Who We Are
Our story
In 1979, a small committee within First Presbyterian Church of Orlando drafted a document that would lay dormant for a time, but that would eventually become the authority for the Heart of the City Foundation. It was designed in the spirit of the early church—starting in the city and moving outward.
The Apostle Paul’s ministry always started in cities. Ephesus. Galatia. Philippi. It was from these city centers that the good news of God’s love spread into the surrounding villages.
At the corner of Church Street and Magnolia Avenue, the church campus of FPCO is geographically the center of Orlando. It was the desire of the committee that the Heart of the City Foundation would be like a heart, pouring life and love into the city and beyond.
But the church was struggling to survive. They had lost the leadership of their former pastor and were still searching for a new one. People were moving away from the city center and into the suburbs. The church wasn’t able to meet its budget. Without the church, there would be no hope for the Heart of the City Foundation to exist.
The General Presbyter told them, “You folks have to remember you’re a city center church, and city center churches are not surviving these days.” The General Presbyter advised them to find a pastor who would be equipped to undertake the possible demise of the church or a relocation to the suburbs. Former committee member and Heart of the City Foundation board member Donald Brown says, “It was not the best of times for FPCO.”
So with great faith, the committee prayed for a bold and dynamic senior pastor who would be able to shepherd their church into flourishing—and in the city center. In 1981, after two years of searching, the FPCO congregation warmly welcomed Dr. Howard Edington and his wife Trisha from Pine Bluff, Arkansas. Still, sandwiched between a Texaco gas station and a funeral home and without a parking garage, the committee and Dr. Edington still wondered if they might need to move to the suburbs.
Finally, they made their ultimate decision: FPCO would continue its ministry in downtown Orlando.
With Dr. Edington’s strong leadership and through unique partnerships with the city of Orlando, FPCO started to thrive. It was time for the Heart of the City Foundation to come into being.
One day, the members of the committee and Dr. Edington sat in the church and spent the day trying to come up with the name and mission statement for the congregation’s future ministry. They felt like the name “Heart of the City” suited their mission: “To create within the heart of the city a place where people are confronted with the power of the gospel and learn to live their lives for Christ in the world.”
One of the next steps was to reexamine the dormant document they had drafted back in 1979. With confidence, they revived it and gave it the name “Heart of the City Foundation.” They believed the Heart of the City Foundation would play an important role in both the life of the congregation as well as in the life of Orlando and in the life of the world.
And thus, the Heart of the City Foundation’s journey of ministering to the people of Orlando and beyond began.
Decades later, we continue to be a witness to how God uses the Heart of the City Foundation to let Christ’s kingdom come on Earth as it is in Heaven. And now, we lovingly invite and encourage you to join us in this noble endeavor.
“Ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.”
Our vision, mission, & Values
Vision
An endowment that endures for generations, to serve God’s Kingdom as the preferred choice of Covenant Partners for legacy giving
Mission
To steward the legacy giving of Covenant Partners, aligned with their values and intentions, to best advance God’s Kingdom
Values
Trustworthy, Christ-centered, Excellence, Generosity, Sustained Performance
Staff
Dennis Brockman
Foundation Director
“I was first drawn to The Heart of the City Foundation because of its devotion to Kingdom work in the church, city, and world. When I learned about all of the amazing, life-changing grants and scholarships people can sustainably create, I knew I wanted to play a part.”
Dennis Brockman is married to Lisa and has five children—three who are married and two who are in college. Dennis and Lisa have been Covenant Partners with the First Presbyterian Church of Orlando (FPCO) for more than 22 years. With FPCO, he has led Sunday school classes for children as well as adults as part of FPCO’s formation offerings. He also served with Cru for 37 years in many different roles, where he partnered with others in evangelism and discipleship all over the world. In April 2020, Dennis transitioned to Heart of the City Foundation as the Foundation Director.
Suzi Shirley
Foundation Coordinator
“I have known about the Heart of the City Foundation for many years through my work in the Orlando area with non-profit organizations, but truly never knew all that they did and the impact that they had on our city. Now that I have joined the team, I am even more impressed and am honored to be a part of it.”
Suzi Shirley has been married to her husband Sean for 31 years and they have two children, a daughter in college and a son in middle school. Suzi and her family live in Winter Garden and worship at Mosaic Church. Suzi has served in the non-profit sector of the city for the past 20 years doing program administration for Lifework Leadership as well as for J4 Leaders. Suzi began serving with the Heart of the City Foundation in March 2020 as the Foundation Coordinator.
