Formed by his rural Mississippi childhood, the best and worst of the Christian church, and past and present justice movements, Rev. Rich Havard currently serves as a Senior Program Officer for Wayfarer Foundation (WF), a grant-making organization that partners with spiritually rooted and justice-oriented nonprofits to co-create a unified world. Prior to WF, Rich spent six years starting and leading the Inclusive Collective, a diverse spiritual community for college-aged young adults in Chicago.

Rich is currently a member of Mercer University’s School of Theology Alumni Board and the Lighthouse Foundation’s Coalition of Accomplices for Racial Equity. He has also been a University of Chicago Commons Project Fellow, a Forum for Theological Exploration Ministry Fellow, and a member of the Aspen Institute’s Diversity & Representation in Media Cohort.

Rich frequently speaks on the future of spirituality and religion, LGBTQ inclusion, and philanthropy. He has presented at such venues as the Children’s Defense Fund’s Great Preacher Series, the Forum for Theological Exploration, the University of Chicago, DePaul University, Outspoken LGBTQ Storytelling, Lee Arrendale State Prison, and Hopa Mountain’s Strengthening the Circle Conference for Native American nonprofit leaders. He is also a contributor to the book True Colors: Stories of Baptist Inclusion.

Rich is a graduate of Samford and Mercer Universities. He calls the Ravenswood neighborhood of Chicago home along with his partner, is an amateur mystic, and believes that we all have the capacity to co-create a better world.