Meet the Good News Team!

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+ Administrative Board: Terry Modica, Bill Snyder, Beth Solis
+ Staff: Kathy Taylor, Graciela Ribot, Fernando Ramos, Lily Cañon Valverde
+ Priest/Advisor: Mons. Joseph Kimu
+ Volunteers: Champions of the Good News who give their time and talents.

Terry Modica

Terry is cofounder and Executive Director of Good News Ministries, the primary speaker and writer, and the web designer. She is the author of the popular daily Good News Reflections. She was certified by the Diocese of St. Petersburg for Lay Pastoral Ministry in 2003 and has a degree in Theology. She lives in Riverview, a suburb of Tampa, Florida, with her husband Ralph. For more info, read her biography.

Ralph Modica (RIP)

Ralph (1955-2024) was cofounder and Chairman of GNM’s Board of Directors. As an inspirational instructor, his specialty was how to be a missionary in the workplace by imitating Christ even in the most stressful environments.

A cancer survivor, married to Terry for 48 years, and a father, Ralph also helped people (men especially) find God in the challenges of illness, serving his wife in imitation of St. Joseph, and parenting. (see his biography)

Kathy Taylor

Kathy began working with us in 2011 as our Bookkeeper and general Office Assistant. She is a lifelong Catholic and has known Terry and Ralph in St. Stephen Parish (Valrico, FL) and in Good News Ministries since the late 1990s. Kathy has a long history of serving the Lord with her husband, Jay, including in RCIA and Small Christian Community leadership, as Sacristans, Readers, Eucharistic Ministers, and in the Cursillo Secretariat as Lay Directors and School of Leaders chairs. She has also served as a CCD Coordinator and as a catechist for Religious Education and for Infant Baptism preparation.

Graciela and Fernando Ramos

Graciela Mabel Ribot is our Bilingual Ministry Assistant and Volunteer Coordinator. She helps us correspond with Hispanics, proof-reads and translates the Good News Reflections and other content, and much more. She has been serving on the Good News Ministries team since April 2013.

Fernando Ramos, her husband, joined the team in 2016 to bring video, audio, and music ministry to both Spanish and English outreaches.

They live in Coronel Suárez, Argentina.

Lily Cañon Valverde

Lily visited the Good News Ministries office in 2015 soon after moving from Columbia to Miami, Florida. She so loved what we do that she wanted to join the team. At the time, however, she spoke too little English. In 2021, she happily joined the staff as our Social Media Manager. She helps more people discover Good News Ministries by getting our faith-building content out to many different social media sites and groups.

Bill Snyder

Bill joined the GNM team in 2018 to offer his expertise in video and podcasts. Bill became interested in Good News Ministries when he visited our booth at a Catholic Charismatic Conference. Soon he became instrumental in getting our podcasting ministry going. We invited him to become a Board Member in 2020. In 2024 he became a paid Media Director and Administrative Assistant.

He is a survivor of three open heart surgeries to fix a serious congenital heart defect. You can see his story in this video: youtu.be/NWFoiJOgZX8. He loves to share his story of how the numerous surgeries and medical procedures have helped him grow in faith, because he believes and hopes that it will open many hearts to God’s grace and love.

Beth Solis

Beth first learned about GNM while dating her husband-to-be, Javier. He often forwarded our emailed reflections to her. They were wed in 2013. In 2021, they both earned bachelor’s degrees in Theology while Javy trained to become a Deacon. We added her to the Board of Directors in 2024 to prepare a solid foundation for the continuation of Good News Ministries far into the future.

Beth knows what it means to be in ministry helping others grow in the Faith. She has served as a catechist, a Confirmation teacher, and a youth minister. She is the Outreach Coordinator for a non-profit outreach to the homeless in Oklahoma City and has been coordinating volunteers for Hotdogs for the Homeless since 2003. She is the Spiritual Advisor for the St. Vincent de Paul Conference in her parish of St. Philip Neri in Midwest City, Oklahoma. She is a Co-Leader of the Stephen Ministry Team in her parish. As a Cursillista since 2010, she also leads a women’s weekly Cursillo prayer and faith-sharing group.

Prayer Network – People from all around the world have joined the Good News Prayer Network to pray for those who post prayer requests in our Prayer Room.

Priests – We collaborate with a number of priests. Msgr. Joseph Kimu of the Diocese of Blantyre in Malawi, Central Africa, is our Chaplain. Father Gary Dowsey, pastor of Our Lady of Lourdes in Dunedin, Florida, and Rosminian Father Rick Pilger of Blessed Sacrament in Seminole, Florida, are local priests who assist with prayer and other support on an as-needed basis. Many other priests are connected to us in less formal ways and have endorsed us for what we do.