Board of directors
"Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit."
Matthew 28:19
David & Linda Gunter
From the moment they step off of the airplane onto Haiti soil, shouts of “Mommy Linda!” immediately arise welcoming David and Linda Gunter back to the place where their ministry Love Him Love Them was forever changed. Unbeknownst to them, the greatest source of life change in their own lives and in the lives of the thousands of people they’ve since encountered started with a few pairs of flip flops and choosing to step out in faith for the 30 orphans they encountered on Christmas Day 2011 during their first mission trip to Haiti. With a heart for sharing the love of Jesus and making a difference in communities overlooked by others, David and Linda once again set out on an adventure of faith, choosing to do something about what they experienced, which has been the cornerstone of their non-profit since its inception.
Throughout their careers as real estate investors in the city of Atlanta, Georgia, David and Linda Gunter were faced with homelessness, drugs and prostitution daily. In choosing to make a difference the only way they knew how, in 1998 they turned one of their rental properties in Vine City, Atlanta, the 5th worst crime ridden neighborhood in the United States, into a homeless shelter. They named the shelter and the non-profit George’s Place in honor of Linda’s daddy, and they operated with funding from their friends and family. As years passed, they moved out of the Atlanta area and closed the shelter in 2003. Love Him Love Them became their new name, and their new ministry in northeast Georgia included an after-school program, jail ministry, providing for foster children, hosting community activities for special needs adults, and an annual Thanksgiving meal delivery for the local homeless and homebound. In 2004, a tragic event occurred that left 5 children who just happened to be Haitian without a mom and dad. On the 17th day of the 7th month of the year 2007, David and Linda’s family grew from the size of 2 to 7 with children ranging in ages from 7 to 17. Because of their new Haitian children, the Gunter’s were soon to have an encounter in Haiti that would change their lives and their ministry forever.
In 2011, the year after the devastating earthquake rolled through Haiti, the Gunter family decided together to forgo their traditional American Christmas to travel to Haiti instead. What they saw, smelled and experienced throughout their trip completely wrecked them. They took gifts that first year for 17 girls in an orphanage named HUG, and on a whim, decided to stop into an orphanage on Christmas Day named LifeSaver with a meager suitcase of flip flops in hand. Sitting on a urine- stained daybed cradling one of the newly orphaned babies, David and Linda listened to 30 children with no possessions and no parents sing praises to the Lord for fulfilling their prayers over the past 3 months and what happened to be their greatest need – a simple pair of 99 cent flip flops. It was then that the Gunter’s knew something had to be done and chose to put much of their ministry focus on Haiti.
With Linda’s gift for vision and commitment to turn every obstacle into an opportunity, and David’s prayerful guidance and heart that people come to know and grow in Jesus, their ministry continued to expand. In the summer of 2017, their dream for the children they met at LifeSaver orphanage just a few years prior became a reality when the doors finally opened for the children to travel to the United States. With $128.00 remaining in the ministry’s bank account, David and Linda took another leap of faith and toured with the children throughout the southeastern United States to raise funds to support the orphanage and mission work in Haiti. For the first time, the children were able to share their joy with the countless they encountered. Paired with the Gunter’s story and Linda’s vibrant and magnetic personality, the Love Him Love Them Haitian Orphan Choir Tour quickly became a source of inspiration and a place for life change.
Today David and Linda Gunter are continuing to change lives through the ministry work of Love Him Love Them. With 30 incredible orphans at their side, they continue to raise awareness and funds for their ministries in Haiti with their annual choir tour. Their ministries on the ground in Haiti include a newly built hospital, church construction, a vocational school, transitional housing, storefronts for job creation, sponsor schools, and orphan care, to name a few. Love Him Love Them now hosts annual mission trip opportunities to Haiti, with the annual Christmas trip being their most loved, having served as the cornerstone for their ministry today. David and Linda have continued to minister to the families of northeast Georgia through many of the programs that accompanied Love Him Love Them’s start.
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To reach David or Linda, email them at david@lovehimlovethem.org or linda@lovehimlovethem.org.
kelly breymeier
A smile is a powerful and precious thing. It’s a wordless, yet beautiful language known to all.
It’s a light in a dark room, helping to set the world to right even when things feel off kilter. When offered freely to others, it’s a happy acknowledgment that they’re worth the notice. It’s a breath
of fresh air, an openly shared joy, a source of hope, a reflection of gratefulness, a trust that transcends circumstance, and an invitation to share in something good.
And it’s Kelly Breymeier’s intentional desire that she’s able to offer the gift of a smile with every precious encounter she’s given. Kelly has always had a passion for people and service, and it
was a simple invitation to church in 2012 by Love Him Love Them’s founder, Linda Gunter, that Kelly’s passion found purpose with Jesus Christ at the helm.
In her professional life, Kelly is the corporate Vice President and Creative Director for One Source Network Inc. and its subsidiary Capri Designs. Here she’s able to use her love for the creative
in the design and development of consumer products and gift related items, and her talent for administration in managing the company’s overseas factories, marketing, forecasting, and financials.
