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Rev. Kealani Nunes Willbanks serves as the Associate Pastor and Executive Director of Operations
and Impact at Foundry, where she has been part of the team since February 2018. She is the
granddaughter of Filipino immigrants, the daughter of Salvation Army preachers, a proud mother
of five world-changing adult children, and Lola to her beloved granddaughter.
Rev. Kealani earned her B.S. in Business Management in 1999 and her MBA in 2003—all while
raising two children as a single mother. After meeting her now husband, LTC(R) R. Tyler
Willbanks, in 2005, she transitioned from the corporate world to pursue theological studies at
Fuller Theological Seminary, where she earned her Master of Theology. She is an ordained Elder
with the Church of God, Anderson, Indiana, and a doctoral student at Boston University’s School
of Theology.
Service to others is a core value of the Nunes Willbanks family. Kealani’s husband served 28
years in the U.S. Army, concluding his service as Deputy Commander of The Old Guard at Fort
Myer, Virginia. Her son also served with the Caisson Platoon, and her daughter completed her
tour of duty. Rev. Kealani is honored to be one of the first female chaplains of The Old Guard
Association, a permanent organization for all who have served with the 3rd United States
Infantry Regiment (The Old Guard).
Rev. Kealani is a multi-vocational leader with an interracial and interdenominational
background, reflecting her deep commitment to inclusive and fully represented ministry.
Passionate about reclaiming the Indigenous spiritual practice of Kapwa for Filipina/x ministry
leaders, she approaches her work as a journey—deconstructing faith, listening to her ancestors,
and embodying Kapwa in daily practice. These guiding principles shape her doctoral research at
Boston University.
Outside of Foundry, Kealani spends as much time as she can with her kids and granddaughter when
they are in town. She is a West Coast beach lover, enjoying any activity that involves sand,
water, or waves. Rev. Kealani lives in Southern Maryland on the sacred and unceded land of the
Piscataway peoples, with her husband, two corgis, one Siberian husky, and an occasional
boomeranging kid, nephew, niece, friend, or whoever needs a space or sanctuary.
