Denny Nissley

Dr. Denny Nissley, founder and executive director of Christ In Action (CIA), a faith based nonprofit 501-(C)(3) organization founded in January of 1982. Dr. Nissley is a published author. Dr. Nissley and his wife, Sandy, have been married for 31 years and are Certified Marriage Specialists (CMS) through the National Association of Marriage Enhancement (NAME). They have completed two levels of Critical Incident Stress Management (CISM) training: Assisting Individuals in Crisis (AIC) and Pastoral Crisis Intervention (PCI) through the International Critical Incident Stress Foundation (ICISF). The Nissleys also have Diplomas of Practical Theology from Christ for the Nations Institute (CFNI), Dallas, TX.

Denny & Sandy sit on the Roundtable for the White House Office of Faith Based and Community Initiatives for Disaster Response. They have led teams of volunteers in response to numerous disasters providing relief through practical acts of service and hope through the message of the Gospel. Since 1998, the Nissleys have responded to devastating tragedies at home and abroad including: the Tsunami in Sri Lanka, 9/11 (Pentagon & New York), Hurricane Katrina, Virginia Tech, California Wild Fires, Hurricane Ike, Haiti, Alabama, Outer Banks, Pennsylvania, Virginia.

After the Nissleys contributed to the Katrina "Lessons Learned" report to President Bush in November 2005, the White House asked them to form a loose knit coalition of faith based individuals and organizations to respond in a time of disaster. Out of this they initiated the Faith Based First Responders and developed a series of training conferences. The Nissleys also serve on the Faith Communities In Action (FCIA) Steering Committee for Fairfax County and CIA has provided CISM training for the FCIA Chaplains Corp with the Fairfax County Office of Emergency Management. The Nissleys also participate with the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments (MWCOG) Bi-Annual Chaplain trainings, and Denny helped with the training at Ft. McNair in 2008.

The Nissleys have 11 children and currently reside in Northern Virginia.