LABS

Eniola Abioye is a creative voice who helps people experience the nearness of Jesus through story, song, and honest conversations. She creates spaces online and in person, where creatives can find home in God’s presence.

Tyler Staton is the Lead Pastor of Bridgetown Church in Portland, Oregon, where he lives with his wife Kirsten, and their sons Hank, Simon, and Amos. He is passionate about living prayerfully and relationally. Tyler is the author of three books: The Familiar Stranger, Praying Like Monks, Living like Fools, and Searching for Enough.

Al Gordon leads SAINT, a fast-growing and thriving church on a mission to bring hope to the heart of East London. Al has a vision to build cathedrals of creativity across the globe through Renaissance, a new school of creativity. The creativity of Al’s ministry is both intriguing and inspiring to any entrepreneurial leader. Whether it involves hosting concerts in their church building, opening a brewery like monks of old, or keeping bees as a prophetic reminder of the crucial role the church is to play in the ecosystem of human interactions. He is married to Olivia, an architect, and they have three children. Al is a trustee of Alpha International.

Bethany Allen joined Bridgetown Church staff in 2012. Originally from Florida, she made her way to the Pacific Northwest in 2011. Bethany carries a deep passion to see men and women live into the fullness of their design and to know the friendship, power and presence of God in their lives. Bethany oversees Spiritual Formation and Leadership Development at Bridgetown and is also an active part of the teaching team.

Ashley LaLonde is a professional actor, singer, and dancer based in New York City. She was recently seen in the hit Broadway musical Hamilton, where she covered all three Schuyler Sisters (Eliza, Angelica, and Peggy/Maria) on the national tour. In addition to Hamilton, Ashley’s performed at Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, the Kennedy Center, and the American Repertory Theatre. She recently debuted her hit solo concert to a sold-out audience in Times Square. She’s a two-time published playwright and is dramaturg and editor of the new musical, When We Get There. This year, Ashley’s making her TV debut in a highly-anticipated new Netflix series. She made history as the first ever Black woman to star in the Hasty Pudding Show at Harvard University, where she graduated early with a bachelor’s degree in Sociology, a minor in Theater, Dance, and Media, a certificate in Spanish, and an award for Artistic Excellence. In addition to her artistic career, Ashley is a researcher with the Barna Group and writes on the intersection of faith, spirituality, and culture. She’s worked in consulting, ministry, and the nonprofit sector. Ashley hosted the National Alpha Conference in 2021, has served as an Alpha Coach for New York churches, and has led several Alpha courses at Church of the City, her home church, over the last 5 years. As a Native New Yorker and long-time believer, Ashley is deeply passionate about evangelism, building bridges, and sharing the radical love of Christ with everyone around her. Ashley is married to her college sweetheart and partner in all things, Noah.

Amanda Jane Cooper is an artist on stage and screen who lives right here in New York. As an actor she is most known for playing Glinda in Wicked on Broadway for the show’s 15th Anniversary as one of the show’s longest running actors to play the role, and as the face of the Glinda in Wicked’s commercials in Times Square and beyond. Prior to her Broadway debut, she had the honor of playing Glinda on both the 1st and 2nd National Tours, bubbling up for millions of people across the country. On screen she’s played characters on Glee, Disney’s Jessie, ABC’s Selfie, Bones, CSI, SVU, HBO’s Hello Ladies and more, as well roles on Hallmark and Lifetime. Films include Sarah Jessica Parker’s Smart People, the tennis comedy First One In and more. This past summer Amanda was blessed to be part of the original cast of the Pre-Broadway world premiere of the new musical The Queen of Versailles starring Kristin Chenoweth, with music and lyrics by Wicked composer Stephen Schwartz. Her podcast A Time to Live explores the stories of creatives & exists to be a breath of fresh air for listeners across the globe. Jesus has rescued her from so much (she’ll tell ya more about that). He is good and she’s delighted to be at Renaissance NYC!

