About Serve Source
Stronger communities begin with stronger connections.
Across every community, people and organizations are already serving—churches caring for neighbors, nonprofits meeting practical needs, response organizations stepping into crisis, and local leaders building solutions close to home. Too often, they are doing that work without a clear view of who else is serving, what resources already exist, or how to move together.
Serve Source exists to help change that—strengthening the relationships, shared infrastructure, and coordination that help organizations move from isolated effort toward connected action.
Meet the people behind Serve Source
Serve Source is built by people who believe relationships matter, local organizations deserve to be seen and strengthened, and better connection can help communities serve with greater clarity.
Want to join us? Volunteer with Serve Source →Staff Team
Derick Zwerneman
Founder and CEO - Austin, TX
Derick Zwerneman is the founder and director of Serve Source, a nonprofit equipping churches and communities to respond to crises with greater coordination and collaboration. A second-generation firefighter and 28-year veteran of the Austin Fire Department, Derick also served over nine years as Outreach Pastor at Celebration Church under Pastors Joe and Lori Champion. Co-founder of the Disaster Response Relational Network (DRRN), Derick focused his efforts to create and launch Serve Source in March 2022 to support faith leaders and response organizations nationally and internationally. He and his wife, April, live in Round Rock, Texas, and have three adult children.
Dennis Harris
CO Founder - Birmingham, AL
Dennis Harris is the Outreach Director and staff pastor at Church of the Highlands in Birmingham, Alabama. With over 40 years of ministry experience, he leads Disaster Response efforts locally and globally, bringing practical help and hope to communities in crisis. Dennis also co-founded the Disaster Response Relational Network and Serve Source, fostering collaboration among churches nationwide. His passion for outreach has shaped city-wide initiatives, international missions, and impactful church partnerships. Dennis and his wife have been married for 37 years, sharing a lifelong commitment to faith, service, and transformation.
Sweeton Macule
Mapping Technician - Chonguene, Mozambique
Sweeton Macule is an aspiring educator and researcher from Chongoene, Mozambique. He holds a degree in Geography Teaching with shift qualifications from Save University and is passionate about geography and technology mapping through his work with Serve Source. Sweeton is the first person in generations of the Macule family to attend and complete university. Today, he teaches English to young people in his community and leads a church youth group for ages 13–19. His love for reading and writing inspires him to send daily biblical devotions to more than 100 people. Sweeton’s work is driven by a desire to connect people to Christ and serve others through faith, knowledge, and collaboration.
Michael Gardner
Director of Operations - Austin, TX
Michael Gardner is a seasoned disaster response leader with over a decade of experience coordinating relief efforts alongside nonprofits, government agencies, and faith-based organizations. He currently leads technology and mapping initiatives for Serve Source, helping streamline collaboration and communication for disaster response networks. Michael brings deep expertise in emergency management, data integration, and community resilience. North of Austin, Michael and his wife serve together at their church — he as an elder and she as a vocalist. They enjoy raising their daughters in a life of faith and service. Michael’s passions include discipleship, technology, preparedness, and creating/building with raw materials like wood and metal.
Board of Directors
Terry McClung
Board Member | Central Texas
Terry McClung brings extensive experience in public service, emergency communications, technology management, and community leadership. Her career with the City of Austin included serving as Assistant General Manager of the Combined Transportation, Emergency & Communications Center (CTECC) and as a Senior IT Project Manager. She also served as Chair of the Buda Bond Oversight Committee, contributing to community accountability and responsible stewardship of public resources. Terry’s involvement with Trauma Recovery Coaching reflects an additional connection to trauma recovery and supporting individuals facing difficult circumstances. She brings valuable experience in emergency operations, organizational oversight, and community service to the Serve Source board.
James Davis
Board Member | Central Texas
James Davis is a Central Texas business professional with experience in construction, property inspections, and residential energy efficiency. His business activities include J Davis Construction, Energy Audit Masters, and Inspection Masters TX. Beyond his professional work, James is involved with The Key2Free, a faith-based nonprofit co-founded by his wife, Amy Davis, that supports women recovering from sex trafficking and exploitation. Through its programs, the organization provides safe housing, therapeutic support, and life skills development. James brings practical business experience, an understanding of community needs, and a commitment to faith-based service to the Serve Source board.
Teana Ross
Board Member | Austin, TX
Teana Ross is an accomplished human resources executive with more than 30 years of experience in organizational leadership, operations, and process improvement. She currently serves as Senior Director of HR Services at Rakuten International, following leadership roles at VMware and Freescale Semiconductor. Teana specializes in building scalable systems, developing high-performing teams, and improving organizational effectiveness. Beyond her corporate career, she is the co-founder and president of Upside of Down, an organization dedicated to supporting individuals with Down syndrome and their families through inclusion, medical support, and community connections. She brings a combination of strategic leadership, operational expertise, and community service experience to the Serve Source board.
