Christian Chamber founders called to Roseburg; KKPZ's Autry takes helm

    PORTLAND — Bill “Ken” Kenyon jokingly terms them “downloads” — impressions of God’s direction that he says his wife Charly occasionally receives. In fact, they say it was one such “download” that led to her founding the Christian Chamber of Commerce of the Northwest two years ago.
    Today, the fast-growing Christian Chamber attracts hundreds of members and interested guests to eight monthly meetings and other special events from Vancouver, Wash. down to Eugene. Inquiries about the Chamber’s expansion are regularly heardfrom other parts of the region, as the organization seeks to encourage people who sense God’s calling in business or ministry.
    But now another “download” has the Chamber’s founding executive director and her husband, who has served as membership services director, sensing a new calling to a Roseburg ministry. The Kenyons have resigned their positions, but in what they describe as a “seamless transition” orchestrated by God, the Chamber will now be headed by James Autry, who has held a variety of strategic posts in the local evangelical community, most notably managing Portland’s KKPZ (“K-Praise”) radio for 12 years.
   “It appeared to be an impossible mission to find the kind of person this organization needed to replace the founders, but God had a plan and delivered James to us by an amazing story,” wrote Scott Lofgren, the Chamber’s board chairman, in a June 11 e-mail to Chamber members and friends.
    For Autry, who was already on the Chamber board and recently spearheaded the organization’s successful Marketplace Summit in April, God’s timing for the changes couldn’t be clearer. Before becoming aware of the Kenyons’ decision, he had recently felt led to resign the station manager position, although he will continue to work part-time in sales at KKPZ.
   “It was an answer to prayer, when Charly and Ken Kenyon heard from God and planted the seed for the Chamber,” Autry wrote June 14 in an e-mail to members. “They have watered that seed and watched God grow it into the organization that it is today ... Now, God is directing the Chamber to be watered again so that he can grow it into a profitable, sustainable and scalable ortanization that will impact even more lives and release even more ‘Kingdom businesses’ into the marketplace.”
    Originally from Georgia, Autry is a marketing graduate of Belmont University in Tennessee. Before joining KKPZ in 1996 he was office manager and board member at Business Men's Fellowship USA, office manager and bureau news director at Foundation for Israel and the Prophetic News Network, and ministry services coordinator at the international headquarters in California for Full Gospel Business Men’s Fellowship International.
    He is known locally as an energetic ministry networker and promoter, including as Portland director for Serving Our Neighbors (www.servingourneighbors.org), serving as Oregon state coordinator for the National Day of Prayer, helping launch the Full Gospel Business Men’s Fellowship in America, and playing a key role in local Christian endeavors supporting Israel.
    The Kenyons will join the staff at True North Star Boys Ranch & Academy (truenorthstar.org) in Roseburg. They hope to be involved in the Chamber’s Eugene events and possible expansion to Roseburg.
    Chamber web site is www.cccnw.net.