Meet the Staff Rev. Mark Wenger - Pastor Bethany Lutheran Church & School “How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know Him.” 1 John 3:1 Welcome to Bethany Lutheran Church and School. I have been serving as Pastor of Bethany Lutheran Church since January, 2007. Our mission at Bethany is to share the Gospel so that others may come to know the love of our heavenly Father and be called the children of God. The school is one of the avenues we use to share the Gospel with the students and their families. I pray that you and your children will be blessed by our ministry to you as we are blessed by your involvement in the school and church. If there is a spiritual need within your family, I stand ready to assist in any way, and invite you to contact me. (office 316-265-7415 or home 316-788-8878). May God’s grace and peace be yours in Christ Jesus. Pastor Mark Wenger Miss Barbara J. Mertens - Principal & M orning Kindergarten e-mail: barbmertens@cox.net I received my Bachelor of Science Degree and Lutheran Teachers Diploma from Concordia College in Seward, Nebraska in 1993. I received my degree in Elementary Education with a concentration in Early Childhood. My master’s degree is in Administration that I earned from Concordia University in Seward, Nebraska in 2008. I taught first grade for three years in Greeley, Colorado, at Trinity Lutheran School. In 1996 I accepted a call to Messiah Lutheran Preschool as their preschool director. I taught preschool for 12 years. During those twelve years and by the work of God’s people, Messiah Lutheran School opened an elementary school in addition to the preschool. I served as the Principal and part-time teacher. I am currently the Principal and part-time kindergarten teacher at Bethany Lutheran School. I have16 years experience in Lutheran Schools. I am from Sioux City, Iowa, where my parents currently reside. I have a brother Bruce, who lives in Janesville, Minnesota with his wife and three children. My other brother, Michael lives in Sioux City, Iowa with his wife and two children. I enjoy reading, traveling, walking, and the great outdoors. I also have a passion to work with parents and educators implementing a discipline plan in the home and schools as a Love and Logic National Facilitator. I am an active member of Bethany Lutheran Church. You can reach me by phone at Bethany Lutheran School 316-265-3033 or by e-mail. Mrs. Sonja Genke- Afternoon Kindergarten Teacher e-mail: sjtgenke@juno.com In 1994 I received my Bachelor of Arts in Elementary Education. After graduating I married Quentin Genke and we moved to St. Louis, MO. While in St. Louis he attended Concordia Seminary. I worked as a secretary at Lutheran Hour Ministries before teaching third grade at Atonement Lutheran School. We spent a year in Illinois during Quentin’s internship. While there I taught fourth grade at St. John’s Lutheran School. After his internship we returned to St. Louis and I taught first grade at Atonement Lutheran School. Quentin’s first call was to Grace Lutheran Church in Peotone, IL. I was able to teach third and second grade at Green Garden Elementary. It was in Illinois that I received my Master of Arts degree from Governor’s State University. Life changed for us in 2001 as Quentin took a call to Cross of Christ Lutheran Church in Greensboro, NC. At that time we were in the process of adopting our oldest daughter. Anticipating her arrival, I choose to stay home and be a mom. We were able to bring Atanaska home from Varna, Bulgaria in June of 2002. God surprised us with another daughter, Annika, in January of 2006. After much prayer and discussion my husband joined the Air Force as a chaplain. Our first assignment brought us to McConnell AFB in November 2009. Our family has enjoyed exploring Wichita and getting to know the Bethany family. If you would like to speak with me, please send an e-mail or give me a call at 316-519-5816.
