About The Author

As a cutting edge-entrepreneur, Eric is the founding pastor of Eastside Foursquare Church, a congregation that has numerous ministries and church services housed within a large hotel campus. Eastside purchased the property with a vision for mission-based entrepreneurialism, which is the combining of solid business practices with the mission of the church. He is also the founder and president of NEO International Christian Ministries, a national non-profit organization created to network and empower other ministries. Eric has served on several for-profit and non-profit boards including My Father’s House (MFH), located in Gresham Oregon. My Father’s House is the largest family shelter that is not subsidized by government support in America and Nehemiah Project International Ministries in Washington, D.C.. Currently he serves with Genesis Hotel Partners; and Lincoln Asset Management.

Born in Arizona, Eric knew from an early age that he wanted to enter the ministry in spite of being raised in a non-Christian home. He began preparing himself for the ministry, attending Walla Walla College and earning bachelor's degrees in theology and communication. Upon graduation, he and new wife Rita moved to Michigan, where Eric completed his Master’s of Divinity at Andrews University. Moving to Seattle, they accepted their first job as senior pastors of New Life Christian Fellowship in Woodinville, Washington where they served for 14 years.

In 2002, Eric and Rita moved with their daughter Alyssa to Portland Oregon and founded Eastside Foursquare Church giving birth to a new entrepreneurial model of ministry. During this time, Eric also became a managing partner in one of the top 100 Hospitality Management Companies in the United States, successfully initiating and expanding the company's management contract business and ownership. In addition, Eric is also a partner in Genesis Hotels LLC a collection of franchised hotels throughout the Northwest.

An inspiring and energizing speaker, Eric helps organizations harness the unique power of their business and ministry communities to achieve extraordinary leaps in performance. He is a powerful visionary storyteller and has a gift for teaching organizations how to inspire passion in their people and tap their collective intelligence. His fast-moving talks are loaded with valuable insights and practical applications.