CONTACT:              

Lisa Beech, Associate Director of Publicity

719-536-0100, ext. 3022, lisa.beech@davidccook.com

 

Colorado Springs, Colo., January 22, 2016 – David C Cook (DCC) is pleased to announce that industry veteran Dave Thornton has been hired as vice-president of strategic partnerships. In this role, Thornton will continue cultivating the relationships he has built through the years to serve denominations, churches, associations, and ministries. He will be responsible for building the go-to market strategy for the direct-to-church channel and will work closely with David C Cook publishers and directors for the Learning Resources strategic ministry unit (SMU) as they create curriculum and trade books for the church. Cook recently announced the creation of this new Learning Resources SMU, which realigns the book and curriculum units into one ministry initiative. Thornton will report directly to Chriscynethia Floyd, vice-president of sales and marketing for Learning Resources.

 

Thornton states that joining Cook is a homecoming in many ways, since he started with the company in Elgin, Illinois in 1995. He then worked for many years at Group Publishing in Loveland, Colorado in a variety of leadership roles. Most recently, Thornton served as CEO of Gospel Light in Ventura, California. David C Cook acquired Gospel Light’s curriculum resources in November 2015.

 

Thornton says, “I’m thrilled to rejoin the David C Cook team at this historic time. The addition of the Gospel Light resources and Standard’s HeartShaper curriculum to the powerful lineup of Bible-in-Life, Echoes, Scripture Press, Tru, Rio, Wesleyan, and Accent has created a one-stop shop of the world’s finest Sunday school materials. I’m excited to work with this team to make sure that every church is aware of the distinct advantages that these print and digital resources have to equip them to make disciples and transform families for Christ.”

 

As David C Cook CEO Cris Doornbos says, “Dave’s strategic relationships with ministry leaders and partners will better position Cook to accomplish our Christ-centered mission of transforming lives around the world. His theological, publishing, and marketing experience uniquely qualifies Dave to assist David C Cook as we serve the local Church on a global scale.”

 

Thornton and his wife, Tammy, have been married over three decades and will be relocating to Colorado Springs.

 

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David C Cook is a leading nonprofit organization serving the global Church with life-transforming, Christ-centered materials. Headquartered in Colorado Springs, Colorado, with offices in Illinois, Canada and the United Kingdom, David C Cook’s resources are published in over 150 languages and distributed in more than 160 countries. Originally founded in 1875 as a curriculum publisher, David C Cook today publishes numerous bestselling fiction and nonfiction books from a variety of award-winning authors. It is also a leading provider of worship music through its Integrity Music label, which publishes many of the top songs in the Church, including “Revelation Song,” “Open the Eyes of My Heart,” “Your Great Name” and "I Am Free.” Additional information can be found at www.davidccook.com