Getting to Know Us – February / The Kerins

Meet the Kerins, our Getting to Know Us featured couple from FaithMates for the month of February.

Names: 

Peter & Wendie Kerin

Ages: 

33 & 31

Where were you born: 

Downer's Grove, IL (Peter) & Atlanta, GA (Wendie)

How long have you been married:

Peter: Going on 5 years

Wendie: 4 years

Children:

Katelyn (Katie), 19 months

1. When did you first know s/he was the one?

Peter: 

I knew Wendie was the one when looking at my life only really made sense if she was a part of it.

Wendie: 

I knew Peter was the one about 4 months into dating. He was always there for me and just knew in my heart that he was the one, so when he asked me to marry him I definitely said yes.

2. Desribe your spouse in one sentence.

Peter:  

Wendie is an extremely caring mother and patiently loving wife.

Wendie: 

Peter is loving, caring, funny, a great husband and wonderful father.

3. What is your current job? What is your dream job?

Peter:  

I am a product development manager in financial services for the world's largest prepaid processing company. My dream job would be an entertainment director on board a cruise ship. I would love to plan fun activities and sail around the world. Since I'm married with a young daughter, I don't see that happening anytime soon.

Wendie: 

I am currently a stay at home mom. I would love to get back into teaching one day and working in a preschool.

4. Any hobbies?

Peter: 

I like to play basketball in the mornings after working out at the gym. I also like to go recreational shooting.

Wendie: 

Mostly spending time with my family

5. If you could have a day by yourself, what would you do?

Peter: 

Most likely I would go to the shooting range since I have to be by myself. Otherwise, I would probably spend it playing with my daughter.

Wendie: 

Relax at home and go get a massage.

6. What are some of your goals for the year?

Peter: 

My main goal for every year is to grow stronger in my faith and learn something new each day. I also would like to find ways to be a better husband and father. I would like for us to take another family vacation this year to do something Wendie and I haven't done before.

Wendie: 

To spend more one on one time with God and become a better wife and mother.

7. What is your biggest pet peeve of your spouse?

Peter: 

Uh-oh, this question is a trap. I would have to say she is messier than I am so that is probably my biggest pet peeve of Wendie.

Wendie:  

How he playfully picks on me all the time.

8. How long have you attended Mt. Bethel?

Peter: 2 1/2 years

Wendie: 4 years

9. How would you describe FaithMates Sunday School class?

Peter: 

We joined the class about a year ago. The class is definitely an interesting collection of couples. There is a wide range of personalities and histories. I think more than anything the class is very close and has a deep seeded faith in Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior.

Wendie: 

A fun loving group of people who are strong in their faith and can relate to each other through their own experiences.

10. How has being a part of FaithMates helped your marriage?

Peter: 

More than anything being a part of the class has challenged us to be better spouses and parents. it has been great to openly communicate with other couples who have similar experiences in their lives and know that you don't have to be alone in exploring your faith.

Wendie: 

The marriage studies have helped me think on how to better communicate with my husband. Having other couples who I can relate and talk to has also helped.

Getting to Know Us – January / The Sutherlands

Happy Monday everyone! This year we have decided to feature a couple in our class each month on the blog, so that you can get to know the FaithMates better! Our first couple are the Sutherlands, our class presidents. Enjoy!

Names: 

Mark & Karen Sutherland

Ages:  

35 (Mark) & 31 (Karen)

Where you born: 

Both in Dalton, GA

How long have you been married: 

Karen: 6 Years in August

Mark: 5 Years, 5 months & 17 days

Any children: 

Katherine (Kate) 15 months

1. When did you first know s/he was the one? 

Karen:  

In the Scout Hut circa 1990 (he and my brother were in the same boy scout troop and I took it upon myself to stalk him at every opportunity).

Mark: 

Karen and I have known each other for a very long time, and even before we started dating I always had a great feeling about her, a subtle but unmistakable feeling that she was special.  I can't remember a specific event that convinced me she was the one, but I would say that after we had dated for about 6 months I knew she was someone I could spend the rest of my life with. 

2. Describe your spouse in one sentence. 

Karen:  

Mark is a fun-loving outdoorsy type who has a great sense of humor, a compassion for others, and is an amazing father.

Mark:  

Karen is amazingly beautiful inside and out, she is smart, genuine, has an awesome sense of humor, and cares incredibly about those in her life.

3. What is your current job? What is your dream job? 

Karen: 

I'm an outside sales rep for a 127 year-old luxury textile company.  I call on interior designers in Metro Atlanta and present fabric, wallcovering, and furniture. 

Mark:

I am currently  a partner in my family's business which owns and operates three bowling centers in Indiana.  Most of my time is spent identifying & implimenting intiatives to improve our company's operating efficiency, identifying & creating new revenue streams, monitoring the company's financial performance, and handling human resources issues.   It's a relatively small company (around 60 employees) so I wear many "hats", and I'm relied on to address a wide range of issues. 

