Coming home to Messiah has been a blessed experience for the Guenzler family. We are overjoyed that the Lord lead us back to serve in the church where we are charter members. To be a part of the team that has been entrusted by the Lord to move the school to new levels has created much excitement in our home and I am deeply humbled by the opportunity to serve God through this principalship.
After growing up in Affton, I attended the University of Missouri-Columbia, Southwest Missouri State University, the University of Arizona, and the University of Missouri-St. Louis eventually earning two Masters degrees and a Doctorate in Education. I have been blessed to teach at every grade level K-12 (and college undergraduate and graduate levels) as well as serving as a head football coach, athletic director, assistant principal, director of secondary education, and superintendent. I retired from the public school system after 32 years and look forward to serving the Lord at Messiah for many more years.
My wife, Jennie, and I have been blessed with three wonderful children: Carrie, Matt and Trey. All three attended Zion-Harvester and are currently employed as a teacher, construction scheduler and rental car agent, respectively. Jennie recently retired as a Parent Educator after serving 18 years in the PAT program in Francis Howell and Festus.
The first year back in St. Charles County has proven eventful for our family. After all is said and done, we are blessed with a home in Lake St. Louis and are excited reuniting with old friends while making new ones as we continue serving the Lord through the school ministry. The Lord has truly blessed us and we pray that Messiah provides the best opportunities for high levels of learning and Christian growth for all children.
Concordia, MO is where I grew up. I attended St. Paul’s Lutheran School where I was inspired to consider the teaching ministry. Upon graduation from Concordia, Seward in 1972, my husband Don and I had the unique experience of starting Martin Luther School in Phoenix, Arizona, where I taught kindergarten. My teaching experience continued with beginning a preschool at River Roads Lutheran School in St. Louis. After moving to St. Charles in 1985, I became preschool director at Our Savior Lutheran. I later taught preschool at the St. Charles Educational and Developmental Center and also worked with kids K-12 at the Huntington Learning Center.
In 2000, I became part of Messiah’s ministry and began teaching kindergarten. I feel very privileged that the Lord has given me the opportunity to nurture these redeemed children with His Word each day at school. I will be beginning my tenth year at Messiah.
My husband Don and I have three grown children. Melanie, son-in-law John, and grandsons Camden and Carson, and Chris, daughter-in-law Brooke, and granddaughter Baylie all live in St. Charles. Our son Andrew lives in Dallas, TX.
Sewing, gardening, cooking, listening to music and singing with the Missouri Choral Society are all ways that I enjoy life!
I knew very early on that I wanted to spend my life working with children. I greatly enjoyed babysitting as a teen and volunteered every summer to teach VBS. I was raised in Hazelwood, MO attending Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, Atonement Lutheran School in Florissant and Hazelwood West High School. I received my Bachelors in Education from Missouri State University completing my student teaching experience at Springfield Lutheran School. I went on to work for the Francis Howell School District from 1995 until my coming to Messiah in 2005. During my time with Francis Howell I worked with students in grades kindergarten through fifth, special education students and gifted education students. I taught music, art, PE as part of an allied arts program and was also a writing specialist. During this time I earned a Masters Degree from Lindenwood University. I have taught fourth, fifth, and first grade at Messiah as well as PE and Music classes for third, fourth, and fifth grade. I recently completed the colloquy, a series of teacher certification classes for Lutheran educators who did not attend one of the Concordia universities.
In my free time I enjoy digital scrapbooking, cooking, and spending time with friends and family. My husband, Wade, and I have been Messiah members since 1997. We have two sons and a daughter. Ty is in sixth grade, Jake is in fifth grade, and Jill is in first grade.
I have watched the changes and growth of Messiah and its day school over the years and feel incredibly blessed to be a part of this team of professional church workers. Each new school year I am filled with excitement and joy, ready to use my gifts and talents to help the students of Messiah grow closer to their Savior, Jesus Christ, who gives them the strength to work hard and reach their full academic potential.
I was born and raised in the St. Louis area, attending Salem, Affton and Lutheran High School South. I knew at any early age that I wanted to be a teacher and began teaching Sunday School and Vacation Bible School while I was in high school. Upon graduating from Lutheran South, I attended Concordia, Ann Arbor for two years and then finished my undergraduate education at Concordia, River Forest.
