PreachFor announces first PreachFor America Fellow
Sam Fleischer, recent graduate of Wheaton College, is part of the first cohort of PreachFor America Fellows. He will serve at The Parish of Calvary-St. George’s in New York City.
PreachFor Foundation Selects Inaugural PreachFor America Fellows
Nashville, Tennessee, USA, June 23, 2026 – The PreachFor Foundation has announced the selection of its first PreachFor America Fellow, marking a significant milestone in the organization’s mission to invest in the next generation of Christian leadership in America.
Sam Fleischer, a recent graduate of Wheaton College, was chosen following a highly competitive discernment process designed to identify, form, and support high-capacity servant leaders marked by character, theological depth, leadership potential, and emotional maturity.
The PreachFor America Fellowship is an immersive, two-year residency focused on leadership formation, mentorship, ministry experience, theological development, and partnership with local churches and educational institutions. The initiative seeks to cultivate faithful and thoughtful leaders equipped to serve churches and communities across the United States.
Sam will serve at The Parish of Calvary-St. George’s in New York City, where he will be immersed in the worshiping, discipling, and leadership life of the parish community.
“Flourishing churches are built by faithful leaders who are called, equipped, and supported to serve,” said Don Kanak, Chairman and Founder of the PreachFor Foundation. We are delighted to welcome our inaugural class of PreachFor America Fellows and grateful for the outstanding host churches and Christian educational institutions that share our commitment to developing the next generation of church leaders. Together, we are investing in a hopeful future for the Church in America.”
PreachFor Executive Director, Dr. Trygve Johnson, noted “This 2026 PreachFor America Fellowship cohort represents the beginning of something deeply important. We believe these Fellows reflect a generation of emerging Christian leaders who love the Church and are called to serve with courage, conviction, and humility.”
The launch of the Fellowship comes at a time when many churches are increasingly focused on leadership development and vocational formation. PreachFor is committed to amplifying a public voice for the renewal of pastoral ministry.
PreachFor will announce additional PreachFor America Fellows soon. For updates, visit www.preachfor.org and follow PreachFor Foundation on social media.
About PreachFor Foundation
PreachFor Foundation (PreachFor) was established in 2023 to help raise a new generation of exceptional faith leaders to serve the Church. By partnering with flourishing churches and leading seminaries, PreachFor has launched the PreachFor America Fellowship, a two year opportunity for emerging leaders to explore, learn and discern a calling to vocational ministry in local churches. The fellowship uniquely combines real-world ministry work at a healthy, thriving church, mentorship by a pastoral leader and a lay leader, and a Master’s degree from either Fuller Seminary in Pasadena, California or Wheaton College’s Litfin Divinity School in Wheaton, Illinois—all while being supported by a meaningful wage. PreachFor Foundation was recognized by the IRS as a tax-exempt 501(c)(3) organization in 2024. Learn more about PreachFor at www.preachfor.org
