Elder
Board
2025-26 //
Board of
Elders
The spiritual leadership of Blackhawk Church, under the headship of Christ, is provided by the Board of Elders consisting of four to eight lay elders elected by church members, and the senior pastor.
John Smalley (Chair)
John Smalley is a native of Evansville, WI, and a 1981 graduate of UW-La Crosse. He and his wife Barb met on a blind date in Mason City, Iowa, and were married in 1985. They have four adult children: Rachel (Mike) Lamps, Andrew, Emma (Erik) Olsen, and Abigail, and three grandchildren, Elizabeth and Brandon Lamps, and Joyce Olsen. After a 40-year career working at newspapers in the Midwest (Mason City, La Crosse, Carbondale, Ill. and Madison), John retired as editor of the Wisconsin State Journal in August 2020 and does some occasional freelance writing and editing. Barb, originally from Dayton, Iowa, has been very involved with BKids over the years, and John and Barb have enjoyed leading (now hosting) a Young Adult Community Group in their home in Verona on Sunday nights for nearly 10 years.
Kyle Buchmann
Kyle Buchmann was born in Spooner, Wisconsin and received his BBA from the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire. Kyle met his wife, Leah, in college and they married after graduation. The couple spent three years in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and three years in Eau Claire, Wisconsin prior to moving to Madison in 2012. Kyle is a Senior Vice President of Development at the University of Wisconsin Foundation where he focuses on assisting alumni and friends of the University in making an impact with their philanthropic gifts. He is active in the BKids Launch Ministry, men’s community group, and leads a Blackhawk Fitchburg Community Group with Leah. The couple has three children: Owen, Addison, and Ezra.
Matt Cranney
Matt Cranneygrew up in Liverpool England, and moved with his family to Perth in Scotland, before heading back to Liverpool University to complete his degree in Political Science. He met his wife Amanda in Schladming, Austria while on a soccer-based mission trip where she was studying at the Taurenhoff Bible School. They married in April 2005 and began life together in Madison, where Amanda had studied and called Blackhawk Church home during that time. Since moving to Madison, Matt has served Blackhawk in many roles, including leading in College Ministry, Emerging Leaders, Welcome Team and BKids. He and Amanda attend Brader Way and lead a Community Group together. Professionally, Matt is an Executive Vice President at M3 Insurance, where he focuses on building and leading teams, developing client experiences and strategic planning. Matt is motivated by the opportunity to develop people to their fullest potential, and to see the ripple effects in the world from those people who have the chance to lead with care, kindness, and authenticity. Matt and Amanda have three children, Cole, Jude, and Macie.
Tom Crenshaw
Tom Crenshaw grew up on a small family farm in west Tennessee. Tom’s wife, Connie, is also a native of Tennessee. After completing graduate degrees in animal nutrition at the University of Nebraska, Tom and Connie moved to Wisconsin in 1980. Tom is motivated by research and enjoys
opportunities to engage and advise students in his research and teaching position the UW Department of Animal & Dairy Sciences. Tom and Connie’s two adult children and their spouses have blessed them with seven grandchildren and one grand-son-in-law. Blackhawk has been their church home since 1999. In addition to serving Blackhawk as an Elder, Tom and Connie have enjoyed serving together as community group leaders, marriage mentors and greeters. Connie currently serves on the Care Response Team.
Dan Hummel
Dan Hummel was born into a missionary family, spending some of his childhood overseas and eventually ending up in Colorado. He met his wife, Veronica, in high school and they both attended Colorado State University, where Dan earned two degrees in History. They moved to Madison in 2010 so that Dan could pursue PhD work in American religious history, which he completed in 2016. After fellowships that took the family out of Wisconsin and then back again, Dan now works at the Stephen & Laurel Brown Foundation, directing the Lumen Center (located at Upper House), which includes writing and speaking about his areas of expertise in American religion, culture, and politics. Veronica works at Blackhawk as an Associate Director of Spiritual Formation. Together they have been part of Blackhawk since 2010 and have served in various roles including as Community Groups Leaders. They attend the Brader Way site. Dan and Veronica have three young boys: David, Jack, and Benjamin.
Tiffany Litscher
The first Bible verse Tiffany Litscher ever memorized as a child was John 3:16— and God’s love for the world has shaped her faith ever since. That love became even more personal after studying abroad in Seville, Spain. Struggling with reverse culture shock and a deep sense of disconnection, God used that season to draw her back to Him—and to Blackhawk Church, where she found renewed community and belonging. For over 20 years, Tiffany has served at Blackhawk in many roles, including leading women’s bible study groups, serving in multicultural ministry, and volunteering with Global Impact, BKids, the Welcome Team, and LOVE Madison. She has a passion for cross-cultural relationships and encouraging others in their walk with Jesus. Professionally, Tiffany leads a consulting firm that helps values-driven organizations build healthy cultures, cohesive teams, and strong leaders. She previously worked globally with credit unions to expand access to affordable financial services in underserved communities. Tiffany and her husband, John, met through Blackhawk and have two children, Addy and Conner. Together they enjoy traveling, the outdoors, and spending time with family and friends.
Ella Mae Matsumura
Ella Mae Matsumura was born in San Francisco and completed her undergraduate degree at the University of California, Berkeley. Her husband, Kam-Wah (Kam) Tsui was born in Hong Kong. Ella Mae and Kam met in graduate school at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, Canada and married in 1977. They have one adult son. Kam and Ella Mae moved to Madison in the fall of 1980 when Kam joined the faculty in the Statistics Department at UW-Madison, where he worked until his retirement. In 1985, Ella Mae joined the Accounting Faculty. in the UW-Madison School of Business, and served as the School of Business Senior Associate Dean of Academic Programs before retiring from the university in 2021. Ella Mae and Kam have been members of Blackhawk since 1982. Ella Mae has served as an elder at Blackhawk, and also served as a deaconess, member of the Finance Team, and member of the Audit Team. Kam and Ella Mae share a love of music and reading. Ella Mae also enjoys gardening.
Jenny Zimmermann
Jenny Zimmermann was born and taised in Marshfield, WI. She and her husband, Phil, met while volunteering together at a Christian camp in northern Wisconsin. Jenny went to the University of Minnesota, where she earned a dual degree in Global Studies and Spanish, and she earned her law degree from the UW. Phil and Jenny were married soon after college, in 2004, and moved to Madison less than a year later. Jenny currently works for a migrant justice non-profit that facilitates cross-border, cross-cultural collaborations with US lawyers and lawyers/other advocates in Mexico and northern Central America in order to tackle specific transnational barriers on legal cases. She previously worked in legal services representing migrant and immigrant farmworkers, and speaks fluent Spanish. Phil is an internal medicine physician and currently runs his own weight loss and diabetes consulting practice. Jenny and Phil have been a part of Blackhawk since late 2012. Jenny has served with Impact ministry, in various ways relating to immigration and on the Bolivia Go Team, and is planning to begin serving in BKids to help meet the need for bilingual volunteers. Phil played guitar with worship arts for several years. Jenny and Phil have two boys, Ryan and Cam, and they enjoy being active outdoors together, including hiking, biking and cross-country skiing, both in national parks across the country and in Wisconsin. Jenny also enjoys growing a vegetable garden and backyard composting.