Ms. Kelli Williamson- Preschool Director & Teacher e-mail: kelliwilliamson3@yahoo.com Welcome to Bethany! God has blessed you with the awesome gift of a child, I hope you consider sending them to Bethany, if you are not doing so already. Before joining the staff at Bethany, I owned and operated an in home daycare for 23 years. God has blessed me with with seven wonderful years of working with preschool children here at Bethany. I received my Associates Degree in Early Childhood Education from Cowley County Community College in 2001. Currently, I am attending Southwestern College to receive my Bachelors Degree in Elementary Education. I have been wonderfully blessed with four children, Stephanie, Ashley, Brittanie, and Dominic. Stephanie and her husband, Trishan live in west Wichita., Ashley attends WSU and is a manager at GNC. Brittanie attends Friends University, plays soccer, and in her spare time works at GNC. Dominic, my only son, attends school here at Bethany. I have been a lifelong member of Bethany Lutheran Church and School. My entire family including parents, siblings, nieces, nephews, great nieces, and great nephews attend Bethany as well. If you would like to set up a time to visit or have any questions about Bethany Lutheran School's Early Childhood Programs, please contact me at 316-265-3033 or you may reach me via e-mail. Mrs. Patrica Wenger- 1st & 2nd Grades e-mail: mpw1972@hotmail.com Welcome to Bethany Lutheran School. God has entrusted your first or second grader into my care. This is my third year at Bethany. I came to Bethany via my husband's call to serve as shepherd of Bethany Lutheran congregation. Most of my teaching years have been spent in the primary grades. I have also taught sixth and seventh grade English. I received my teacher training at Concordia University in Seward, NE. Mark and I met while we were both students at Condcordia. Upon graduation, he received a call to serve as a Director of Christian Education in Minnesota. I taught in a two room Lutheran school, grades 1-4. While serving in Minnesota he was encouraged to go into the pastoral ministry. So with our three week old daughter we embarked on the adventure called "seminary". Mark received a vicarage assignment in Saskatchewan Canada. During a pre-call interview during our last year Mark said he would return to Canada if it could be closer to the mountains. So we were sent to Alberta, Canada. While in Alberta, I taught pre-school two mornings a week. After returning from Canada I returned to full time teaching. I served at St. John's in Hannibal, MO, Messiah Lutheran in Independence, MO and Timothy Lutheran in Blue Springs, MO. I received my Masters Degree in Curriculum and Instruction from Central Missouri State University in Warrensburg, MO. My passion in teaching is seeing the light come on when a child says I CAN READ! Reading can open the doors to so many adventures!! My other passion in teaching is learning more about ways to help students who have learning challenges. Mark and I have been blessed with four children. Joy and her husband Matt live in Houston, TX., Karl and his wife Amy presently reside in Topeka, KS, but are trying to sell their home to return to MO, Derek and his wife Christa live in Grain Valley, MO and Bryce is finishing his Air Force National Guard Training and will be returning to MO. One of our hobbies right now is traveling to visit our children. I enjoy reading, walking, and cooking. I value developing a partnership with parents of my students. Please don't hesitate to contact me with concerns or blessings you want to share. I can be reached at school, my cell phone: 316-616-4491.
Mrs. Karla Ohmie- 3rd - 5th Grades e-mail: five.ohmie@yahoo.com I began teaching at Bethany in 1993 after graduating from Concordia University in Seward, NE. I taught grades 1 and 2 for five years and then kindergarten for two years. During my first few years of teaching I met my husband John who is also from Bethany. We started a family and then decided that I would stay at home and focus on raising our children. We've been blessed with three children: Brandon - 12, Krystal - 10, and Alyson - 7. And this summer we added a one year-old Black Lab/Bordie Collie named Barkley to our household! Mrs. Jodee Dunkel- School Secretary & Website Administrator e-mail: jodunkel@yahoo.com What a blessing it is for me to have been serving the students and their families at Bethany Lutheran School since 2004. Bethany is what I consider to be my second home. I grew up at Bethany. My grandparents were founding members of Bethany. My father attended Bethany Lutheran School. My parents were married at Bethany, and I was baptized at Bethany. I also attended school at Bethany in the late 1970's to the mid 1980's. I graduated from Friends University in 2005 with my Bachelor's Degree in Business Administration. My husband and I were married at Bethany in 1993. He works for the Wichita Police Department, out of Patrol South. We have three children, Cody, Kimberlee, and Kaitlynn. In my free time, I enjoy spending time with my family, surfing the web, swimming, and maintaining the Bethany Lutheran School Alumni Facebook Page and Facebook Group. What really thrills me about working at Bethany is that we are a family, God's family. I think of the students as my own children. I give them band-aids when they need them, and take their temperatures when they are sick. My favorite part is the excitement on their faces when they come to my office to show me the tooth that they just lost, and to claim their "special tooth box". I enjoy watching them grow from young preschoolers to bright students who are ready to enter middle school. You can contact me with any questions you may have about Bethany Lutheran School at 316-265-3033 or via e-mail. May God richly bless you and keep you in His grace!
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