MEET JEANIE

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How do I describe nearly seventy years of life in a few paragraphs?”

I am a learner and a teacher. I am a grandmother and a doctoral candidate. I am an introvert who deeply loves people. I obsessively clean my baseboards and mop my floors (whether they need it or not) before and after I travel.

I love God with all my heart and treasure my relationship with Him. As I continue to grow, I am challenged in many of my presuppositions—learning new things that are changing me for the better.

I love my family. I was blessed to grow up with parents who loved God and with three amazing older sisters. I was married to a wise, wonderful, godly man for forty-five years, serving alongside him in full-time ministry for all those years. We had three children, and then in 1998, after spending some time in Romania, added a twelve-year-old boy to our family. To my delight, our close-knit family grew through marriages and grandchildren. My beloved grandkids are now in elementary school, middle school, high school, and college. I also have an eleven-year-old boy. He is blonde, furry, and some think he is a golden retriever…but we know he is part human.

Life as I knew it changed quickly when my husband developed Multiple System Atrophy (MSA), a cruel neuro-degenerative disease nicknamed “The Beast.” He determined to live each day grateful, courageous, faithful, and cheerful…and that is how he finished his race in 2019. I had the honor of being his caregiver throughout those difficult years. During those incredibly hard yet sacred times, God stayed near. I didn’t always recognize that— it was a battle, but through the battle I grew even closer to God.

I retired from full-time ministry in 2020. In 2018, I went back to school and received my Masters in Christian Spirituality and Formation and my doctorate in Spiritual Formation and Discipleship. You can read about my academic journey in the “Learning and Teaching” page.

I am a certified Christian Life Coach and am currently gaining certifications in Spiritual Direction and in Grief Recovery. I believe that my practice, “Christian Coaching Plus,” merges all these converging avenues to provide valuable, meaningful guidance and coaching. I look forward to sharing these opportunities and possibilities with you.