I graduated from South Christin in 1972 and from Calvin College in 1976 with a teaching degree.  I taught for three years at Valley Christian High School in Bellflower (Los Angeles) California.  I married my awesome wife, Jan, while teaching there and moved back to Michigan when we had our first child.  I taught at West Michigan Christian High School during which time I got my master’s in Education Leadership from Calvin.  I was a principal in our Christian Schools and also worked in development.  For the last fifteen years, I worked for Carelinc Medical Equipment as an accounts manager.  We have four grown children, Candace, Christin, Bill, and David as well as twelve awesome grandchildren.

In a fall of 2021, I started working at South Christian High School as a long term substitute teacher for Mrs. Kim Koetje, and for Mrs. Roberta VanHaitsma. I really enjoyed working in a Christ centered environment. This job brought joy, a sence of purpose and healing into my life; it also allowed me to continue growing in my faith. I love being a part of Moms in Prayer group at SCHS. I currently work with Mrs. Sally Brown’s Enclusive Education Department team. I am very grateful for the opportunity to work at South Christian High School.

During my youth years, I majored in piano at the Music School of Rimskiy-Korsakov in Saint-Petersburg, Russia. I also majored in Early Childhood Education at the Teacher’s College and at the Institute of Childhood at the State Pedagogical University of Gertsen in Saint-Petersburg, Russia.
After coming to the United States, I acquired an Associates of Arts from Kalamazoo Valley Community College, majoring in Social Work and Mathematics. I was honored to be a student speaker at the 80th Commencement Ceremony. I worked with children of all ages throughout my work career. Before coming to SCHS, I was employed at Vicksburg High School’s Math Lab.

Family is very important to me. My husband Matthew and I have been married for 23 years. We have a son AJ (19) and a daughter Anastasia (16). We have three cats named Tigger, Rocket, and Daisy May. My hobbies include gardening, reading, playing piano, and spending time with my family and friends. I enjoy planting trees with my husband; we plant at least one tree a year together.

I am an Orthodox Christian, and I belong to Saint Nicholas Orthodox Church in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

I’ve always felt God has called me to two purposes in His kingdom: be a teacher and be a mom, both of which I have been blessed to fulfill. I attended Cutlerville Christian and South Christian (2009), which I loved and cherish. I decided to attend Michigan State University and earned my BA in English and minor in TESOL (Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages) with a teaching certification. Right out of college and for the last eight years, I taught English at Forest Hills Central High School. I felt God calling me to come back to my alma mater, and while I never expected I would ever be back, I am thrilled. My husband, Ben, a 2004 SCHS graduate and a landscaper, and I have been married for ten years and have three children: Evie, Tessa, and Case, who attend/will attend Moline Christian. We enjoy being outside, camping, playing games, and spending time with family and friends.

I studied piano performance under Carolyn Spindler of The Cincinnati Conservatory of Music and theater under the instruction of Glory Kissel Heyde. I have experience as a concert pianist and scholarship and performance judge. I played Eponine in the 1991 Canadian Tour of Les Miserables and accompanist for the 2012 Greater Lafayette Community production of Gilbert & Sullivan’s The Mikado. I have played the Brickyard 400 pre-race party and was invited to perform at The Indiana Governor’s Ball.

I was Praise & Worship Director for the Kentucky and Indiana United Methodist Conferences and mentor for inner-city youth from broken families living in poverty, ministering through music therapy. I accept beginning to advanced students in piano technique and performance and beginning to intermediate students in vocal technique and performance for theatrical singing. Several of my students have performed the world-renowned Carnegie Hall and community events, competitions, and recitals. I am a member at Cutlerville East Christian Reformed Church.