Home School Ministry Leaders

Ministry Leaders:

Susan Richey – Group Leader
Contact Info: (916) 580-3492 or

My name is Susan Richey and I have been going to Bridgeway Christian Church since 2006. I have been fortunate to marry my best friend, Keith, who I have known since 7^th grade. We have three beautiful children (Kyle, Makenna & Chase) whom I have been homeschooling since 2008. My husband and I are involved in the Family Ministry Leadership here at Bridgeway, facilitating parenting classes and helping to equip parents with tools that create family unity and educate the importance of heart training in their children. That is the sole reason as to why I feel God called me to homeschool…discipleship. I started this journey asking “God, how can I shape your children more like you?”, but ultimately God has changed and created a new heart in me!

Mindy Pena - Secretary/Treasurer
Contact Info:

My name is Mindy Pena and my family and I have been going to Bridgeway Christian Church since 2009. I am married to my high school sweetheart Mike and we have five amazing kiddos, Brandon 17, Mikey 10, Annika 8, Joshua 5 and Mason 3. In 2005, my husband and I decided to homeschool our younger kiddos (our oldest was in a private Christian school) because it just kept pressing on our hearts. Originally, I thought it was just for our kids’ well being, but now I realize that God was orchestrating some amazing things for our/my life as well through this crazy adventure we call homeschooling! After three years of homeschooling, our oldest has now joined us in this adventure. I look forward to an amazing year with this group and cannot wait to see where God leads all of us on this wild adventure of His!

Kristine Shadle – Monthly Support Meeting Coordinator
Contact Info:

My name is Kristine Shadle and my family and I have joyfully called Bridgeway our home for a year and a half now. I am enjoying volunteering in Kidsway Ministries (preschool) and I am thrilled to be taking on a new position in the Homeschool Support Ministry Group as the Monthly Support Coordinator. I am a wife to my wonderful husband (Matt) of 10 years and I am blessed to be the mother and homeschool teacher of two incredible, beautiful daughters (Alexis, 8, and Brooke, 4). For years my husband and I were opposed to homeschooling (I even debated it once in a speech class!). Thankfully, God completely changed our hearts and our focus; now after completing our first year of homeschooling, we feel so blessed that the Lord is guiding and encouraging us on this amazing journey.

The Bridgeway Homeschool Support Ministry has been such a blessing to us over this last year. I am truly looking forward to sharing our love and enthusiasm with other homeschool families and getting to know each and every one of you!

Jodi Montgomery – Older Kids Group Coordinator
Contact Info:

Hello my name is Jodi Montgomery and I am fairly new to California. We moved from Indianapolis in April of 2009, where we had spent two years exactly. We were thrilled when my husband's job transferred him back to the West coast as we are from Eugene, Oregon. My husband, Brad, and I have been married 19 years in June of 2010. We feel so blessed to see God's hand in finding a location to settle down in and a wonderful church home! We have two children whom have only ever been homeschooled and love it. Payton, our daughter, will be entering 9th grade this fall and Cooper, our son, will be starting 5th grade. My prayer is that God will use me and my experiences in life and homeschooling to encourage other women as they endeavor to pursue God, support their husbands, and love on their children!

Sharon Gould – Younger Kids Group Co-Coordinator
Contact Info:

Brenda Johnston – Younger Kids Co-Op Co-Coordinator
Contact Info:

My name is Brenda Johnston and I have been attending Bridgeway since early 2010. I’ve been married to Tim for 10 years and we have been blessed with three children: Paige, Faith and Seth. My husband and I felt God calling us to investigate homeschooling before our kids were potty trained. I went to multiple conferences to see what it was all about and was hooked! We finished our first “official” year of homeshooling in the Spring of 2010. We love the flexibility and opportunities for growth that having our children at home provides.

Kelly Wheeler– Youger Kid's Co-Op Co-Coordinator
Contact Info:

Hi my name is Kelly Wheeler and I have been attending Bridgeway for one year. I was introduced to my husband through a friend when I was a junior at Duncanville High School in Texas and we have been together ever since. We have been married for 12 years and are blessed with 2 sons Riley (8) and Harley (5), and a daughter Aubrey (2). This will be my second year homeschooling my oldest son and I will also be adding in my Kindergartener this year as well. It is by the grace of God, His wisdom and through encouragement from friends in the Bridgeway Home School Support Group that I find the courage to persevere in this adventure. Two benefits I have discovered in homeschooling are freedom and peace of mind as we allow the Lord to lead us. I am often hesitant to be in a leadership role since I am comfortable hiding behind the scenes, but here I am, as the Lord gently tugged on my heart to serve on this team. I am looking forward to loving others in this group and forming lasting friendships as the Lord takes me out of my comfort zone this year.

Rhianna Rowe – Librarian
Contact Info:

My family and I have been attending Bridgeway since Spring 2009. My husband and I have been married for 9 years this summer and we have 4 precious daughters who are 5, 3, 2, and an infant. We will begin our adventure this year officially homeschooling our oldest daughter and unofficially homeschooling the others that want to participate. I love learning and teaching and am very excited to be able to pass that enthusiasm on to my daughters through homeschooling. We chose homeschooling for our family so we could create learning experiences that are tailored to our children's interests and participate in enriching activities they might not be able to experience otherwise. I have always loved books and reading and for some reason love data entry and organization so managing the library sounded perfect. I also serve on the Kidsway Check-in Team, have served in the nursery at the last two years of VBS, and participated in the Friday morning women's bible studies.

Kelly Skinner – Special Events Co-Coordinator
Contact Info:

Hi my name is Kelly Skinner and I have been married to Rick for 17 years. We have three children, two boys ages 12 and 14 and one daughter age 7. We have been homeschooling for three years and have also attended Bridgeway for three years. This is our first year with Bridgeway Homeschool Support Group and we are excited for this opportunity and what this year has in store for us!

Melanie MacPherson – Special Events Co-Coordinator
Contact Info:

I have been attending Bridgeway with my family since August 2007. Following my lay-off from a successful selling career in veterinary pharmaceuticals my husband, Bruce, suggested I homeschool our two kids, D.J. and Summer. While I thought he had lost his mind, God quickly made it very clear that was exactly what He had planned for my life and had been working on my heart for quite a few years. Eight years later my relationship with Him has grown tremendously. Currently, my kids are in fifth and sixth grade and we’ve never looked back! God has used our homeschooling journey to teach us about Him, family and priorities as much as, or more than, He’s used it to teach my kids to read and write. This year, I look forward to working with new homeschooling families as they face this sometimes overwhelming journey but often times has incredibly rewarding experiences!