Javier was born in Veracruz, Mexico. His family was very poor, so he was only able to go to school until he was 13 years old.  That year he was given his first pair of shoes so that he could work with the grownups.  In the mornings he worked for their bosses and in the…

Kaela was raised in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, and lived there for 23 years before moving to California in 1976 (mostly to get away from the cold). She has since become a U.S. citizen. Her bookkeeping career started in 1986 when she took bookkeeping classes through Adult Education in Petaluma, CA. She went on to take various…

As a Methodist Michigander, Julie was married into First Pres with Peter Barney in October of 1966.  He had been a member since the mid-1950s, and they were married almost 34 years before Peter’s death.  Julie has been part of various committees over the last 40 years, including membership and two Mission Study Task Forces…