Angela Reitsma Bick, Editor-in-chief
Angela Reitsma Bick began writing for Christian Courier in 2002 as a freelancer. After finishing an MA in English Lit from Queen’s University, she taught English at Redeemer University College as an Adjunct professor and served as Director of its Writing Centre for three years. She became Editor of Christian Courier in 2009, having learned English grammar in Moscow, research skills in grad school and everything else on the fly. Her vision is for Christian Courier to give body to a Reformed perspective by exploring what it means to follow Jesus today in our homes, churches and schools; in our neighbourhoods and across this country. She hopes that the shared stories of God at work in the world inspire each reader to participate in the ongoing task of renewing his creation. Angela lives in Newcastle, Ontario with her husband, Allan, and three young children
Arlene Van Hove, Columnist
Arlene Van Hove is a therapist, a mother of four adult children and a grandmother to an ever-increasing brood of delightful grandchildren. She also belongs to the Grandmothers to Grandmothers Campaign, a subsidiary of the Stephen Lewis Foundation, which raises funds for grandmothers who are raising the next generation in countries devastated by the Aids epidemic.As a writer Arlene hopes to provide a comforting voice for all those who struggle with the complexity of life. At the same time, she believes one of the roles of a columnist is to unflinchingly challenge 'the map when it no longer fits the ground.' And while she has less advice for others as she herself is aging, she hopes her columns will encourage her readers to develop questions and answers for themselves that continue to be worth asking and answering in the 21st Century. She is a member of the Fleetwood CRC in Surrey, B.
Bert Witvoet, Contributing editor
Bert Witvoet is a former educator and editor of various magazines, including the Christian Courier, who lives with his wife, Alice, in St. Catharines, Ontario.
Brent van Staalduinen, Columnist
Brent spent six years in the Middle East and Asia teaching, writing, and trying to make sense of the borders people create. A graduate of Redeemer University College and the Humber School of Writers, he is now working towards an MFA in Creative Writing through the University of British Columbia. He works and lives in the Westdale neighbourhood of Hamilton with his wife Rosalee and baby daughter Nora. For more information, follow him on Twitter@brentvans or visit www.brentvanstaalduinen.com.
Cathy Smith, Columnist
Cathy Smith is a member of the Wyoming Christian Reformed Church and a retired Christian schoolteacher. She is married to Mark, a carpenter, and together they have raised three children. They are doting grandparents to four grandchildren. Mark does not attend church or call himself a Christian. Cathy regards their unusual marriage, tried and tested for over thirty-nine years, as a living metaphor for the challenge of Christian discipleship in a world not yet fully redeemed. She feels privileged to be part of the CC team as a contributing editor, participating in this unique community dialogue about following Jesus in this time between the cross and the crown.
Curt Gesch, Columnist
Curt Gesch is a farmer and writer living in Quick, B.C. He is a writer on environmental and agricultural topics. He and his wife Betsey attend the Anglican Church in Quick, which has a wood stove, no electricity, no bathroom, and which seats 33 people.
David Koyzis, Columnist
David T. Koyzis lives in Hamilton, Ontario, where he teaches politics at Redeemer University College. He is the author of the award-winning Political Visions and Illusions (recently translated into Portuguese) and We Answer to Another: Authority, Office, and the Image of God. He is an amateur poet and musician and has been working for three decades on a project devoted to the Genevan Psalter. He is married to Dr. Nancy Calvert Koyzis and together they have a daughter Theresa. David blogs at Notes from a Byzantine-Rite Calvinist and at First Thoughts. He has written a column for Christian Courier since 1990.
Derek Schuurman, Columnist
Derek Schuurman worked in industry for several years as an electrical engineer and has done research in the area of robotics and computer vision. His interest in computers began in his early teens with his first computer, a ZX-81. Besides his technical pursuits, he has taught and written about a Christian perspective of technology. He is the author of a recent book which explores a Christian perspective of computer technology entitled Shaping a Digital World: Faith, Culture and Computer Technology. He has taught computer science at Redeemer University College and at Dordt College. He along with his wife and four children live in Hamilton, Ontario.
