Senior Minister Candidates
Meet Our Candidates

Rev. Dereca Blackmon
Rev. Dereca Blackmon is a licensed minister in the Centers for Spiritual Living where she has dedicated over 25 years of service to the spiritual transformation of the entire planet.
Her sermons, lectures and workshops have provided over 100,000 participants in 20 countries with opportunities to expand their consciousness around issues of inclusion, forgiveness, self-love and radical healing. She has taught the Science of Mind philosophy in a wide variety of settings ranging from teen church to Holmes Insitute. She has delivered over 75 talks at spiritual centers in Oakland, Sacramento, Dallas, Detroit and many others, including serving as the Fall Opening Lecture at Stanford University’s Memorial Church.
Her work is rooted in a tradition of spiritual activism that seamlessly blends spiritual and cultural principles that foster personal and social liberation. Whether her ministry is in juvenile hall or corporate conference rooms, she is committed to providing loving comfort to those facing oppression and “constructive discomfort” to those resting in their societal privilege.
Rev. Dereca served as a lead architect in the effort to organize the Bay Area community response to the murder of Oscar Grant III. After working with the community to mobilize thousands of protestors and holding countless meetings and rallies she began to question the strategy of organizing “against” rather than “for” She entered ministerial school and has never looked back, becoming one of the nation’s leading speakers on spiritual activism.
She served as a nonprofit executive for 20 years, developing nationally-adopted experiential curriculum and raising over $5 million dollars for Bay Area youth. She also served for six years as the Assistant Vice Provost and Executive Director of the Diversity and First-Generation Office at her alma mater, Stanford University, where she introduced groundbreaking work allowing participants to engage in deep, authentic and meaningful dialogues.
She currently serves as President and Co-Founder of Inclusion Design Group, where she has consulted with a wide variety of corporate, educational, nonprofit and community-based groups to facilitate “uncommon conversations” on issues of race, gender, class and social justice. She and her team have supported industry leaders, including LinkedIn, Harvard University, YouTube and many others in activating their vision for diversity and inclusion in their organizations and in the world.
She is the mother of four bold and beautiful daughters who she raised in the spiritual principles of New Thought and who continue to be her life’s best teachers.

Rev. Keven Kadel
Rev. Keven was born and raised in central Pennsylvania. He has a Bachelor of Music from the University of Miami. Following college, he worked in music recording and production, first in New York, then Los Angeles. Along the way, his passion for motorsports lead to his work as a driving instructor, coach, and race car engineer.
Rev. Kev’s spiritual journey began with studying A Course in Miracles with Marianne Williamson. He found his spiritual home at North Hollywood Church of Religious Science in 1999 and became a practitioner in 2003.
Answering the call to ministry, Keven studied at Holmes Institute and then Agape University under Rev. Michael Beckwith, earning a Master’s Degree in Consciousness Studies. Rev. Keven became a minister in 2008 and is an ordained minister with the Centers for Spiritual Living.
Rev. Kev served as a staff minister at his home church in North Hollywood and as a Senior Minister at Monterey Church of Religious Science. Rev. Keven is in his 6th year as Assistant Minister at Vida Spiritual Learning Center, formerly Downey Center for Spiritual Living.
The Science of Mind and Spirit continues to grow Rev. Kev’s consciousness and bless his life. Rev. Keven’s ministry is to share it with everyone and help you live your best life.
Candidating Weekends

Rev. Keven Kadel
March 24 – 26
Rev. Keven’s Workshop is Titled
“The Power of the Aramaic Bible”
Download a PDF Flyer for the Workshop below

Rev. Dereca Blackmon
April 14 – 16
Friday | Saturday | Sunday |
---|---|---|
6 to 8pm Congregation Meet and Greet and Q&A Session | 9 to 10:30am Ministers’ Session | 10:30 to 11:45am Service Talk |
11am to 12:30pm Practitioners’ Session | 1:15 to 3:15pm Workshop (time may adjust slightly) | |
1 to 2:30pm Board Session |