My first teaching assignment was at Our Redeemer Lutheran School in Overland, Missouri, teaching kindergarten in the morning and music in grades 1-8 in the afternoon. Since then I have taught just about everything from 2 year olds to sixth grade in North Carolina, New Jersey, Illinois, and Missouri. I've served as part-time organist, children's choir director, elementary hand bell director, preschool director, primary department chairperson, girls' volleyball and softball coach, and supervised student teachers. I've also served on the Program Committee for the Missouri District Teachers' Conference.
When I returned to St. Charles I decided to work on my master's degree and obtained this degree from Lindenwood University. Since then I have received the MOCAPE Educator of Achievement Award, the Emerson Electric Excellence in Education Award, and in 2008 was named the LEA Distinguished Lutheran Early Childhood Teacher of the Year.
My husband, Jim, is an accountant and part-owner of a specialized talent payment service. We have two sons. Andy, an architect, enjoys working with the people of Poland as an EFL teacher. Joe, a web designer/programmer and founder of Three Avocados Coffee, and his wife, Jennifer, a teacher, are also members of Messiah and the parents of our grandchildren, Tim, Ben, and Alexis.
I enjoy working with the children and parents at Messiah. First graders are so eager to learn and do learn so much during the school year. I strive to create a positive Christian environment where the children feel comfortable asking questions, experimenting, and making mistakes as they learn; where children enjoy learning; and where each child can grow spiritually, mentally, physically, socially, and emotionally to his or her greatest potential as a unique child of God.
I am so thankful that God led me to Messiah to teach, fellowship, and praise Him. This is my 18th year of teaching, and my sixth here at Messiah. I have taught kindergarten, first, and second grade, and love working with God’s children.
I grew up in St. Louis where I attended St. Paul’s Lutheran Church and School in Des Peres, and Lutheran High School South. I graduated from the University of Missouri - St. Louis with degrees in Early Childhood, Elementary, and Special Education. I received my Master’s Degree in teaching from Lindenwood University. Teaching has always been my desire, and I especially love sharing God’s word and God’s world with young children.
My husband, Brian, and I have two children. Ellie is a freshman at Lutheran High School, and Drew is in the seventh grade here at Messiah. They both are a blessing to our family and keep busy with sports, books, music, and friends. Brian and I keep busy working in and around the house, enjoying music, theater, sports, and spending time with our friends and family.
I look forward to the year ahead and sharing God’s Good News with the students here at Messiah!
This will be my 9th year of teaching 2nd grade at Messiah. Messiah Lutheran School was my first call after graduating with a Bachelor’s degree from Concordia University in Seward, Nebraska. In 2008, I received my Master’s in Classroom Teaching from the University of Missouri, St. Louis. I knew I wanted to become a teacher when I was younger, but having great Christian role models as teachers in grade school and high school helped me come to where I am today. God has blessed my life with loving parents and good Christian schools. I love working with students at this age because they are so eager to learn. I especially love teaching Christian character and about the love of our Savior, Jesus Christ.
My husband, Steve, and I have one child, Dahlia, who just turned a year old in July. We live in St. Peters with or daughter and two dogs, Bailey and Nola.
In my free time I enjoy outdoor activities, such as tennis, cycling, running and participating in triathlons. My husband and I also love to travel.
I have always enjoyed working with children, even when I was young. Working as a babysitter, a nanny and at the YMCA summer camp brought me to realize I wanted to be a teacher. I began teaching at Word of Life Lutheran School after graduation from Concordia College in Seward, Nebraska in 1989. At Word of Life Lutheran School, I gained experience in many levels including the 3rd through 8th grades, concentrating in math and reading. I enjoyed coaching volleyball, girl’s basketball and cheerleading. I was also an advisor for Student Council and for the Yearbook Committee.
After my two sons were born, I had the opportunity to be a stay at home mom with Joshua and Jacob while also working part-time at Timothy Lutheran Church as a Youth Minister. In 1996, God led me to St. Lucas Preschool for 4 years where I taught Preschool and Pre-Kindergarten and also served as the director of the Preschool Program.
My husband, Tim, is the principal at Lutheran High School North. Our oldest son, Joshua, is attending Xavier University in Cincinnati, OH. He is currently majoring in Education. Jacob, our youngest, is looking forward to the excitement of being a senior at Lutheran North. Both of our boys hold fond memories of their grade school experience at Messiah.
