SPEAKER BIOS
Tracy Klicka
Keynote Speaker
Fresh Grace Ministries
Tracy Klicka is a homeschooling mom of seven children, two of which have graduated, with one married, and five teens still at home. She is also the widow of Christopher J. Klicka who was an international pioneer in the homeschool movement, and senior counsel for the Home School Legal Defense Association for over 24 years, and who passed away on October 12, 2009 after a courageous, 15-year battle with MS.
Tracy is a seasoned homeschooler and gifted writer and speaker. For over 15 years, she has addressed thousands of parents at homeschooling conventions and women’s events, has written dozens of articles and has spoken and appeared on televisions both nationally and internationally. Tracy has contributed to her late husband’s several books on homeschooling, and her blog, www.tracyklicka.com, has a regular following of about 3,000. She recently started a new position as Director of Development for the Home School Foundation at HSLDA. Out of many years of great hardship, yet with a steadfast joy and certainty that God is good all the time, Tracy loves to encourage others to put all their hope and trust in a loving God who gives fresh grace for each new day.
Andrew Pudewa
Institute for Excellence in Writing
http://www.excellenceinwriting.com
Andrew Pudewa is the director of the Institute for Excellence in Writing, a homeschooling father of seven, and a grandfather of three. Presenting throughout North America, he addresses issues relating to teaching, writing, thinking, spelling, and music with clarity, insight, practical experience, and humor. His seminars for parents, students and teachers have helped transform many reluctant writers into competent communicators and have equipped educators with powerful tools to dramatically improve students' skills.
Although he was mentored by Dr. Shinichi Suzuki in Japan and is a graduate of the Talent Education Institute, and also holds a Certificate of Child Brain Development from The Institutes for the Achievement of Human Potential in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, his best endorsement is from a young Alaskan boy who called him "the funny man with the wonderful words." He and his beautiful, heroic wife Robin currently teach their three youngest children at home in Locust Grove, Oklahoma.
Dr. Dan Stolebarger
Executive Director of Koinonia Institute
Dan was born and raised in San Diego, California. During his Senior year of high school, Dan came to know Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior.
Early on, Dan had a deep thirst for the Word of God, as well as a desire to be a sold-out man of God. This hunger and thirst provided Dan with a very interesting pilgrimage. It began in an Acts 2-type of Christian commune, where all the believers shared a common purse as well as all things in common. It was during this ten-year period that Dan met his beloved Sharon and was married. Sharon and Dan were blessed with three sons—Lucas, Trevor and Jesse.
Following Dan’s communal experience, he was asked to serve as a co-pastor in charge of Preaching and Teaching at the First Baptist Church of Chula Vista. He remained there until the church asked him to consider planting a new church in a master-planned community in the San Diego area. Dan and Sharon left First Baptist and planted EastLake Community Church. After serving five years there, Dan felt that God was leading him in somewhat of a career shift.
For the next ten years Dan joined Horizon Christian Fellowship and birthed Horizon Junior and Senior High School, where he served as Head of the Bible Department, Athletic Director and Head Football Coach. After ten years, Dan was asked to serve as the Executive Pastor of The Rock Church in San Diego, where he served as the head of the Small Group Ministry as well as the Church Staff Pastor.
During his years at the Rock, Dan met Chuck Missler and traveled with him to Rome, Ethiopia, Egypt, Athens, Malta, and Israel. A relationship was forged and in 2005 Dan and Sharon left San Diego and moved to Coeur d’Alene, Idaho to serve as the Executive Director of Koinonia Institute.
Tim Kern
Chi-Alpha Ministries Helena Director
Chi-Alpha Montana State Representative
Chi Alpha which has 6 campus ministries in Montana. Tim is married to Melissa and they have 5 children and homeschool here in Helena. They pioneered the ministry of Chi Alpha here in Helena 10 years ago and have a passion to reach college students for Christ. Chi Alpha is a national campus ministry organization that is on 280 campuses nation wide. Here at Carroll College, we go by the name College Christian Fellowship
Debbie Holland
King’s High Way Ministries, Inc.
“…Strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.” Matthew 7:14
Born in Washington and raised most of her life in Idaho, Debbie came to know the Lord in college. Directly out of college, Debbie entered the corporate world where she was a well-respected woman in the telephone industry. When her job was transferred to another state, she chose not to follow. She felt the Lord tugging on her heart to take a new direction in her life. She followed what God put on her heart and is very happy in her role as manager of The King’s High Way Ministries, an international ministry based in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho.
