Leslie is our Board Secretary. She has been with YPM since 2013 and has assisted on medical mission trips, and construction trips and was honored to serve as translator for the president’s message at the dedication of the Instituto YPM. Leslie first traveled to Mexico on a high school trip and fell in love with the Mexican people. She goes back as often as she can. She enjoys working with YPM and is dedicated to serving the Mayan people.

Cynthia grew up on the Texas border, has spoken Spanish since childhood and holds a BA in Spanish. Her first mission trip was to Guatemala in 2005. 2008 was her first Medical Mission Trip with YPM with FPC San Antonio. She continues to participate in the medical trips as translator and co-leader most every year since. She has been a member of the YPM Board of Directors since 2011. Cynthia is married to Charlie, a retired clinical pathologist. Between them they have 3 children and 4 grandchildren. They love to travel, with Africa being a favorite destination. “What I love most about YPM is the leadership and mission: Wilian and Erly are visionaries dedicated to bringing educational opportunities and healthcare to the underserved Maya population. The people are charming and winsome, and it is a blessing to serve in whatever capacity I can in order to help bring about positive change in their lives.

Jim has been participating since 2007 on YPM construction trips and has been a Board member since 2014. He is married to Ann, has three grown sons and two grandsons. With 44 years in the electric utility industry, Jim is now a retired electrical engineer. As a member of Northminster Presbyterian Church, is active in Building and Grounds, and Mission Teams. “I love the Mayan people and their love of God and for each other. I believe in the YPM purpose and hope to remain active for many more years.

Mark has been participating in YPM mission trips since 2012 and indicates that each trip has been a life-changing experience. He loves the opportunity to support the energy and efforts of YPM He was invited to join the YPM Board of Directors in 2016, where he is happy to serve as the accountant and financial manager. Mark attending Michigan State University where he obtained his Bachelor of Arts Degree from the School of Business and also studied at the University of Notre Dame, earning his MBA. He is a CPA providing traditional services from his office in Birmingham, Michigan. He is married and the father of 4 boys, all who have enjoyed YPM mission trips. His family attends FPC of Birmingham.

Rich joined the YPM Board in 2019.  He is an Elder at First Presbyterian Church, San Antonio where he currently co-chairs the Global Mission Committee.  He led the initiative to bring a Living Waters For The World water system to Leona Vicario providing clean water to the local community.  After a career in various accounting and internal audit roles with large international retail organizations, he currently serves as the Chief Financial Officer for San Antonio Academy. Originally from Ohio, and a graduate of Indiana University, he is an avid Big Ten sports fan.  He has been married to his college sweetheart Linda for 36 years and they are the proud parents of Amy, who is a media and event specialist at District Harley-Davidson in Gaithersburg, MD and Kevin, on a Post-Doctoral assignment at the Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, MD.

Kathy is our Board Vice President. She is a retired Spanish teacher who helped start a local mission team and began work with YPM in 2008. She’s served on more than 10 YPM mission trips since 2008. She has a B.S. and M.A. from University of Wisconsin-Madison, and attends First Presbyterian Church of Lodi, WI. The blend of serving others, interacting with another culture, and working toward goals that will improve the lives of the Mayan people of the Yucatan have drawn Kathy to become increasingly active with YPM.

Matthew grew up in Des Moines, Iowa and has been living in Houston Texas since 1997. Since 2001, has owned and operated a custom audio and video integration company.

Matthew has three daughters and five grandchildren. His youngest daughter of fourteen lives with him and they have been active at Grace Presbyterian Church in the choir and youth ministries.

He experienced his first Mission trip in the Yucatan in October, 2016 and was taken by the work being accomplished with and by the Mayan people and looks forward to a continued and growing relationship.

Bethany Peerbolte is a PCUSA Pastor currently starting a New Worshiping Community that meets entirely in digital spaces. The focus of her call is to help people declutter their faith and shed shame around their God-created identity. Bethany, or @RevBethany as she is known to her 290,000+ social media followers, fell in love with YPM watching American families interact with families in Leona Vicario. Generation to generation they gather as an international family and serve one another with compassion and empowerment. 

Mark got involved with YPM by attending a mission work project at Bethesda Presbyterian in Cancun. His first mission trip to Cancun was life changing as they helped put a second-floor roof on the church and visited the hospital next door.  His tenure on the board spans across three decades, as he was invited to serve on the first board. His work with YPM has created a deep love for the Mayan people, which has caused him to study their ancient history as well as visit several temple ruins.

Rev. Mark Hughey received his Master of Divinity degree from University of Dubuque Theological School while serving at a church in Wisconsin. He then went on to Pastor in Omaha, served 4 churches in Illinois, in Bloomington, LeRoy, Bolingbrook, and Coal City, where he is currently serving. He has served on the board of Help4Hope, a local humanitarian aid organization, as well as on a feeding program for the area called St. Vincent Table. Rev. Hughey has taken classes toward a master’s degree in counseling and is currently completing his health and life coach certification, as well as a massage therapist certification.

He is also involved serving in disaster management, in two suburban counties of Chicago. He worked with the 2015 Coal City tornado doing disaster management, serving with Team Rubicon and Americorp.  He has completed CERT (Community Emergency Response Team) certification.

He has two children from his first marriage, John Mark living in Phoenix, and Alyssa living in California. He is now married to the very beautiful and talented Loriann from Chicago.  Mark loves to kayak, bike and hike. His interest in nature has created his dabbling in photography and drone videos to share with others. He loves camping and sitting by a campfire.

Mike Gross is currently serving as pastor of United Presbyterian Church in Ft. Morgan, Colorado. Mike has also been a Special Ed, Social Studies and Physical Education/Health teacher and sports coach. He has a B.A. from Western State College (now university) in 1987 and a M.A. from UNC in 1994. Mike and his wife Mary have been married since 1987, have three children, and are expecting their first grandchild in October of 2018. He is looking forward to working with YPM!