The challenge isn't a lack of people willing to serve.
It's that good work can still happen in isolation.
We believe communities are better served when the people doing the work can find one another, understand what is happening, build trust, and coordinate around shared needs. Explore the gaps we exist to help close.
See the vision in action
Serve Source is built around a simple belief: when relationships are stronger, information is clearer, and organizations can see how their work connects, communities are better positioned to serve.
A backbone for connection and coordinated action
Serve Source works behind the scenes and alongside the organizations doing the work. We help create the conditions for stronger collaboration—connecting people, making activity more visible, supporting shared tools, strengthening communication, and helping organizations coordinate without asking them to give up their identity or independence.
We are not here to replace the organizations already serving.
We are here to help strengthen the connections between them.
Serve Source is not a network of its own. We support and collaborate with networks, churches, nonprofits, and response organizations across the country and around the world—more like shared infrastructure that many can build on than an organization sitting above anyone else.
- Organizations
- Relationships
- Shared Information
- Coordination
- Stronger Community Support
Who we support
Serve Source works alongside the people and organizations already serving communities—every day and in moments of need.
Churches & Faith Communities
What they bring
Deep local relationships, trusted presence, volunteers, facilities, and a long-term commitment to neighbors.
A challenge they may face
Wanting to help but not always knowing where to start, who else is serving, or how to plug in.
How Serve Source helps
Serve Source helps create pathways for churches to connect with opportunities, organizations, networks, and coordinated efforts where their strengths can serve well.
What they bring
Deep local relationships, trusted presence, volunteers, facilities, and a long-term commitment to neighbors.
A challenge they may face
Wanting to help but not always knowing where to start, who else is serving, or how to plug in.
How Serve Source helps
Serve Source helps create pathways for churches to connect with opportunities, organizations, networks, and coordinated efforts where their strengths can serve well.
Practical infrastructure for relational work
Relationships matter most—and they become even more useful when supported by practical, shared infrastructure. Select any area to learn more.
Relationships matter every day—and even more when the pressure rises.
The relationships built before a crisis can shape what becomes possible during one. A church that knows its community partners, a nonprofit connected to regional resources, or a response organization with trusted relationships can move with greater clarity when needs escalate.
But the same connective infrastructure matters outside disasters too—in community service, local collaboration, volunteer engagement, resource sharing, long-term recovery, and the everyday work of strengthening communities.
- Everyday ServiceStep 1
- Relationship BuildingStep 2
- Shared AwarenessStep 3
- Coordinated ActionStep 4
- Crisis ResponseStep 5
- Long-Term RecoveryStep 6
- Stronger Ongoing NetworksStep 7
How the ecosystem connects
Serve Source isn't a single tool or a chain of command—it's an ecosystem of people and organizations. Select a part below to see how it connects to the rest.
Organizations
Organizations bring local knowledge, specialized capacity, relationships, volunteers, services, and resources to the communities they serve.
View all parts of the ecosystem as a list
- Organizations
- Organizations bring local knowledge, specialized capacity, relationships, volunteers, services, and resources to the communities they serve.
- People
- Leaders, volunteers, and staff are the heart of every effort. Connection helps them find one another and serve where their strengths fit best.
- Community Networks
- Networks help relationships grow within a place, issue area, or shared mission—holding many organizations together over time.
- Resources
- Supplies, facilities, tools, and funding become far more useful when the people who have them and the people who need them can see each other.
- Opportunities
- Ways to serve, partner, and contribute become visible—so willing help can be matched to real need.
- Responses
- When needs escalate, coordinated responses show who is active, where, and how partners can connect and avoid duplication.
- Relationships
- Trust built person to person is the connective tissue of everything else. Serve Source helps relationships form and endure.
- Shared Information
- Clearer visibility helps partners understand who is active, what is happening, and where connection may be useful.
Connection changes what's possible
The clearest way to understand Serve Source is through the people and organizations building relationships, finding one another, and moving work forward together.
I hope we see Serve Source across the country
If you're a new outreach leader working at a church, you need this. You need to collaborate with others who are in the same type of ministry, doing the same type of work. I hope to see cities all over the country that have a connection outreach group like we have here in Austin.
Danny Hartmann
Lakeway Church
ChurchFind your place in the network
Help strengthen the infrastructure behind service
Frontline service is visible. The connective work behind it often is not. Building relationships, maintaining shared tools, improving visibility, supporting coordination, and creating pathways between organizations all require sustained investment.
Your support helps Serve Source strengthen the infrastructure that allows organizations and communities to connect, communicate, and coordinate more effectively.