Board of trustees
We have given our lives to the Heart of the City Foundation—our leadership, our influence, our finances, our expertise. We are here to serve you.
Robby Ball grew up in Eustis, Florida before attending the University of Florida on a football scholarship (“Go Gators!”). After graduating with a Bachelor’s in Advertising & Marketing, he moved to Orlando to work as a branch manager for Winter Park Federal Savings & Loan. After several years, he moved on to work for A.G. Edwards & Sons, a financial services securities firm, and he has enjoyed his work in that industry ever since. He is currently a Financial Advisor/Wealth Manager with Morgan Stanley.
He previously served as an HOCF Trustee for multiple years, believing in the purpose of the foundation to assist and align with FPCO. He was drawn to being a Trustee again by his “everlasting love” for his home church, FPCO, and his desire to serve HOCF in its journey at this time.
He and his wife Margie are proud parents to three children—Clint, Kevin, and Ashley—and grandparents to six grandchildren and two grand-dogs. He loves living in Orlando because he gets to be close to his family. He says, “My faith has grown as I’ve grown as a man, a husband, a father, and now as a grandfather.”
Robby Ball
Chairperson
Chris Jones grew up in Orlando and graduated from the University of Florida with a degree in business administration with a concentration in finance. After graduating, he worked for a bank in Orlando for a few years before moving to another bank where he stayed for 30 years. He greatly enjoyed helping people prepare for their futures through retirement planning. Recently, he retired and is now serving on several boards. He has known about the Heart of the City Foundation for a long time and is delighted to use his 40+ years of expertise to bless the congregation of First Presbyterian Church of Orlando as a trustee of HOCF.
In his early 20s, he came to Christ as a counselor for high school kids at First Pres, and since has invested himself in myriad Sunday School classes and small groups, leading many, to continue deepening and growing his faith. He has attended First Pres for 45 years—with the exception of his time in Raleigh, North Carolina—and served with the Session of First Pres as an elder.
He lives in Orlando with his wife, Julie, and their furry family member, a west highland terrier named Bertie. As both of them are UF graduates, Bertie is named after the UF mascot, Alberta Gator.
Chris Jones
Vice Chairperson & Treasurer
Janice Divine grew up in Michigan, New York, and finally, South Florida. She attended the University of Florida where she earned a BSBA in Finance. She married her late husband, Russ, and became a bank’s commercial lending officer and branch manager where she enjoyed managing people and helping them hone their banking skills. After 15 years in banking, she became a stay-at-home mother, then went on to work part-time for a nonprofit and the Weekday School.
Not having grown up in a Christian home, she felt blessed to marry into a wonderful family who nurtured her faith with their love and Christian example. Her faith grew significantly when she and Russ started going to a Crown Ministry class, eventually becoming Crown Ministry leaders themselves. She also enjoyed teaching Sunday School to elementary-level kids, learning alongside them.
She loves being involved with the Heart of the City Foundation on several levels, including as an Ann Wilson Divine Scholarship family sponsor and board member. Education and legacy are very important to her. She loves spending time with her two daughters and sons-in-law, three grandchildren, and mini Doxie.
Janice Divine
Secretary & Scholarship Chair
Michelle Jernigan is a native Floridian, a graduate of Stetson University and Stetson University College of Law. She is professional mediator, arbitrator and a shareholder with the firm of Upchurch Watson White & Max. Michelle has been a member of First Presbyterian Church of Orlando (FPCO) since 1983. During her membership, Michelle has served as a Deacon, taught Sunday school (adult and children), been active in the Collaborative, and worked with various women’s ministries. She has served on the Heart of the City Board of Trustees since 2014 and continues to remain an active member of First Presbyterian Church. Michelle has two grown daughters, Rachel and Sarah, both of whom attended FPCO’s weekday school and The Christ School.
Michelle Jernigan
Mission Grants Chair
I became involved with the HOCF in 1996 our newborn daughter Elizabeth died shortly after she was born. I have always had a desire to impact inner city youth for the gospel, a quality education and to break the cycle of poverty. My husband Joe and I started a scholarship fund in Elizabeth’s memory which provides tuition assistance for inner city children to attend The Christ School.
More recently, we established a fund called Kids Across America to provide scholarships so inner city students could attend KAA, a Christian Sports Camp, in Branson, Missouri. The students who return from camp have hope in Christ and realize their lives can be different from todays culture.
I was asked to serve on the Scholarship Committee which awards ~$63,000 in scholarships from various funds at HOCF each year. It was such a rewarding experience that when I was asked to join the Board it was easy to say yes! The HOCF has provided an easy vehicle for Joe and me to establish a legacy for our family and impact lives in the community.