My dream job would be to earn a reliable, lucrative living as a professional outdoor guide.  I love the outdoors, and getting paid handsomely (or heck, just getting paid) to take people back country camping, mountain biking, canoeing/kayaking, fishing, or snow skiing would be a job I would never get tired of.  I hope this is something I might be able to do in retirement, lucrative or not.  As an aside, being in the outdoors is when I feel closest to God, and really hear him speaking to me. 

4. Any hobbies? 

Karen: 

Snow skiing, ballroom dancing (although it's been a long time), playing guitar and spending time with my hubby and daughter.

Mark:
Ha!  I don't have much time for hobbies any more, but as I said above I love the outdoors.  The activities I described in my dream job are things I have grown up doing with my family and friends, and continue to really enjoy today when I get the opportunity.  Another hobby I rarely have time for anymore but enjoy doing is playing the cello.  I also love going to UGA sporting events, Braves games, and playing the occasional round of golf.  

5. If you could have a day by yourself, what would you do? 

Karen:  

I'd have to get away from my house so I wouldn't feel the need to clean....in a perfect world I would spend it at the spa...and that spa would be in the mountains!

Mark: 
I would head to a white water river in the mountains, set up camp, and spend the day playing on the river by boating and fishing.    

6. What are some of your goals for the year? 

Karen:  

I'd love to figure out how to better balance being a wife and working mother. 

Mark:

• My main goal is to change jobs in the coming year.  
• Karen and I want to move closer to the Church

7. What is your biggest pet peeve of your spouse? 

Karen: 

THE PILES!

Mark:
Her obnoxious knuckle cracking  

8. How long have you attended Mt. Bethel? 

5 years 

9. How would you describe FaithMates Sunday school class? 

Karen: 

We have an amazing class.  Together we have experienced some of life's most wonderful milestones and have grown in our faith in the process.  We like to have FUN!

Mark: 

A fun loving, christ centered group of believers. 

10. How has being a part of FaithMates helped your marriage? 

Karen: 

We've started to focus on the things in life that are truly important.  The marriage studies have helped us better communicate with one another as well.  

Mark: 

I think the biggest way FaithMmates has helped our marriage is by the wonderful examples our classmates set for us as in terms of healthy, christ centered relationships.  The studies we have done have deepened our spiritual relationships with God, and in turn, deepened and enriched the way we relate to one another.

New Year, New Officers!

At the end of every year, our FaithMates class has elections for the new year. This is a chance for people who don't currently hold positions to put there interest out there to become an officer, or just for everyone in the class to nominate who they think would be good for each position.
Well, we have some new officers for 2012! Below are the names of who will be filling each position for 2012.

Presidents: Mark & Karen Sutherland
Vice Presidents: John & Katie Adkisson
Secretary: John & Lauren Hanley
Social: Prem & Jenna Shetty
Treasurer: Brad Crowe
Missions: Amy Goodman and Peter & Wendie Kerin
Class Care: Katie Brenckle, Lane Friel & Jacqui Heslep

New Room

Faithmates Sunday School class will now be meeting in the library / media center, on the first floor of building F, across from the elevators. See you there!

The Faithmates have been busy!

Wow, we haven't updated our blog in a while (sorry)!
One of our biggest updates is that we recently had the 18th annual Habitat Road Race on Oct. 1st. This was the first year that the Faithmates took over the organization of the race and the fundraising for the 2 habitat home builds our church does every year. Our class did a fabulous job! Everyone put a lot of hard work into it, and it really showed. You can see photos, info, etc... on our website or facebook page.
Below is a video of our very own Lori Eason enjoying some jazzercise before the race! :)

The dedication for the habitat homes is on Oct. 29th. We will be there to welcome the families into their homes, as well as present them with many gifts that were donated. Great job Faithmates!

August Birthdays & Anniversaries

We've been out of class for a few weeks, so the usual weekly email (which includes birthdays and anniversaries at the beginning of every month) has not gone out in a while. I thought I would recognize our Birthdays and Anniversaries via the blog this time around :)


Birthdays
8/3 Ashley O'Neil
8/5 Julie Mehelic
8/9 Brad Crowe
8/20 Wendie Kerin

Anniversaries
8/4 Justin & Lori Eason (4 years)
8/12 Mark & Karen Sutherland (5 years)
8/17 Prem & Jenna Shetty (3 years)

Preparation for the Habitat Race!

The race day team met this morning and went over the course with Lloyd, from the previous group that organized this race. We talked about set up and take down, the 5k, tot trot, and 1 mile fun run courses, improvements for timing, how to organize the time sheets, etc....
There is a ton of work that goes into this! We are so happy that we have a fairly large class to help out with all of it – it really is going to take everyone's help! And we'll need a lot of volunteers to help run it on the day of the race as well (on top of all the pre-race fund raising and advertising we've been doing), so let's start recruiting!!