BLAZE TEACHERS

Coming Soon...

Coming Soon...

Matt and Ginny serve as the Theater and Adulting 101 teachers for Blaze. This fabulous husband wife duo met and fell in love in the Baylor University Theatre Department. Both graduated with Bachelors of Fine Arts in Performance. Matt and Ginny are faithful members of First Montgomery and are always willing to serve in any capacity needed.  Matt and Ginny have two adorable children who are the light of their lives.

Dr. Mandelin Cooper is a double board certified pharmacist who has worked for one of the largest for-profit hospital systems for more than 15 years. Mandelin has published more than a dozen articles in Medical Journals and has presented at National Medical Conferences for Infectious Diseases. She is considered an expert in Infectious Disease Pharmacotherapy and Antibiotic Stewardship working with various organizations, health departments, and the CDC. She has helped train dozens of pharmacists and physicians. The Coopers have been attending First Montgomery since 2018, volunteering with the children and youth ministry. Mandelin started homeschooling her children in 2021 when God made a way for her to stay home with them. She has been married for 21 years to her amazing husband Ronnie Cooper. They have two incredible children Julia and Angela. In addition to homeschooling, she continues to work part time as a pharmacist, lead Girl Scouts and has started a business helping individuals with Medicare and Insurance. Mandelin is excited to join Blaze and see where God will lead her next.

John graduated from Sam Houston State University in 2007 with a Bachelor of
Science in Physics, with a minor in Mathematics and Music.
He and his wife have lived in this area for fifteen years with their three children
and their miniature dachshund Mollie. His wife has homeschooled their
children their entire lives, and they are big supporters of the homeschool
lifestyle and community. They are members of the Montgomery First Baptist Church where John is a deacon. He also enjoys helping out in the church’s sound booth on Sundays. 

Stephanie graduated from Sam Houston State University, specializing in Reading and Language Arts. She and her husband John are parents to three terrific children ages 6, 11 & 13. Stephanie’s quick wit, love for music, nature, and of course books make her the perfect fit for this class! Her passion for teaching and acceptance of multi-sensory styles of learning is sure to bring words to life for all students in her class! When not in the classroom at Blaze, Stephanie enjoys spending time with her family, volunteering in various church ministries, gardening and playing games!

Courtney loves spending time with her family and serving in her church. She has many hobbies that she adores such as tending to what she affectionately calls her micro-backyard farm. Courtney went to school for agricultural education, photography, and of course sewing. Courtney remembers the first time she held a needle and thread, was at about 8 years old while learning how to cross-stitch a little red heart from a Girl Scout leader. She recalls, "I don't remember how much after that little red heart sewing-wise in the Girl Scouts, and I did not pick up sewing from that particular moment. However, that little red heart set the stage for what would later become an ignited passion."

Coming Soon...

Pastor Chris and his wife Marci came to First Montgomery in December of 2015 after he was called to ministry while on a mission trip in El Salvador. His background had been in Information Technology, having received his bachelors in Computer Engineering from Texas A&M in 1996. While at A&M he met his wife Marci, who was studying Elementary Education. Chris and Marci married in 1996 and have 4 children: Grace,Clay, Laura, and Emma. Pastor Chris went on to earn his Master of Divinity from B. H. Carroll Theological Institute.

Terri Ingram has a heart for pouring into others about what God has done and is doing in this life. She has been married to Darrell for 28 years and has a daughter, Noel. Terri homeschooled Noel who graduated in 2023 from Blaze and is thriving in College. Terri holds a BBA in Marketing from Sam Houston State University. Previously, the Ingram’s served the Lord overseas as Missionaries for 15 years amongst Muslims throughout Central Asia. Upon returning to the U.S., she has been a Pre-school Science teacher since 2017. She has served in her church in the areas of children, youth and young adults for the past 7 years. She loves exploring God’s creation and is excited about doing that with Blaze students.

Wade and his wife Sherri have been married for 21 years and have 2 children, Kalea and Evan. The Johnson’s first came to First Montgomery in 2019 and they have volunteered in various areas of the church including youth and men’s ministry. Wade has been involved in public education for over 8 years and earned his bachelor’s degree in emergency administration from Arkansas Tech University and his master’s in educational administration from Lamar University. Along with his experience in education, Wade has almost 25 years as an EMT and paramedic in Texas. Wade has a high view of education, with an emphasis on teaching with a Christian worldview.

Ashley lived in rainy Seattle, sunny California, and the Deep South, but she loves calling Texas home! She and her husband have two little girls, Alice and Amy Jane. Her undergraduate degree is in Secondary Education and she has a master's degree in Professional Writing from Liberty University. She loves books and her library card (really, all things related to reading and writing!) and she's excited to bring some Sam Houston spirit to Blaze. Eat 'em up, Kats!

Aya has been drawing for as long as he can remember.He still has artwork from when he was in grade school, and through middle school and high school. In middle school, his art instructor changed the way that he approached and looked at his artwork. Taking those words and advice into his work created a huge change in his skill and technique. He wants to pass those things onto the next generation of artists. He is a firm believer in "To break the rules of art, you must understand the rules first", where to really learn how to draw anime art, you need to know basic anatomy. "Everything in life can be broken down into squares, triangles and ellipses", learning how to recognize shape theory and apply it to your art is crucial for understanding and recreating design.I specialize in concept art, anime characters, creatures, logo design, and more. He is still learning landscape drawing and drawing plants. He has always wanted to pass on what he's learned to students that couldn't normally have access to instruction. Please feel free to visit his online portfolio at www.conceptengineerdesign.com.