Eugenia Sefcik
Trustee
I was born in New Jersey and moved to Fort Lauderdale when I was 12 years old. I graduated from Pine Crest Preparatory School and attended Broward Junior College. I met my late husband at the University of Florida and we were married for 43 years before his passing. We lived in West Palm Beach and moved back to College Park in 1968, where we raised our 3 children—Bobby, Lisa, and Thomas.
I got my Real Estate license in 1970 and I am still active today. With my sons, I own Hewitt Properties and Hewitt Residential. We manage, own, and develop properties in Central Florida.
I have been a member of FPCO for 50+ years and have taught children Sunday School and also served as Deacon. I have served on the House of Hope board for 15 years. I have been a Bible Study leader in my home and have been Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA) board member and Huddle leader. I am presently on the Florida Fellowship Foundation board and Heart of the City board.
I remarried in 2022 to a wonderful Godly man. I am blessed. I have met many challenges in my life but know that the Lord is my Shepherd.
Caren Hewitt
Trustee
Kurt Wood is a Partner and the Director of Client Service for the institutional investment firm, DePrince, Race & Zollo. He began his investment career 34 years ago at Sun Bank Capital Management. Kurt and his wife of 31 years, Karin, have been covenant partners of the First Presbyterian Church of Orlando (FPCO) for 29 years and have three adult children. At FPCO, Kurt has taught Youth Sunday School, served as Upward Basketball Commissioner for three consecutive years, and is proudly serving his second stint as an Elder.
Kurt is a graduate of Clemson University. He is a former board member and past president of the Association of Investment Management Sales Executives (AIMSE) and the Winter Park Little League. He currently serves on the Board of Trustees of the $120 million Winter Park Health Foundation where he’s the Treasurer and Chairman of the Investment Committee. He also serves on the Board of Directors of the Florida Public Pension Trustees Association.
Kurt Wood
Trustee
Don Ammerman
Trustee
Ellen Arnold was born in Columbus, Georgia, and grew up in The Episcopal Church. Her faith grew even stronger as she attended Bible Study Fellowship for 14 years. She got her first taste of Orlando while attending Rollins College for her first two years of college before completing her BS in business administration at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, becoming a lifetime fan of the Tar Heels.
Once she graduated, she came back to Orlando to work at Boston Company of the Southeast, an investment firm where she greatly enjoyed managing portfolios. After she had her twin daughters, she became a stay-at-home mother, bringing one more daughter into the world. Today, she loves caring for her grandbaby, Anna Kay, two days a week and spending time with her 17-year-old cat, Nala.
She put in 8 years on the Board of Samaritan Village, always grateful for the support Heart of the City Foundation gifted to them, and ultimately was inspired to be a part of the gifting of support to Christ-centered ministries and young people pursuing higher education.
Ellen Arnold
Trustee
Charles is an Orlando native, graduating from Boone High School, earning a degree in finance from the University of Central Florida, and a Master’s in Business Administration from Rollins College. He has an extensive background in business operations; having served for over 25 years in various roles in financial services, corporate banking, information technology, and finance/administrative services in the real estate, hospitality, and title industries. In addition, he brings experience in the non-profit space, having served operational roles in his church and as an interim COO/CFO for a local organization focused on at-risk youth. He is now the COO of First Presbyterian Church of Orlando. He is married to Kimberly, a fellow Orlando native, and has three children.
Charles Bell
Trustee
Vicky serves on the Executive Leadership Team of Wycliffe Bible Translators, providing strategic oversight of the Communications, Marketing and Church Engagement teams. She also serves as the board chair of the Wycliffe Foundation. She is passionate about seeing God’s Word translated into every language to bring hope and transformation to communities worldwide.
Before joining Wycliffe in 2012, Vicky used her marketing and communications background to serve clients in the agribusiness, higher education, banking and transportation sectors. A native of Vero Beach, Florida, she earned her bachelor’s degree with honors in journalism and public relations from the University of Florida.
She is a Covenant Partner at First Presbyterian Church of Orlando (FPCO), where she previously served as a Stephen Minister. She is an active participant in Bible Study Fellowship.
Vicky and her husband, Bob, have two grown children — Patrick (married to Amy) and Natalie (married to Rick) — and are the proud grandparents of five energetic grandsons. In her free time, she enjoys reading, traveling and cheering on the Florida Gators with family and friends.
Vicky Mixson
Trustee
Jenie Kolar
Trustee
Mike Kelly
Trustee