Our Staff
Rob Warren | Lead Pastor
Rob is the lead and founding pastor of Doxa Church. After he started following Jesus as a senior in college, he spent the next 11 years in college ministry and pastored a collegiate reaching church in Ohio. With a great passion for Jesus and people, Rob and his wife Lisa moved to Madison in 2018, with the dream of starting a church that existed for the glory of God and the good of our great city. Rob and Lisa have been married since 2009 and are passionate about connecting the gospel to people, people to community, and community to mission.
Akua Atuobi | Salt Company Associate Director
Akua serves on staff with Doxa's college ministry, the Salt Company. After growing up in Waukegan, Illinois, she attended the University of Iowa, where she became a Christian through the Salt Company. After her time in college Akua served overseas in East Asia & Bangkok, Thailand. After making the move back to the States in 2023 Akua made the move to Madison to serve on staff with Doxa Church.
Danny Cardoso | Operations & Administration
Danny Cardoso, moved to Madison in 2017 from Hawaii with his wife and 2 sons (Kaleo and Ayrton). He and his wife Gretchen have been involved in and leading youth ministries in Hawaii since 2002. Before moving to Madison Danny served on the board of One Love Ministries, a skateboarding and surf community outreach based in Maui, he also served on the board and as youth pastor at Calvary Chapel Upcountry in Maui, Hawaii. He came to know and love Jesus early in High School and met his wife Gretchen at a church event when they were freshmen. The whole family loves serving at Doxa in different areas and is excited for what God is doing in our church and the community.
Chris Carson | Salt Company Director
Chris is the Salt Company Director at Doxa. He came to faith as a kid while attending a summer camp, but it wasn’t until he was a teenager that he really started following Jesus. While in college, Chris developed a heart for college ministry and started leading other students his age. After graduating and marrying his wife Jenna, Chris led a college ministry in Greensboro, North Carolina. In the summer of 2024 the Carson’s relocated to Madison to lead the Salt Company. The Carson’s are passionate about Jesus, the next generation, and developing the next in line.
Jarryd Cole | Church Plant Candidate
Jarryd is on staff at Doxa Church as a Church Plant Candidate. Hailing from Kansas City, Jarryd accepted Jesus at a young age, but didn’t apply his faith until several years after college. He and his wife Trisha moved to Madison in the Summer of 2022 and will be planting Ambassador Church in Milwaukee, WI in the Fall of 2025. Jarryd and Trisha have been married since 2013 and have four children. The Coles love Jesus, sports, and sharing their lives through authentic community.
Caleb Cymbalak | Doxa Youth Ministry
Caleb is Doxa Youth’s coordinator/pastor helping disciple the next generation of the Church into a deeper understanding and love for Christ. He was born and raised in Madison, Wisconsin, and graduated from Moody Bible Institute in 2021. Caleb met his wife, Erica, during his time at Moody, and they were married in 2021. Caleb loves everything Wisconsin, including the Packers, Badgers, Kwik Trip, and Cheese. In his free time Caleb likes to be outside, workout, spending time in community, watching football, and playing games online with his friends. Caleb has been attending Doxa Church since the summer of 2021, and has been staff since August of 2023.
Micah Hales | Salt Company Director Candidate
Micah is the Salt Company Director Candidate for the 2025 Milwaukee Church Plant. Micah grew up in the small town of Mediapolis, Iowa, where he came to know who Jesus was at a young age, but didn’t begin to truly follow him until college. Micah attended Iowa State University (Go Cyclones), where he got involved with The Salt Company at Cornerstone Church. After college, Micah packed his bags and moved to East Lansing, MI in 2019 to help plant The Commons Church. While planting, he met his wife Madison, and they were married a year later. Since then, Micah has served in several college ministry roles before receiving the call to help plant Ambassador Church. The Hales have one son, Beau, who might be the cutest kid in the entire world, and a daughter on the way. Micah enjoys playing and watching sports, spending time with family, watching movies, and asking strangers about their spiritual beliefs.
Bobby Hughes | Technical and Production Director
Bobby is Doxa’s Technical and Production Director. After growing up in the church and coming to Jesus at a young age, Bobby’s relationship with Jesus began to take a back seat in his life until it was as if no relationship had ever existed. In 2019, Bobby and his family moved to Madison from Tennessee for what he thought was a strategic career move, but God had a different plan. After surrendering full control of his life, God began transforming him and led him to Doxa in 2020 where he has answered God’s call on his life to full time ministry and is now aspiring to be a pastor. Bobby and his wife Stevi have been married since 2009 and have 5 children. They love making disciples for Jesus and coaching couples into a deeper, more intimate marriage that puts God in the center.
