Our Team

Melissa Harrison
President & Chief Executive Officer

Melissa Harrison is a bilingual journalist with more than 20 years of experience in television and radio news. She has worked as a news anchor and reporter in six different television markets including WNBC in New York City and WFAA-TV in Dallas/Fort Worth. Melissa has also worked as a writer for ABC’s World News Tonight and as a morning news anchor for CBS Radio. 

Melissa founded PURE in New York City in 2004 where she served Christian women leaders through events and retreats until 2016. She also served women executives at the C-Suite level through the CEO Forum from 2021 until 2023.

Melissa is currently an Executive in Residence at SMU where she teaches Digital Media. She earned her master’s in Journalism from Columbia University and her bachelor’s in Spanish and Communications from Baylor. She also studied with Syracuse University at the Instituto Internacional in Madrid, Spain.

Melissa and her husband live in Dallas with their three young children.

Diane Paddison
Founder

Diane Paddison, 4word Founder, is a Harvard MBA, former global executive of two Fortune 500 companies, CBRE and ProLogis, and one Fortune 1000 company, Trammell Crow Company, and serves as an independent director for two corporate and two not-for-profit boards.

Diane is a leading advocate for Christian women in the workplace. Diane published Work, Love, Pray in 2011, and Be Refreshed . . . a year of devotions for women in the workplace in 2017, laying the foundation for 4word.

She has authored weekly posts at 4wordwomen.org and is a featured columnist for The Washington Times, and the 4word Mentor Program has been highlighted in The Wall Street Journal’s MarketWatch.

Diane and her husband, Chris, have five children and two grandchildren and live in Dallas, Texas.

Request Diane Paddison or other 4word speakers at hello@4wordwomen.org. Honorariums are directed to 4word, a 501(c)(3) entity.

Lindsey Nobles
Fractional Chief Strategy & Operations Officer

Lindsey Nobles is a seasoned strategist, coach, and executive leader with a deep passion for helping mission-driven organizations grow with clarity and purpose. As 4word’s Fractional Chief Strategy and Operations Officer, she partners with the leadership team to bring vision to life through thoughtful planning, aligned execution, and healthy team dynamics.

With over a decade of experience spanning the nonprofit and for-profit sectors, Lindsey blends big-picture thinking with operational excellence. She previously served as the Strategic Architect and Chief Operating Officer at IF:Gathering, helping scale the organization from a grassroots movement into a global community. Most recently, she spent seven years as Vice President of Marketing at Onsite Wellness Group, where she led marketing, branding, and digital growth initiatives during a pivotal season of expansion.

Lindsey is known for coming alongside visionary leaders to help them move from dreaming to doing, and from chaos to clarity. Based in Nashville, she also serves as a fractional executive and consultant for organizations across the country. She is a proud Single Mother by Choice to her son, Ben, and a devoted dog mom to Maisy.

Dr. Joy Dahl, DMin, CPA
Chief Financial Officer

Dr. Joy Dahl works bi-vocationally as a Fractional CFO providing financial leadership to startup and high-growth companies and nonprofits. As an executive leader and a business strategist with 30+ years of diverse experience, she provides expertise developing effective organizational strategies for growth, expansion, and transition. 

Joy also works as a workplace ambassador bridging the gap between faith and work with leadership and professional development training. She equips believers at all levels to embrace their calling as Christ’s ambassadors through Theology of Work and practical faith-work integration in their everyday workplaces. Joy serves as a speaker, teacher, and author through her platform JoyDahl.com, as well as an advocate and coach for working women.

Joy earned three degrees at Dallas Theological Seminary: Master of Christian Education, Master of Biblical Studies, and Doctor of Ministry with an emphasis on Theology of Work. Joy sits on the Board of Directors of Made to Flourish which empowers pastors and their churches to integrate faith, work, and economic wisdom for the flourishing of their communities. 

