Elder Candidates
The selection of elders and deacons will take place by casting of lots at the Annual Meeting on September 18.
Lee Brenner - Lee and his wife Marilyn
have been married for 53 years and
have two adult children. They have
attended Calvary since 1999. They
attended the Flock class for many
years and now are involved in the
Philadelphiam Class. Lee has served
on various committees, most recently
the Prayer Garden Committee. He
also joins the Intercessors for prayer
and serves in the Prayer Room during
the Sunday service. Lee has also
served as Elder and usher in the past.
Jim Hoekwater- Jim and Kristie have
been members of Calvary since 1995.
They have been married 25 years and
have been blessed with three children
- Courtney, Tyler, and Jenna. Jim and
Kristie have served as Sunday school
teachers and small group leaders,
and have been involved in Neighbors
International. Jim has served on the
ERT (emergency response team), has
been through Leadership Development Forum (LDF), and is involved in
discipleship. He has served one term
as a deacon.
Noe Palacios - Noe and Karen have
been members of Calvary for 27
years. They have been married for 51
years and have three adult children
and ten grandchildren. Both Noe and
Karen have been involved in leadership and teaching of adult classes
over the years. Noe has had the privilege of serving as elder two terms,
served as a member of the Missions
Outreach Advisory Team and the Strategic Initiatives team. Currently he
leads the Business as Mission effort
for the Missions Department. He is a
spiritual coach and mentor to various
men both at Calvary and abroad.
Steve Rowan - Steve and Nancy have
been married for 46 years and have
been attending Calvary Church for
14 years. They have 3 children and
7 grandchildren. Steve and Nancy
served as missionaries with Wycliffe
Bible Translators for 25 years in
Peru and the US before retiring in
2013. Steve is presently serving as
president of the Ambassadors Adult
Sunday Class. In the fall of 2014,
Steve began serving as a small group
leader in the High School Ministry. In
2015, Steve was as asked to serve on
the Missions and Outreach Advisory
Team (MOAT). Both Steve and Nancy
are involved with Bible studies within
and outside Calvary.
Nate Schmidt - Nate and Sheri have
been married nearly 16 years, and
actually met through the choir and a
short-term missions trip. Their family
has recently enjoyed being friendship
families for Neighbors International
students. Nate has been a member
of Calvary for over 25 years and has
been involved in a number of areas,
including music ministries, LDF, and
Adult Sunday Classes. He has served
as Elder in the past, and currently
assists the Elders and Deacons in
several supporting roles. Some of his
favorite memories have been interviewing new members and serving
those requesting Elder prayer.
pating in the drama team, Festival
of Lights and being a member of the
communion team. He also previously
served a term as an elder. His family
has recently been involved with the
tear down team at Calvin.
Brian Swanton - Brian and his wife,
Nancy, have attended Calvary Church
for 29 years. They have been married for 38 years and have two adult
children and two grandchildren. Brian
and Nancy have been a part of Family
Tree Class for 24 years, since its
inception. Brian and his family have
served on ten short-term medical
mission trips. He and Nancy currently
serve as Marriage Mentors. Brian has
served in the nursery and is presently
involved with the Shut-in Ministry as
well as discipleship and mentoring.
Allen VanHaitsma - Allen & Scherlyn
have been at Calvary Church for 23
years. They have been married 47
years, they have three married daughters, and seven grandchildren, all
who attend Calvary. Allen has served
a small group facilitator, a mentor
in Men’s Leadership Development
Forum, and has served as an elder.
He has served on the Young Adults
Advisory Committee and the Elder/
Deacon Selection Committee.
Vernon Spears - Vernon and his wife,
Angie, have been married for 19 years
and are blessed with two daughters,
ages ten and 13. They have attended
Calvary Church for 16 years and been
members for over nine years. His
involvement at Calvary has included
Monday night Bible study, Leadership
Development Forum as a participant
and mentor, member/facilitator in the
Connect and 24/7 classes, partici-
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