Debbie began teaching Children’s Church in 1988 and continued on for six more years. Later, she became a teacher of women’s Bible studies in her church. Debbie, with a heart for the hurting, also began to teach throughout Northern Idaho and Eastern Washington using The King’s High Way materials.
Debbie has a God-given gift of Biblical teaching coupled with humor to make God’s Word practical, understandable and relevant for the times we are living in. She also has mentored, counseled, and discipled many women over the years to a deeper faith and a more intimate walk with Christ, which is her passion.
She has been blessed to teach at numerous retreats and conferences throughout the United States and is known for her passion of conveying God’s Love, Truth, and Will, endeavoring to foster in those she teaches a more intimate walk with the Lord.
She currently resides in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho with her husband, Dave. They’ve been married 36 years. She has two grown sons, Ryan and David, one daughter-in-law, Shannon, and 1 ½ year old grandson.
Morna Gilbert
Focus on Character
www.focusoncharacter.org
Morna and Don Gilbert have home educated their four children through high
school, ages 33, 31, 29 and 17 - over the past 27 + years. Morna's
passionate sharing invites you to be embraced, encouraged, and empowered,
especially in the difficult seasons of life. Learn from this veteran mom how
to make your home school experience a positive learning environment. Morna
speaks all over the U.S., including Alaska, in various venues including home
school conventions, city/county government and businesses, women's retreats
and is an author. Morna and Don have taught character to children and adults
in multiple settings. In recent years Morna has been teaching character and
leadership to home schoolers in several communities in Washington state.
Focus on Character is a family business of over 20 years. Morna has an M.A.
in Leadership/Communication and is the author of "Identity Theft: a Crisis
in Character", "Regenerated Heart", "Damsels...Fighting for True Love", "For
Knights Only", and a 10 week Bible study called "Rebuilding the Ancient
Ruins: Learning the Skill of Tearing Down Strongholds."
Websites are:
www.focusoncharacter.org
blog: www.regeneratedheart.com
email: morna@focusoncharacter.org
Jeannie Penner
Answers in Genesis
Answers in Genesis is an apologetics (i.e., Christianity-defending) ministry, dedicated to enabling Christians to defend their faith and to proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ effectively. We focus particularly on providing answers to questions surrounding the book of Genesis, as it is the most-attacked book of the Bible. We also desire to train others to develop a biblical worldview, and seek to expose the bankruptcy of evolutionary ideas, and its bedfellow, a “millions of years old” earth (and even older universe).
AiG teaches that “facts” don’t speak for themselves, but must be interpreted. That is, there aren’t separate sets of “evidences” for evolution and creation—we all deal with the same evidence (we all live on the same earth, have the same fossils, observe the same animals, etc.). The difference lies in how we interpret what we study. The Bible—the “history book of the universe”—provides a reliable, eye-witness account of the beginning of all things, and can be trusted to tell the truth in all areas it touches on. Therefore, we are able to use it to help us make sense of this present world. When properly understood, the “evidence” confirms the biblical account.
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Arlene Diehl
Home Educator
Arlene served on the Governor's Council on Families, is active in her local church and continues to believe that homeschooling is "not rocket science" for those who desire to do so!
They now have 5 grandchildren, and those of school age are presently being home-schooled by their oldest daughter, Paige.
Steve White
Montana Coalition of Home Educators
MCHE Legislative Liaison
Montana Guide to Home Education Publisher
Steve is a founding member of the Montana Coalition of Home Educators (MCHE). In 2005 he led the effort to defeat legislation designed to severely restrict Montana's current homeschool liberties. Steve created http://www.badbills.com - a website devoted to helping Montanans understand the legislative process. Steve and his wife Pam live outside Bozeman on the family ranch. Their son, Matt, homeschooled for all 12 years, graduated from MSU-Bozeman with highest honors in finance, and now is married and operates a successful internet business. Steve presently serves as a Gallatin County Commissioner.
Rick Jore
Former State Legislator and Home-Educator
Rick Jore, owner of Westslope Trout Company in Ronan, MT. has served 4 terms in the Montana legislature. He and his wife Nancy homeschooled their 5 children (now grown) and of their 11 grandchildren all are being educated at home.