References & Remarks
Troy & Rachelle Rideb
"Our names are Troy and Rachelle Rideb along with our children; Kyler, Malia, Mason and Lauren. Rachelle and I have been volunteers in children's ministries at Church for All Nations for most of our married life. In 2011 my we saw a need in the elementary school ministry at our church so decided to join the team again after about a one-year sabbatical.
Our church had limited funding at the time and could not afford to hire on a full-time children's pastor but was in desperate need of new leadership children's ministries. We were not aware that our church had partnered with Denise, A Hand To Build. Once acclimated back into the children's department we knew immediately that God was doing something new.
Denise started by identifying her resources and then quickly brought organization to our team. When settled into this new routine she began to stretch us by putting us in leadership roles empowering us to idea generate and make key decisions alongside her. If you know Denise, you know that she dreams big!
Once Sunday School was running smoothly she started the stretch again. She knew that the kids at Church For All Nations needed more than just fellowship on Sunday mornings. Out birthed JAM Events. These were family-focused large quarterly events that were not only fun for the families at Church For All Nations but also and evangelistic opportunity to get the community in our doors. This expanded into moving off-site monthly for what she called JAM Street. Reaching the families in the community around the church.
Denise always had one goal in mind…reach people for Jesus. She has and is doing that through A Hand To Build. She walked alongside our church and helped to expand our vision, God's vision, beyond what we could see. She is still heavily involved with helping in any way that she can at Church For All Nations. We have hired a wonderful couple to be our children's pastors opening a new chapter in Children's Ministries at Church for All Nations.
We praise God for sending Denise at His perfect time. We look forward to what God is going to do next with Denise and A Hand To Build." -Troy & Rachelle
Dr. Warren Bullock
As a child in our church, Denise always revealed a heart after God. Now that she is fully engaged in Children's Ministries that same heart is evident. Couple that with her passion to help pastors and churches fulfill their potential, and you have a great combination. We have benefited greatly from her gifts and ministry." -Warren
Rev. Dave Cole
"Denise Geesey was called 15 years ago by God to step out of the boat and into U.S. Missions. Since then, she has passionately and faithfully pursued the Lord and His calling on her life to seek God's heartbeat and to help churches reach their communities with the gospel of Jesus Christ by helping churches to be outward focused and stepping out of the physical buildings to reach the lost. Denise is an effective communicator with a contagious positive spirit that encourages and engages people of all ages and backgrounds. We are blessed and proud to have her in the Northwest Ministry Network as one of our U.S. Missionaries." -Dave
Rev. Brent Kimball
"Denise came to us when our kids' ministry volunteer team needed additional training in order to continue to serve the needs of the kids and families in our community. Our church wasn't in a place to be able to hire a children's pastor so when I heard about A Hand To Build I was very encouraged. Denise worked with our volunteer team for a couple of months. She instilled in them the courage and the tools to be able to take the kids' ministry of our church to the next level. We now have a children's pastor and we are grateful for the role that Denise and A Hand To Build played in the growth of the church.For any church that needs a stronger, healthier kids' ministry, I recommend A Hand To Build." -Brent
Rev. Kevin Geer
"Children's Ministry is a new frontier in many churches today. Denise's ability to help churches navigate the challenges and uncertainties is essential in providing long term health for the entire church. She is a team builder and approaches ministry with a positive and encouraging personality that inspires and influences those she works with. Her years of experience and broad ministry background from small to large churches gives her an excellent background for any church she works with. I have personally seen and been challenged by the commit and resolve Denise has to fulfill the call God has placed on her life to influence churches through A Hand To Build. -Kevin
Rev. Laurence Guisinger
"Jam Street trailer goes to Granger, Washington! We are honored to share information about our successful outreach last summer. This past July Granger Assembly of God partnered with Heritage Church youth from Vancouver, WA to serve the community of Granger. We were blessed and excited to also partner with Denise Geesey of A Hand to Build and have use of the Jam Street ministry trailer. We set up the trailer next to three different apartment complexes in our community so we could do Sidewalk Sunday School. The students worked incredibly hard to ensure that everything was in place and ready for the kids and families to come. Teams of students went door-todoor inviting families to join us for a time of games, music, and food. We gave balloon animals and offered face painting. The outreach team represented Jesus well and was "Jesus with skin on" to those they encountered. We shared a message about the love and hope of Jesus.
We closed out the week by hosting a free, family-friendly event called Family Fest at one of our main city parks. We provided food, activities, and gave away great (continued on next page) prizes every 15 minutes. These prizes were all donated by local businesses. It was incredible! We parked the Jam Street trailer so it could be seen from many directions. We had energetic worship music playing the whole time as our team continued to love on people in the community. One of the most exciting parts of the event was near the end when some kids from the community came and asked if we would do some of the worship songs we had presented at the Sidewalk Sunday School events. We gathered our team and did several songs and had fun praising the Lord in the middle of our community! We were truly blessed to use the Jam Street trailer and hope to partner with Denise and A Hand to Build in the future. This outreach tool could be a great asset to any community event." - Laurence
Rev. Eric Lundberg
"This past summer, during our Accelerate Youth Camp from Abundant Life Community Church in Orting, Washington, we equipped and released 30 students ranging from 6th grade to college age to different parts of our region as evangelists. One of our most effective outreaches was partnering with A Hand to Build and Denise hosting a Jam Street event. This accomplished some amazing things! First and foremost, our students and leaders had the opportunity to share the love of Jesus to people outside our church. This is the heart of evangelism; not building church programs and ministries but truly reaching people with the Good News of the gospel. Second, our students were exposed to a street crusade type of outreach. The Jam Street atmosphere brought a very fun and relatable display of Jesus that was down to earth and easy to engage in for kids and families. It also took away much of the intimidation most Christians, myself included, could be faced with when openly declaring the gospel. Finally, our students walked away with the "I can do this" mindset to carry with them in their personal lives; in their sports teams, schools and neighborhoods. Denise was a great mentor, teacher, and friend to our students and has years of valuable experience and insight to pass on! She is missions minded and demonstrates a heart of compassion for those who need Jesus! Thanks to A Hand To Build." -Eric
References
Darlene Robinson
Church Planters & Developers Director
US Missions of the Assemblies of God
(417) 862–2781 X 3252
drobinson@ag.org
Nick Caalim
Children's Pastor
Life Center - Tacoma, WA
(253) 756-5300
ncaalim@life-center.org
Suzanne Corrigan
Life Christian Academy - Tacoma, WA
(253) 756-5317
scorrigan@life-christian.org
Cal Carpenter
Lead Pastor
Sound Life Church - Tacoma, WA
(253) 531-1412
info@soundlifechurch.org
Troy & Rachelle Rideb
Friend & Co-Lead
Jam Street Outreach - Puyallup, WA
(253) 226-9672
troy@remodelingbyrenewal.com
Dorene Heeter
Children's Pastor
doreneah@gmail.com
Fred Fay
Lead Pastor
Neighborhood Church - University Place, WA
(253) 564-6280
info@myneighborhoodchurch.com
Dave Cole
Assistant Superintendent NWMN
(425) 888-4800
assistantsuperintendent@northwestministry.com
Beth Backes
Credentialing & Pastoral Care Director NWMN
(425) 888-4800
bethb@northwestministry.com