Nikolai Illin | Local Missions Coordinator
Born and raised in New Orleans, Nikolai put his faith in Jesus at a young age. After high school, he was bent toward having the college and world experience, that sent him wandering until he recommitted his life to following Jesus his senior year of college. His passion for letting people know their Creator desires a relationship with them since he graduated took him to China, Indiana, and now Wisconsin helping plant churches with the Salt Network. He desires for God’s people, I.e. the church, to grow in healthy discipleship in every aspect of their life.
Kayley Janssen | Doxa Administrator & Coordinator
Kayley Janssen is the Doxa Administrator and coordinator of the Hospitality team. Kayley grew up going to church but didn’t fully understand what a relationship with Christ looked like till her 20s, initially driven by fear instead of a relationship. God, however, broke in calling her to live the life He bought and paid for, pulling her out of the old and into the new. Kayley and her husband Brian moved to Madison as community members in 2018 and she joined the staff team in 2024. Kayley is passionate about helping and supporting others, and loves creating a welcoming space to be in. She loves studying the Bible and desires for others to love being in God’s word too.
Nate Kaloupek | Leadership Development & Equipping Director
Nate has been on staff at Doxa since 2022. He and his wife Elena met at Iowa State University as part of Salt Company where he began to work in ministry. Nate and Elena have been married since 2012, and before moving to Madison spent time with a church planting team in Albania, then as Salt director and church staff at Veritas Church, Cedar Rapids before moving to Madison. The Kaloupek family loves hospitality, building community, and supporting people who we love on church plants nationally and globally.
Shane Kelderman | Worship and Creative Arts Director
Shane is the Worship and Creative arts director at Doxa church. Soon after surrendering his life to Jesus in 2010 he began using his gifts in music to serve the Lord at Cornerstone Church in Ames, IA. In 2016 he and his wife, Sam, made a 3 year pitstop in Boone, Iowa where he worked as a youth and worship resident before moving to Madison, WI to help plant Doxa Church in 2019. Shane and Sam have been married since 2013, have a beautiful daughter, Penelope, and their hearts for the widow and the fatherless have led them to adoption from Bulgaria.
Amalie Parmerlee | Women and Connection Groups Ministry Leader
Born in Australia and raised in Kansas City, Amalie Parmerlee placed her faith in Jesus at a young age. After years of working as an RN and having a passion for ministry, she began studying Biblical Counseling and quickly started working with The Salt Company at Iowa State. She moved to Madison as a part of Doxa's launch team, later moved to the east coast, and now is excited to now be back in Madison. She loves meeting and connecting people, sharing the hope of Jesus, teaching women more about knowing and following God's Word, and encouraging others to know that following Jesus is worth it no matter the cost.
Theresa Perry | Doxa Kids Scheduler
Theresa and her husband, Travis, relocated to Madison in 2018 as community members with the Doxa church plant team. Continuing to faithfully serve within the community and church body, she leads Bible studies, mentors young women, and serves in worship arts, technology, and administration. Confident we are created for God and His glory, Theresa loves to share her testimony of faith and submission. “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and he will make your path straight.” (Proverbs 3:5-6) – ask her about it anytime!
Nicole Ryerson | IFC & Global Coordinator
Nicole Ryerson is the coordinator of our international student ministry at Doxa Church, IFC (International Friendship Connection) and also leads out in global sending and missionary care. She is from River Falls, Wisconsin. After graduating from Iowa State in 2018, Nicole served overseas in East Asia for a year, then moved to Madison in 2020 to join Doxa Church, where she has served on staff since. She has been married to Logan Ryerson since 2021.
Lisa Warren | Doxa Kids Coordinator, Women’s Ministry
Lisa oversees the Doxa Kids ministry and helps with the Doxa women’s ministry. Lisa became a Christian as a sophomore in high school through Young Life and has been involved in ministry ever since. After graduating with a bachelor's degree in education as well as a master's degree in supervisional administration, Lisa was a teacher in Ohio for 7 years and has been active in the education field ever since. Lisa loves building age-appropriate curriculum for children and is passionate about sharing the Gospel with our youngest generation.
RESidents
Jacob Dorning | Salt Company Resident
Jacob is from Mount Horeb, Wisconsin and grew up going to church and learning about Jesus but started following Jesus in college. He got involved with Salt Company at Doxa in 2020, and in 2022 began to truly love and follow Jesus. Since then, Jacob has developed a passion for seeing college students come to know and love Jesus and be formed, healed, comforted, encouraged and restored by Jesus’ immeasurable grace and love. Jacob graduated from UW-Madison in the spring of 2024 and began working as a Salt Company Resident in the summer of 2024.
Kip Sullivan | IFC Resident
He is from Middleton, Wisconsin, and graduated from UW-Madison in May of 2024. Kip began following Jesus as Lord in 2021 during the summer after his freshman year of college, and has had a passion for reaching international students with the gospel of Jesus since 2022, when he began serving with IFC. He began his Residency with Doxa in the summer of 2024.