In my spare time, I enjoy reading, creating cards and scrapbook pages, playing games and just about anything I can do with my family and friends. During the summer months our family enjoys traveling across the United States in our camper. This summer we will be spending time in Ohio and New York.
Ten years ago, I began teaching at Messiah with a class of seven 2nd and 3rd grade girls. I have taught in the 4th grade and Kindergarten classrooms since then and now will enjoy working with one of the 2nd grade classes this year. I have personally witnessed how God continually blesses us at Messiah as I have seen it grow. I am so excited for another fantastic year!
I grew up in St. Peters, and was a member at Holy Cross Lutheran Church in O’Fallon. I was fortunate enough to attend Lutheran High School, St. Charles. After graduating from Lutheran High, I continued my education at Concordia University in Seward, Nebraska. Two years into my education, I transferred to Lindenwood University in St. Charles, Missouri where I graduated with a degree in Elementary Education.
Teaching has always been a natural choice for me. I have always strived to gain experience in all areas of education, working with children of all ages and abilities. This led me to an opportunity to work with children diagnosed with Autism. I began working on an ABA (applied behavioral analysis) team in high school and continued to work in this area until my son was born in December of 2004. As I continue my education and pursue a Master’s degree, special education continues to be my focus.
My husband Joe and I have been members at Messiah since 2003. Joe owns a web development firm here in St. Louis called Creative Anvil. We have three children, Tim (6), Ben (3), and Alexis (2). We are excited that Ben will be starting preschool at Messiah this year! I enjoy photography, spending time relaxing as a family, especially outdoors.
I realized that I wanted to be a teacher the summer after my freshman year of college at Valparaiso University. I had always enjoyed working with children through various jobs, and after one year of studying business/statistics I decided I had had enough and changed my major to elementary education. I now realize that it was the best decision I could have made.
I graduated in 2004 and started working at St. Philip Lutheran School in Chicago. At St. Philip I taught 5th-8th grade science and 1st-3rd grade physical education. I am very grateful for the experience I gained at St. Philip and feel that it was a huge step in the right direction for me in my career as a Lutheran School teacher.
My first experience with Messiah was through the website. I was very impressed even before seeing the school or meeting any of the people involved with the school. After coming to church and meeting some of the staff members and parents I was even more impressed and I knew Messiah would be a perfect fit.
I am now going into my 5th year of teaching here at Messiah and I am still loving every day I am here! I live in St. Charles with my wife, Jayceen, and our new son, Asher. We love Messiah and are glad that we have been blessed with such a great school and church.
I moved to O’Fallon with my parents in 1994 and became a member of Messiah in 1995. My wife, Carrie, and I have two children. Madison is going to be a sophomore at Lutheran High and Jackson will be in 4 year old pre-school at Messiah. In my free time, I enjoy watching sports and spending time with my family.
I grew up in South St. Louis where I attended Holy Cross Lutheran School and Lutheran High School South. I graduated from the University of Missouri, St. Louis with a degree in Elementary Education.
This is my fourth year teaching at Messiah. During my time at Messiah I have taught in the 3rd, 6th, 7th and 8th grades. I will be teaching 6th grade this year. Through the years I have taken on various coaching roles. I have coached boys and girls basketball from 5th -8th grades. This year I will be coaching the 7th and 8th grade girls’ team for the third year.
I am beginning my 32nd year of teaching and my 11th year here at Messiah. Wow! I can't believe I've been teaching this long. How time flies! I love teaching, especially teaching Middle School at Messiah. I love the heart and the positive attitude here. I love watching the kids grow and learn and mature. I love the people I work with and the Mission Mindedness of our school. I also enjoy learning more about teaching and keeping up to date on the latest educational theories, especially concerning Language Arts. Over the years, I have presented workshops about teaching writing at the Missouri District Educators Conference and the Southern Illinois Teachers Conference. I have also conducted seminars about teaching writing to several area schools. I love Messiah and look forward to the challenges each year brings.
