Staff

John Folmar

Our Senior Pastor, John has pastored ECCD since 2005 after moving here from Capitol Hill Baptist Church in Washington, DC. He is married to Keri and they have three children. He graduated from the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in 2003.

Richard Ngwisha

Our Associate Pastor, Richard joined the ECCD staff in 2008 and oversees counseling and home groups. From Zambia, Richard was once an elder of Evangel Baptist Church in Lusaka.He is married to Catherine and they have three adult children.

John Welkner

Our Associate Pastor, John joined the ECCD staff in 2006 and oversees the adult education hour (Foundations) as well as the Pastoral Internship program. He is married to Lisa and they have two sons in university and two school-aged children. John graduated from Moody Bible Institute in 2000 and is currently a student at the Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary.

Ben Woodward

Our Associate Pastor, Ben is a graduate of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. Ben came to us from Immanuel Baptist Church in Louisville, Kentucky, where he served as an elder. Ben joined the staff in 2016 and now oversees administration. Ben is married to Sarah and is the father of two sons and two daughters.

Jonny Lim

Jonny came to faith as a 17-year-old through the ECCD youth ministry. Now, more than a decade later, he serves as our Assistant Pastor, leading our youth group and coordinating our music ministry. Jonny is married to Anna and is the father of three children. He graduated from BIOLA University in 2013 and is currently a student at the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary.

Lisa Welkner

After serving as a volunteer for many years, Lisa joined the ECCD staff in 2023 as our Director of Children's Ministries. She is married to John and they have two sons in university and two school-aged children.

Issam Saddy

Issam was born and raised in Lebanon. Together with his wife Sandra, he relocated to Dubai in 2020. Since then, they have pressed into the life of the church, began hosting a Small Group in their home, and added a daughter and a son to their family. Issam is a student at the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and our Church Planting Resident.

Luke Waite

Luke is our Pastoral Assistant. He graduated from the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in 2018. He and his wife Emily moved to Dubai in 2024 and they have two sons.

 Jeiel Natunay

At ECCD since she was 10 years old, Jeiel now serves the church as our Communications Coordinator. She was born in the Philippines, but has lived in Dubai for more than half of her life. Jeiel studied Journalism and Media at Middlesex University Dubai and joined ECCD staff in 2018.

Rubí Vazquez

Rubí is originally from Mexico. She moved to Dubai in 2021 after working in Turkey and traveling around the globe. She joined ECCD staff in 2023 as our Administrative Assistant.