Crosswinds Leadership

Our leadership team provides support and guidance to all of our staff members working with clients both in the United States and in the Dominican Republic.

Mark Terrell—Chief Executive Officer

Mark Terrell graduated from Taylor University in 1984 with a bachelor’s degree in Business Systems. Mark started his career with Northwestern Mutual as a retirement and estate planning specialist. In 1994, he left his chosen career to serve as the CEO of Lifeline Youth & Family Services and has since founded two other nonprofits. He serves as the as the CEO of Lifeline Youth & Family Services, Crosswinds, and Lasting Change. When Mark started, Lifeline had 17 employees, a budget of $600,000 and served around 200 people a year. Now, it is one of Indiana’s largest and fastest growing nonprofits with nearly 700 employees, a budget of $54 million, and is on track to serve 40,000 people. Mark has testified before Congress on two occasions, received the distinguished Alumnus for Personal Achievement award, The Vitality Award for prevention, is the 2018 Ambassador Enterprises SEED Challenge winner, and is a governor appointee to serve on the Allen Superior Court Judicial Nominating Commission. Mark’s favorite roles are those of husband of 34 years, father to three sons and one daughter, and grandfather to four grandchildren.

Todd Jacobs—Chief Financial Officer

Todd joined Lifeline and Crosswinds from Equity Investment Group where he was the Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. Todd has a B.S. in Finance with Distinction in Business from Indiana University. He is married with three sons and enjoys biking and other outdoor activities. He serves on the board of Community Foundation of Greater Fort Wayne and chairs its investment committee. In addition, he is a board member and vice chair of the AWS Foundation.

Nancy Steigmeyer—Chief Human Resources Officer

Nancy joined Lifeline and Crosswinds in 2018. She brings a diverse business background with a combination of organizational development, talent management, academics, and community leadership. She spent much of her career in academic curriculum development, instruction at several universities, and as Senior Director of Graduate Programming at Trine University. She has developed and trained many participants in various leadership and human resource-related fields. With more than 16 years in staffing, recruiting, and human resource management, Nancy has managed regional offices for employment/staffing firms and consulted with hundreds of companies and organizations to provide solutions for their HR needs throughout Northeast Indiana. Her undergraduate degree is from Central Michigan University, and she holds a Master of Science in Organizational Leadership from Indiana Tech. With a passion for community engagement, Nancy serves on the board for the Women’s Bureau and Northeast Indiana Human Resource Association. Nancy’s passion is family, faith, health, and helping others. She resides in Fort Wayne with her husband of 15 years, Steve.

Curtis Smith—Chief Marketing & Communications Officer

Curtis joined the Lifeline and Crosswinds team in January 2021 as Chief Marketing and Communications Officer. Prior to that, he was with Parkview Health for 5 years as the Corporate Director of Community Engagement. From 1995 to 2016, Curtis was the Chief Meteorologist at 21 Alive, in Fort Wayne, where he won numerous awards as the region’s favorite forecaster and TV personality. He serves on the Elder Board of Blackhawk Ministries and sits on the Board of Directors for Heart of the City. Curtis is extremely engaged with the community and collaborates with many non-profit organizations every year to emcee events and host video productions. He completed undergraduate degrees at both Southern Illinois University and Mississippi St. University and has a Master’s degree in Organizational Leadership from Huntington University. Curtis and his wife Jessie have been married since 1994 and have three adult sons and one daughter-in-law.

Tim Smith—Chief Innovation Officer

Tim Smith joined the organization in 2020 as Chief Innovation Officer. After graduating from IPFW (Purdue Fort Wayne), Tim and his wife, Angela, moved to Indianapolis where he attended the IU School of Law. Upon graduation and admission to the Indiana Bar, Tim and Ang returned to Fort Wayne where Tim joined MedPro Group. After 25 years and many different leadership positions, Tim retired from MedPro Group in 2019. His last position was as SVP of Operations & Technology where he led close to 350 employees and contractors who, together, were responsible for assuring all company stakeholders had a “best-in-class” experience. Tim has been active in local politics and has served on numerous boards. His passions include spending time with his family (five adult children and more than nine grandchildren…all under age 3), woodworking and hunting. He and his family have been active members at Grace Gathering Church for their entire lives.

Mark Bowell—Chief Growth Officer

Mark joined the Lifeline and Crosswinds team in 2020 as Chief Growth Officer. He is a Taylor University graduate (1985). Mark is also the owner of DMB Marketing and Management, Inc., and has worked with over 40 corporations and not-for-profit partners. Previously, he has served in several corporate and civic positions including Vice President of Business Development and Sales at Maxim Crane Works, Chief Operation Officer and National Marketing Director of TTI America, Inc., President of the Indianapolis Parks Foundation, Administrator of Marketing at Indy parks and Recreation, and Locations Manager for the Indiana Film Commission. Mark is an active member of his community serving on the boards of the Gateway Community Alliance, The Institute for Learning Dynamics, the Indianapolis 500 Gordon Pipers, Advisory Council to the People Helping People Network and now, Board of Directors for the American Heart Association – Indianapolis. He is also President of the Blake Strong Bowell Fund established in 2017 to honor his late son Blake’s courageous 4-year battle with brain cancer. Mark is a married father of four, currently performs with Indianapolis- based bands; Barbender and Free But Not Cheap, enjoys golf, skiing and road biking, and attends ITOWN Church with his family.

Tim O. Smith—Chief Operating Officer

Tim joined the Lifeline and Crosswinds team in 2020 as Chief Operating Officer. He is a graduate of Indiana Wesleyan with a degree in Business Administration, and most recently served as President and CEO for Abundant Executive Living, in Fort Wayne, Indiana. He retired from Verizon in 2015 after 16 years with the company. His last position at Verizon was Region president, where he led a team of over 3,000 employees across Pennsylvania and Delaware. As Verizon’s Region President, Tim enjoyed a great deal of interaction with the community. He also partnered with the Philadelphia Chamber President to create the first small business week in Philadelphia in May, 2013. Tim currently serves as a Board Member for Fort Wayne’s Youth For Christ and Joshua’s Hand, Inc., Renaissance YMCA, and Allen County-Fort Wayne Development Trust, Inc. After retirement, Tim and his wife, Karen, moved back to the Fort Wayne area. The Lord told Tim to return and use his skills and experience to bless companies here. His role here at Lifeline and Crosswinds is a perfect fit.

Kevin Hedrick—Executive Vice President

Kevin has been a staff member of Lifeline Youth & Family Services since September 2003 and began in his current role with Crosswinds shortly after its founding. He holds a degree in Education from Ball State University. Kevin loves being able to serve the families and youth of Crosswinds before their struggles reach the point where the court system becomes involved. In his spare time, if you can’t find Kevin spending time with his wife and three children or coaching his sons’ youth sports teams, you can probably find him golfing, fishing or playing basketball.