I met my husband, Rob when we were at college at Concordia, River Forest. We have been married for 33 years and have served congregations in the Chicago area, Southern California, Southern Illinois, and the St. Louis area. Rob is currently a vicar here at Messiah and will graduate from the Sem in February, 2012. We have two children: Julee is 29, lives in St. Louis, and works in Human Resources. Tim is 26, lives in Seattle, WA, and works in the fly-fishing industry. We also have three dogs: a Border Collie mix, Jackson, an Australian Shepherd named Macey and Leo, a small Lhatese, who rules the roost. Noah, Julee's Golden/Lab, also spends a lot of time with us. So, yes, we are the crazy dog people in the neighborhood. My hobbies include scrapbooking, cooking, reading and watching sports, especially the Cardinals. I thank our Lord and Savior for the opportunity to be a part of Messiah’s ministry!
God has opened so many doors in my life-time but none greater than the door to return to the ministry as a called teacher here at Messiah four years ago. As I begin my 4th year here I am truly excited about what God has in store for Messiah, the middle school, and my 8th grade class in this coming year.
The doors God opened for me began with my college experience at Concordia University, Seward, NE. From there He took me to Wright City High School, then to Faith Lutheran Jr./Sr. High School Las Vegas, NV, where I taught along side my wife, then a year at Timberland High School in the Wentzville School District, and then here to Messiah two years ago. In May of 2007 I received my Masters in Administration from Concordia University, Seward, NE. During these eight years of teaching I have taught every level of math from 6th Grade through Pre-Calculus in the high school experiences. I have also coached high school football and track, before coaching middle school cross-country and track at Messiah. These past three years at Messiah have been wonderfully filled with great students, great co-workers in the ministry, and a place of strong faith strengthening. I teach 6th and 7th grade math, Algebra to the 8th graders, along with my other duties as 8th grade homeroom teacher. These are the doors God has blessed me with in my teaching career to this point.
In December 2002 I married my beautiful wife Stephanie who also has middle school and high school teaching experience. She now is a stay at home mom to both of our wonderful boys. Parker is a vibrant and loving 6 year old who loves cars, the Cardinals, and games. He will be in First Grade here at Messiah this coming year. Jack, a soon to be 3 year old, loves to do anything big brother is doing, monster trucks, and anything with wheels. God has blessed me with a wonderful wife and fun loving sons that remind me how truly great God is each and every day.
Some of the extracurricular activities I enjoy are spending time playing baseball, cars, and games with the boys, watching the Cardinals, playing golf, cooking and watching cooking shows, and spending time with my beautiful wife.
I was born and raised on a farm just outside of Napoleon, Ohio and attended St. Paul’s Lutheran Church, Napoleon Township. After high school, I moved to the “big” city and attended The Ohio State University where I earned a bachelor’s degree in Early Childhood Education.
After college, I became a preschool teacher in Mansfield, Ohio. That position lead to becoming the Director of First English Lutheran Christian Day School until our first child was born. After taking 16 years off to be a full-time Mom, I returned to Messiah Lutheran Preschool 2 years ago to teacher 3 year olds. It was an interesting transition back into the working world, even on a part-time basis, but it was also very rewarding! I love spending time with children who think you are smart and wonderful and are full of hugs, especially when I now have teenagers of my own!
While at Ohio State, I met my husband, Tim and we will be married 22 years in September. Tim has been with Monsanto since 1989 and we have moved many times, eventually ending up in the St. Louis area, twice! We were blessed to find Messiah Lutheran Church and School the first time we lived here and were thrilled to return to 2007. God has blessed us with four children. Madison and Harrison are both graduates of Messiah. Madison will attend the University of Missouri to study journalism this fall and Harrison will be a junior at Timberland High School. Kennedy and Grant are excited to be returning to Messiah to attend sixth and fourth grade.
Because our children are involved in theatre, soccer, gymnastics, soccer, baseball and more soccer, we don’t have a lot of spare time! In those rare moments, we enjoy spending time with family and friends. And, of course, we love cheering for all Buckeye sports!
I am so excited to be able to serve God by teaching at Messiah! This is a great school and I am thankful to be a part of a dedicated team of teachers and staff.
I grew up in St. Louis where I attended Christ Community Lutheran School and Lutheran High School South. It was in the eighth grade when I knew that I wanted to become a teacher. It is a great profession to be able to work with children and share Jesus’ love with them.