Kelly completed her Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and German at the University of Georgia in 2001 and earned her MBA from Nashville’s beloved Vanderbilt University in 2008 with a concentration in Marketing and Operations. It is with the knowledge gleaned throughout her studies and career, and with her heart for Jesus as her light, guide, truth, and above all else,
savior, that she’s been able to serve alongside Love Him Love Them as a Board Member and Mission Trips Coordinator. Having traveled throughout the world for work, for fun, and on mission, coincidentally having traveled to more countries outside of the United States than states within, Kelly quickly found her heart in Haiti. She has loved sharing her passion for the mission field and repeatedly witnessing the excitement and expectancy of new travelers, knowing they’re just a plane ride away from having their heart forever changed!
In addition to her ministry activities, Kelly brings a small group of witty, beautiful, sassy, intelligent, and spectacular teen girls together around the dinner table every week for sharing life and sharing Jesus, serves as small group leader during service on Sunday for 4th and 5th grade girls. It is through continuing words of encouragement, small acts of love, and a spirit of sacrifice that lives are impacted, and it’s through these lives coming together that Kelly believes a world is changed. Kelly encourages everyone to give it a try. Start with a smile and see where the Lord takes you;
you might be surprised! To reach Kelly, email her at missiontrips@lovehimlovethem.org.
Doug Vermilya
Doug is a native of North Baltimore, Ohio, graduated with a degree in Business Administration from Piedmont College. Doug worked as an accountant for 10 years and decided to go back to school where he pursued a degree in Education. Doug is a retired middle school science teacher, having served the community as a teacher for 30 years.
His real story began in 1979 on a baseball field around midnight. This is where Doug had a personal encounter with Jesus Christ. Doug didn’t even understand what it meant to be “Born Again” but found out later that this is what happened.
Interestingly, he had never read a bible, and no one was there to lead me in the sinner’s prayer.
The Holy Spirit can do a lot of things without “man’s” guidance. His desire for change came from
a lovely lady who later became his wife and they have been happily married for 37 years and God blessed them with 3 wonderful sons.
Doug has worked with Love Him Love Them family for many years now and life will never be the same again! He invites all to come share in the adventure with us!
To reach Doug, email him at doug@lovehimlovethem.org.
Bill Thomas
Bill Thomas is a native Georgian and is now the Sr Pastor of Lift Worship. Bill spent 26 years in coaching across High School and College, as well as scouting, and still continues private coaching today. He has helped see many of his players to both Collegiate and Professional playing fields, including both of his sons. Bill has also enjoyed success as a World Champion and National Champion in the Equine Industry and canine performance events.
However, Bill maintains his greatest accomplishment has been following the calling on his life by his Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, and for having been married to the love of his life, Leigh Thomas for 32 years.
Bill and Leigh have two sons, Chance and Jesse, as well as 3 grandchildren, and host of "adopted kids" too many to number. Bill has said, "Life is decision driven, the man, the husband, the father, the friend you want to be is a choice. Choices have brought you to where you are today, and choices will take you to where you are going tomorrow."
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To reach Bill, email him at bill@lovehimlovethem.org.
Michael Keith
Michael made the decision to follow Christ as a freshman in high school at an FCA camp in 1997. But it is in the past five years that Michael has begun to understand more who he is in Christ, and what His purpose is for him. Christ has always loved Michael and has always had his eye on who Michael is with Christ in him. Michael’s purpose is to fill this earth with God’s glory by loving Him and loving the people around him.
Michael has been volunteering with LHLT since 2013, where he met David and Linda Gunter due
to his search for a small group that was real and authentic in living for Christ. Michael lives in Lavonia, GA with his wife, Tanya, and their three children. He enjoys using his knowledge and skills in the areas of photography, videography, recording, and design to tell the story of what God is doing among us. His desire is to see the Kingdom of God lived out here on the earth, through making disciples and teaching them how to usher in the Kingdom themselves.
To reach Michael, email him at michael@lovehimlovethem.org.
Ministry Partners
Pastor Maxeau Antoine
Maxeau Antoine is the founder of the Mission Eglises Evangeliques Vallee de l’Espoir in Haiti, a ministry that is responsible for the planting of 4 churches in Haiti. He has trained and mentored more than fifteen thousand pastors and church leaders through the Bible study program, Experiencing God.
He is responsible for the successful evangelization of the town of Pétion-Ville, Haiti through the
use of the Evange Cube. His experience includes the role of teacher at the Baptist Haiti Mission from 1989 to 1996. He participated in founding a church on a mission trip with HUG to Senegal, Africa in 2006. He has served as the coordinator of the education program for Focas, Haiti.
His current passion is to train Christian leaders and empower them for ministry. He also currently serves as President of the Hug A Child Home for Girls in Haiti. He is the founder of the Experiencing God ministry in Haiti. He has coordinated the Feed the Hunger ministry activities in Haiti since 2007, and also coordinates the Operation Christmas Child program in the West Department of Haiti. His current roles include preacher, pastor, interpreter, leadership coach and biblical summit speaker.
Maxeau and his wife Anne, have been married for over sixteen years and have ministered in the Mission Eglises Evangeliques Vallee de l’Espoir for thirteen years. They have four children, Fred, Alisha, Samuel and Khloe.