Mike Guaglione is a strategist, founder, and nonprofit leader based in New York City. He runs SocialScience, an ad agency specializing in paid media and growth. He also helps lead Water Is Basic, a nonprofit bringing clean water to South Sudan by training local women to repair broken wells. He speaks, writes, and (admittedly) talks too much but usually about ideas that move people and make the world better.

Kaiti Yoo is a content creator and filmmaker who launched her YouTube channel during the pandemic as a creative outlet—and turned it into a career. With over 850K followers and 100M+ views across the Internet, she’s collaborated with brands like Nike, Google, and Adobe to craft meaningful, narrative-driven campaigns. In 2024, she founded KTU Studios and created Two Good People, a scripted web series that has since garnered over 8.6 million views. She’s currently developing her next scripted series and is passionate about telling stories that meet people in their ache and lift them toward wonder.

Benjamin Murray is a multi-award-winning director, producer, and cinematographer with a diverse creative background spanning productions of all scales. His portfolio includes directing and filming award-winning shorts, features, and commercials, with premieres at Cannes, Tribeca Film Festival, Woodstock, and the Toronto International to name a few. As Co-Founder of the acclaimed New York-based production company Incline Productions Inc., Ben is currently in the midst of his next venture: building a studio focused on making films that are rich in craft, soul, and meaning. To create the kind of stories that remind people what it means to be human, give hope, and inspire adventure.

Joel Figueroa is a worship leader and songwriter, known for his ability to lead others into deeper intimacy with God. Joel & Elyssa have been serving in the prayer room at Upper Room for the past decade. Whether leading in intimate settings or before thousands, their heart remains the same - to honour Jesus and make room for His presence.

As worship leaders and songwriters, Joel & Elyssa are known for a worship expression that invites authentic encounter. Their ministry is a marked by poetic lyricism, prophetic insight, and a commitment to creating sacred spaces where hearts are tender before Jesus. Elyssa Figueroa is recognised for writing the song ‘Fight my Battles’. Born and raised in Borger, Texas, she moved to Dallas in 2010. Her debut solo album, Wearing a Blindfold and Running, explores themes of hope, faith and trust in God.

Ale Siekmeier is a motivational speaker and life & relationship coach based in New York City. With a passion for the transformation and healing of the soul, Ale inspires audiences through her engaging presentations at podcasts, church events, and various courses throughout the year. Originally from Guatemala, she has spent the last 19 years dedicated to ministry, having mentored hundreds of women and men to encourage them to live whole and integrated lives. Ale has been happily married to her best friend, Ben, for 13 years (and counting!)

Kiana Cole is a documentary and television producer based in Brooklyn, NY. She has produced several shows for Netflix, including the Emmy-nominated series, “Hilter and the Nazis: Evil on Trial,” and Season 4 of “Conversations with a Killer.” Her most recent work includes an upcoming investigative documentary about Boeing, directed by Academy Award-nominated filmmaker Rory Kennedy. Whether she’s producing historical documentaries or current-affairs shows, the throughline of Kiana's work is a drive to pursue truth and hold power to account. She was previously a producer for The New York Times’ Opinion video team, and has worked on several shows covering U.S. politics, including “The Circus” on Showtime, and “Power Trip,” George Stephanopoulos’s weekly series on Hulu about the midterm elections. At the heart of Kiana’s passion for production are the wildly talented people she gets to work with, from cinematographers and editors to composers and designers. She believes that, by cheering every colleague on in their unique giftings, producers have a profound opportunity to create Kingdom environments of encouragement here on earth, and demonstrate the love of Christ through kindness.

Grant is a founder and VC investor focused on AI. Grant was a founding member of the media business Morning Brew, which was later sold to Business Insider. As a VC, he's invested in consumer software businesses leveraging AI, including faith-focused businesses such as Hallow. In addition to investing, he's also led AI strategy and incubations for VC firms, and most recently founded his own AI-enabled Venture Studio, Our Appologies (ourappologies.com). He's a frequent contributor at AI conferences and 'FaithTech' conferences, including a recent AI strategy development conference at the Vatican. He earned his MBA at Harvard Business School, is married to Sarah, and is an active member of Church of the City NY.