I attended Concordia College in River Forest, Illinois and have a bachelor’s degree in elementary education. I have taught for 15 years and have enjoyed working with a variety of ages. Children are such a miracle from God! It is so much fun to watch them grow and develop into the special people that He created them to be.
I met my husband, Chuck, in college. He is one of the pastors at Messiah. We love our church and are thrilled that Messiah’s church and school ministry is a united one, centered in living to know and share the love of Jesus Christ.
Chuck and I have been blessed with five children: Janie (11th grade), Shelby (9th grade), Kate (6th grade), Grace (4th grade), and Will (1st grade).
I am grateful for this opportunity to work with the preschoolers and their parents! I know it will be a truly wonderful year!
I grew up in North County and attended Zion Lutheran School in Ferguson. I graduated from Lutheran High School North and feel I received a firm foundation and a heart for God at an early age from attending Zion.
After graduation from Missouri State University, in Springfield, MO, I married my college sweetheart and proceeded to obtain my Master’s Degree in Early Childhood/Elementary Education while working as a Graduate Assistant at Lindenwood University. I began teacher Kindergarten in the summer of 1997 in the Francis Howell school district until I had my first baby.
We currently live in Dardenne Prairie and have four children that will all attend Messiah this year. We love watching football together as a family and spending time with friends.
My hobbies include reading, biking, running, cooking and healthy living. I am an advocate for women’s health and am just thrilled to be back in the classroom.
I am just thrilled to get back into teaching and especially at Messiah Lutheran School. I was born in Staunton, IL and moved to Bellefontaine Neighbors, MO shortly thereafter. I attended Grace Chapel Lutheran School and graduated from Lutheran High School North. I simply loved my teachers at Grace and felt they were excellent role models. I knew I too wanted to be a Christian role model for children and so I went on to Concordia College in River Forest, IL to pursue a degree in Elementary Education. In 1989 I received my teaching degree from R.F., met my future husband John in the school cafeteria, and accepted my first teaching call to Bishop, TX.
I taught a combination first and second grade and was Youth Minister at St .Paul Lutheran School. I then accepted a call to Zion Lutheran School in Harvester, MO as second grade teacher and cheerleading coach. I was thrilled to get back to St. Louis to be close to my family and fiancée. I taught there for five years until Jared was born. I then decided to work part time as a Parent Educator for the Parents as Teachers program in the St. Charles School District. Once our second child Julia arrived 19 months after Jared, I knew being a full-time mom was my next calling. Three and a half years later God gave us Jaclyn and our family was complete.
Watching Messiah grow and seeing its ministries touch so many families in the way my family has been touched the past 16 years, excites me. I look forward to meeting the pre-school families of the children I will be teaching.
I was born and raised in the St. Louis area. As a child, I attended Francis Howell schools and graduated from Francis Howell High. I always knew I wanted to work with children and took jobs as a babysitter and in daycare while in high school and college and volunteered as a nursery worker and Sunday school teacher at church.
I got my degree in elementary education from Lindenwood University. Following graduation, I started teaching first grade at Living Word Christian School in St. Peters. After that, I taught kindergarten, then second grade in the Fort Zumwalt School District in O’Fallon.
When my first child was born, I took time off from the classroom and worked part-time as a parent education in Francis Howell’s Parents as Teachers program. I eventually answered the call to full-time motherhood. Our three children keep my husband, Kent and I keep very busy attending soccer, basketball, gymnastics, and swimming and theatre events.
Now, I am so excited to be back in the classroom after several years as a full-time stay at home mom. I am thrilled to be part of the preschool program at Messiah.
I was born in Gurnee, IL before settling in the St. Louis area. My father is a retired Presbyterian pastor and my mom is a nurse. As the youngest of six kids our home was always busy with kids, music, and activities at the church. My parents modeled the strong faith and inspired me to become a teacher.
I graduated from Westminster College in Fulton, MO with a degree in Elementary Education. At Westminster, I met my husband, Sean. Following graduation, I taught 6th grade Language Arts, Literature and Science for four years at Warrenton Junior High (now Black Hawk Middle School) before becoming a stay-at-home mom to my sons Quinn and James. Before James, I also taught 6th, 7th and 8th grade Language Arts & Literature at Immaculate Conception in Dardenne Prairie for 1 year.
