.

Curt joined Avant with his wife Karen in July of 2019 as the International Personnel Director. When they joined, there was a desire by Avant to develop an expanded international personnel role which fit their Spanish skills and international leadership ministry experience. Curt now serves as both the VP of Personnel and VP of the Americas Region, serving our ministry directors and other global leaders as well as supporting mission-wide HR and Security.

Scott and his wife, Ruth, have served in cross-cultural missions for more than 36 years. They met at Moody Bible Institute, where they earned degrees in Bible and Theology. Together, they helped plant a church in San Juan del Río, Mexico. Scott founded ObreroFiel.com and also helped develop Avant’s Latin American missionary-sending efforts to reach unreached peoples. Today, they serve with Avant from Kansas City, where Scott facilitates strategic initiatives and Ruth produces training materials for Spanish-speaking missionaries. They are grateful for their growing family, which includes five adult children, three daughters-in-law, and four grandchildren.