Champions of Hope

Carly Pickens, Executive Director

Carly was born and raised in Warsaw, Missouri where most of her family still live.  She attended the University of Missouri from 2000-2004 and received a Bachelor of Science in Education, summa cum laude.  While in college, she had the opportunity to serve in a ministry called Granny’s House and work as a camp counselor at Kids Across America, a Christian sports camp for urban youth.  Both of these experiences were foundational in shaping her desire to work with urban youth.

After graduating from Mizzou, she went directly into teaching American History and American Studies at Hickman High School in Columbia, MO.  In the fall of 2005 she moved to Dallas, Texas to be the Texas Regional Admissions Representative for Mizzou.

Shortly after moving to Dallas, she began volunteering at Cornerstone Baptist Church through their partnership with The Village Church.  At Cornerstone she began mentoring a few teenage girls and also got involved in volunteering at Charles Rice Learning Center.  This led to the founding of Champions of Hope Mentorship Program in 2008.

Carly came on as the first full-time staff member in August of 2008 and currently serves as the Executive Director.

Jill Jackson, Mentor Coordinator

Although Jill does have some Texas roots (Amarillo) she was born in Oklahoma City and spent most of her “growing up” time in Edmond, a suburb of Oklahoma City.  Her family still lives in Edmond, and although she misses her mom, dad, brother, sister-in-law and wonderful nieces, she knows that God called her in the summer of 2009 to move to Dallas.  She had been working for Dillard’s Clinique department in OKC and was transferred to the Dillard’s at Northpark.

A 2004 graduate of the University of Oklahoma, she has a B.A. in journalism with minors in sociology and history. While attending OU, she was the school news anchor and political reporter. She also was part of  small group of  students that helped start a college ministry at a local church. That college ministry grew from a handful of people to hundreds of people in a few short weeks.

After graduating from OU, Jill moved to New York City to study film and theatre. While there, the Lord continued to teach her how to relate and work with people from diverse backgrounds.

After returning to Oklahoma in 2005, she became a nanny. Two years later, God opened a new door for her. She became an executive assistant and the kid’s volunteer coordinator at LifeChurch.tv.  This would serve as a great training ground for what was to come.

Since moving to Dallas, Jill has become a member of The Village Church and joined a home group where, through a friend, she was introduced to Champions of Hope.  In June 2010, she became our first Mentor Coordinator!  She also serves in the recovery ministry at The Village Church and serves as an advocate for Compassion International.

Jill said, “I am overwhelmed by the providence and blessing of God to allow me to be part of Champions of Hope.”