Paul Moon currently serves as Associate Minister with First Montgomery and has been a public school teacher since 2010. He began teaching at The Colony High School where for two years he taught Algebra I, Geometry, and English I in the Special education setting as well as Dyslexia I. He taught World Geography, Honors World Geography, and AP Human Geography at Conroe High School for 13 years and served as Geography Team Lead for 3 years prior to leaving CHS. Paul graduated from East Texas Baptist University with a BA in Religion and a minor in Sociology. He also completed coursework at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in the fields of church planting and Christian school education.

Texas History comes to life with Suzette Moore! Ms. Moore is a retired educator of 30+ years and is an all-around Texas history enthusiast. She has taught Texas history across multiple settings including public school and privately. Her goal is for each student to gain a sense of pride and understanding of their own rich, local history while exploring the vast Texas history that surrounds us all!  When not exploring the great state of Texas, Suzette loves spending time with her grandchildren, gardening with the local Montgomery County Master Gardeners, and volunteering in the preschool ministry of her church. Suzette’s vast knowledge is a blessing to all our students.

Kay moved to Montgomery in 2002.  She has taught ESL at First Baptist Church Richardson and has served as an Assistant Director with United Cerebral Palsy for both Montgomery and Harris Counties.  Kay joined First Montgomery in 2016.  She is no stranger to missions; she has served on West Conroe’s Mission Committee, Greeter Ministry, and Special Needs Ministry.  She has also served on the Board for Family Promise. Kay readily admits, “Serving others in need – that is how God’s been using me.  That’s who I am.”  She has four children, ten grandchildren and eight great grandchildren.

First and foremost, she gives all glory and praise to God for the blessings and talent He has given her. She was born and raised in East Chicago, Indiana which is where it all started: in the back allies behind her parents’ home. She began shooting hoops in a garbage can, then a bicycle tire rim, and finally on to a real basketball goal which was nailed to a telephone pole.
Supported by her family, friends, teammates and the City of East Chicago, she developed the fundamentals skills necessary to compete on the highest level possible. She played basketball at E.C. Roosevelt High School in Indiana where we won 2 State Championships and had a 4 year record of 91 and 2. In 1979, she was named Ms. Basketball which was the highest honor in the state of Indiana bestowed upon high school players. She went to California State University at Long Beach on a four year scholarship, broke many records which still stand today and graduated with a degree in physical education. She continued on to play overseas for 8 years and once scored 99 points in a single game. Feel free to Google her for more honors and awards that she received throughout her career. She is a firm believer in Jesus Christ, who is her Lord and savior, and she is a member of The Ark Church in Conroe, Texas. She has three wonderful children and five precious grandchildren. She has lived in Montgomery, Texas for 11 plus years where her business, Fundamentals of Basketball, began. She loves basketball and loves teaching basketball, but most importantly, she loves ministering to the children about how God blesses her to help them learn and grow!

Kelly has lived in Montgomery for the past 11 years. She's been a homeschool mom for the last 4. Kelly has 11+ years of Sign Language interpreting experience and has enjoyed watching her students learn and develop new skills that have transferred outside of the classroom. She is excited to bring that knowledge and more to Tiny Hands (ASL for grades 2-5) at Blaze!

Laina will be teaching both of our choir classes (2nd-5th grade and 6th-12th) at Blaze! As a homeschooling mom for over 18 years, she's combined her passion for music with education. Her journey began in early childhood, diving into music studies, she went on to become a piano teacher and certified voice teacher. Alongside her family, they've nurtured a vibrant music academy in Montgomery since 2010. She firmly believes in the transformative power of music education, seeing it as a catalyst for holistic learning. Her ultimate goal is to foster a culture of worship among students, enriching every facet of their lives.

At an early age, Karley’s love for nature started to take root in her life. As time went on, her passion for the great outdoors overflowed into the desire to learn more about the wildlife species of Texas. Karley is currently a sophomore in college pursuing a degree in Wildlife and Fisheries Management. Karley is very active in her church community at First Montgomery Baptist Church where she volunteers in children’s Sunday school and hosts a junior high girls’ discipleship group. When not studying or enjoying nature, Karley enjoys baking cookies, listening to music, and spending time with family members and friends. Her favorite hobby to date is car restoration. She is diligently restoring a 1965 Chevy Truck—which she hopes complete within the next year.

Mrs. Stinebaugh is a lover of Christ, her family, and teaching. She is passionate about patterns and teaching the joy of seeing these patterns in math! She has been married for 25 years to her best friend and has been gifted with 3 daughters, ages 19, 16, and 14. Mrs. Stinebaugh has a BS and MS from Texas A&M. She has had the privilege of teaching high school mathematics in the public school system for 6 years and afterwards (while raising the girls) tutoring math through Sylvan Learning, with three homeschool cooperatives, and through her own company, Stinebaugh Math Masters, for the last 19 years. With the gift of teaching so many, she strongly believes all students can succeed and can love mathematics if they are given the right tools and have a teacher that is excited to show them the beautiful patterns that create the world of math!