In 2008, we became members at Messiah and enrolled our boys at the school. I feel so blessed to join the Messiah staff. In my free time I enjoy making crafts, fishing, cooking and reading.
What a wonderful first year of teaching preschool I had last year! It was so good being “back home” with our church family.
My Christian background goes back to my grandfather who served the Lord as a Lutheran teacher and principal for 50 years! I attended K-8 at Ebenezer Lutheran in the city (now River Roads), Lutheran High North and Southwest MO State (now MO State). My degree is in elementary education, but my first career job was as a social worker for the state of MO in Springfield. I then taught a year of preschool in Tucson, AZ while my husband was in graduate school, followed by a teaching position in Belleville, IL in 2nd and 4th grades.
For the past 18 years I have been a parent educator in the Parent as Teachers program, as well as being a developmental screener for kindergarten readiness. Through P.A.T. I also have special certification for working with teen moms and special needs families. I love working with parents in discovering their children’s strengths, they are their child’s first teacher!
Tom and I have been blessed with 3 (adult) children, Carrie (soon-to-be son-in-law, Greg), Matt (daughter-in-law, Heather) and Trey. They all live and work in the metro area. Our family loves spending time at our lake house in the Ozarks, this is where we relax and reconnect.
The Lord has put me in such a special place to finish my career in education. I look forward to sharing Christ’s love with your children this year!
I have lived in Florissant Missouri most of my life, but I also lived in Temecuala, California for a brief period of time. I attended Hazelwood Central High School in Florissant where I cheered for four years. I attend Southwest Missouri State in Springfield, MO for two years and then came home to be with my family and graduated from University of MO- St. Louis with a Bachelor’s Degree in Elementary Education. I am very close to my family; I am the youngest of four and I have eight nieces and nephews under the age of 10. Last July I got engaged at Myrtle Beach, SC and just recently got married (August 6, 2011) to my husband, Scott.
I was the afternoon supervisor for the childcare program at Atonement Lutheran School grades PreK3 & 4 – 8th grade. I also was a full time sub at Atonement and taught first grade during a teacher’s maternity leave. Soon after, I began working at Bethel Lutheran School teaching kindergarten and First Grade in a multi-grade classroom for two years. I coached Cheerleading at Atonement Lutheran for grades 5th-8th for three years. I am very blessed to be teaching preschool at Messiah and look forward to meeting both the children and their families!
I was born in Ohio and earned my Master’s degree in Education from Ohio State University. I have been married to my husband Walt for 20 years and we moved to St. Charles about 15 years ago. We have two children, Steven and Brian, and two dogs, Mo and Belle.
Both my mother and my aunt were teachers for over 20 years, so teaching is definitely in my blood! I have taught kindergarten in Ohio, art in Michigan, and sixth grade in Winfield, MO. This is my eighth year teaching art at Messiah and it has been a wonderful opportunity to be able to do something I love at a place where the staff and students are such a pleasure to work with.
When I am not chauffeuring my boys to their various sporting events, I enjoy traveling, photography, scrapbooking, and Buckeye football.
Teaching has been something that I have wanted to do all my life. I realized that I had some amazing teachers when I was young and I hope to be that for the students in my charge.
I attended Eastern Illinois University and majored in elementary education during which time I focused on the elements of working with students of this age. I hope to instill a love for learning in my students and look forward to the inquisitiveness of your average third and fourth grader.
Reading is critical in modern society and I am looking forward to fostering a love of reading amongst not only my students but the entire school as well. If we can encourage students to enjoy and embrace reading, we will be setting them up for future academic success and opening up a world of knowledge and a better ability to communicate.
I just graduated from Concordia University Wisconsin last May with my degree in Elementary Education and have found myself returning to the St. Louis area after 9 years of being away. I actually attended 3rd through 8th grade at Immanuel Wentzville, but moved to Springfield, IL right before beginning high school at the Lutheran High there.
I have loved working with kids ever since I can remember thus my decision to go into education was easy. Outside of school, I enjoy being involved in choir, handbells, cheerleading, theater, and ballroom dancing. I am thrilled to be beginning my teaching career at Messiah.
Messiah Lutheran School • 5911 South Hwy 94, Weldon Spring, Missouri 63304 • 636.329.1096 • school@messiahnetwork.org