Joy’s passions include coaching and leading initiatives with a faith-forward perspective. Her collaborative mindset helped launch the BOLDLY Conference in 2021––the first-of-its-kind Faith+Work for Women conference. Joy and her husband, Gordon, live in Dallas, TX with their beloved rescue pups. Her favorite things include: God’s Word, international adventure, horses, flowers, big dogs, dark chocolate, and beach getaways.

Catherine Gates
Vice President of Programs

Catherine Gates is a speaker, writer, and leader in the faith and work movement. She is passionate about helping people achieve more of their God-given potential with confidence by integrating faith into every area of life. Her career journey has been diverse and circuitous, ranging from software consulting, to project management, marketing and sales, and leadership training, to nonprofit leadership. She has been helping people integrate their faith and work since 2013.

Catherine is the author of The Confidence Cornerstone: A Woman’s Guide to Fearless Leadership. She has contributed to several faith-and-work Bible studies, numerous YouVersion reading plans, and books from other authors including the iWork4Him and sheWorks4Him publications. Catherine is on the steering committee for the National Faith & Work Association (NFWA.org) and holds a bachelor’s degree in Christian Leadership.

Lori Kasbeer
Finance & Accounting Manager

With over a decade of expertise in human resources, payroll, accounting, and budget management, Lori Kasbeer brings a wealth of experience from both higher education and small business environments. In her role as Finance and Accounting Manager at 4word, she assists with the financial and human resources side of 4word and ensures operational excellence across the organization.

Beyond the numbers, Lori is a published contributor to two devotional books: Pearl Girls: Encountering Grit, Experiencing Grace (2009) and Mother of Pearl: Luminous Lessons and Iridescent Faith (2012). These works offer encouragement and spiritual insight, reminding women that no circumstance is beyond the grace of God.

Driven by a deep commitment to empowering Christian women in the workplace, Lori champions faith-infused leadership and personal growth. Based in Florida, her favorite title is “Nana,” cherishing time spent with her grandchildren. In quieter moments, she can be found curled up with a good book or enjoying life with her husband and family.

 

Trina Lee
Mentor Program Manager

Trina is excited to connect professional women together as the 4word Mentor Program Manager. Since December 2011, she has been involved with 4word: Portland and has been blessed by the relationships she’s made. After graduating from Cornell University with a bachelor’s in communication, Trina worked for over nine years as the Executive Director for Oregon DECA, an education nonprofit for students interested in marketing, finance, hospitality and management.

She currently resides in Portland, Oregon and is the Director of Program Alignment for Africa New Life Ministries, which is transforming the lives of 11,000 students in Rwanda, Africa. When not working, Trina most likely can be found listening to podcasts, attending the ballet, or reading.

Jordan Johnstone
Marketing Manager

Since 2013, Jordan has helped 4word tell its story and live out its mission through 4word’s digital content. She is the host of 4word’s podcasts, Work, Love, Pray and Driven 4word. Jordan also writes and coordinates the weekly 4word blogs and emails, and oversees the social media team. When not writing for 4word, Jordan enjoys working on her latest book idea, catching up on the latest episode of Supernatural, and going “Pin crazy” on Pinterest as she and her family dream about homestead living. Jordan holds a BS in Advertising and Public Relations from Liberty University and an MFA in Creative Writing from Full Sail University. She lives in Grayson, Georgia, with her husband, DJ, and their young children.

Molly Hegenderfer
Technology & Operations Manager

Molly supports 4word by overseeing system applications and integrations. She plays a key role as a thought partner with 4word leadership and is responsible for data management vital to programs and development.

Molly lives in a suburb of Seattle, Washington and is an active member of 4word: Seattle. She and her husband Steve have two adult daughters and they love to travel and enjoy the beauty of the Pacific Northwest.

Molly has worked with 4word since 2018. Prior to working for 4word, she enjoyed a career in tech as a business analyst and project manager. Molly has a BA from Washington State University and is an avid Seahawks fan!