Emily Cramer, Columnist
Emily Cramer grew up in the Toronto area and spent most of her twenties living nomadically. She completed her English B.A. in New Brunswick (1999), burned through some existential angst in eastern Ontario and in Scotland, and finally wrapped up a Master’s in Christianity & the Arts in British Columbia (2008). She now lives in Barrie, Ontario with her husband and daughter, where she works as a college Communications teacher and hopes to stay put, at least for awhile. She has been privileged with a number of writing opportunities over the years, such as a summer newspaper column on the natural environment and a novella for her graduating thesis, and is now feeling honoured to be able to explore the next leg of her travels - parenting and family life - with the CC.
Emily Wierenga, Columnist
Emily is wife to a math-teacher husband; mother and foster mother to four boys; an artist, columnist and the author of Chasing Silhouettes: How to help a Loved One Battling an Eating Disorder, Mom in the Mirror: Body Image, Beauty and Life After Pregnancy and A Promise in Pieces (Spring 2014). For more info, please visit www.emilywierenga.com. Find her on Twitter or Facebook.
Heidi VanderSlikke, Columnist
Heidi grew up in the Niagara Peninsula with dreams of becoming a writer. But she took a paying job instead. Working as a bookkeeper led to studies in accounting and credit management, all of which proved to be very practical when she married Jack—her Prince Farming—in 1978. They have lived happily ever after (most of the time) on their farm near Harriston, Ontario. They have three grown children and (so far) one incredibly cute grandson.For the last ten years Heidi has been a columnist for Christian Courier, as well as having written short stories, devotionals and articles for other publications. She is a professional member of The Word Guild.She enjoys the outdoors, animals, photography, reading and motorcycles. She and Jack have ridden to Canada’s east coast and through various parts of the US, including the Florida Everglades. They hope to one day take their bikes across Canada to British Columbia. In the meantime, she continues to write about what she loves best—faith, family and farm life.
Julia Stronks, Columnist
Julia Stronks has practiced law and is the Edward B. Lindaman Chair at Whitworth University, affiliated with the Presbyterian Church U.S.A. She lives in Spokane, Wash.
KATHY VANDERGRIFT, COLUMNIST
Kathy Vandergrift (kathyvandergrift@rogers.com), a public policy analyst, brings experience in government, social justice work and a Master’s Degree in Public Ethics to her reflections.
Kenny Warkentin, Columnist
Kenny Warkentin after working several years as an urban missionary with Living Waters Canada and Exodus International is now an associate Pastor. Kenny is passionate about issues regarding relational wholeness, gender and sexuality and has written numerous columns on those issues as it pertains to the Body of Christ. He is married to Paula and they have a daughter Phoebe. Paula and Kenny are both avid artists and they have showcased their work in various venues. Paula is a spoken word poet and Kenny is a photographer and painter. The are passionate about marriage and travel and share their testimony throughout North America.
Lloyd Rang, Columnist
Lloyd Rang works in communications and is a member of Rehoboth CRC in Bowmanville. Back to the top
Marian VanTil, Columnist
Marian Van Til is a former C.C. editor who lived in Canada from 1975-2000. She now freelances for journals and writes books, the second of which, Confessions of a Cataholic, will be released later this month. Marian is also a classical musician and the music director at a Lutheran Church. She and her husband, Ed Cassidy, live in Youngstown, NY.
Meindert VanderGalien, Columnist
Meindert was born in The Netherlands in 1949. The family immigrated to Canada (The Ottawa Valley) in 1953. He’s a life-long cattle farmer, enjoys traveling, reading, writing, gardening, bush work in the winter cutting firewood and country life. He’s been a columnist since 1987 writing for many newspapers and is currently the bulletin editor at Hebron CRC in Renfrew, where he is a faithful member.
Monica Kronemeyer deRegt, Features Editor
Monica Kronemeyer deRegt joined the Christian Courier editorial team in January 2015. She recently moved from Ontario to Abbotsford, B.C., with her husband and three children. From a very young age, Monica has been drawn to the written word, both as a form of expression but also as a conduit for ministry. She believes that everyone has a story to tell, and that God’s story is shared through our stories. Monica grew up in northern B.C. and graduated from The King’s University College in Edmonton, Alberta. In addition to writing and editing, Monica loves reading (especially out loud to her children every night!), cooking, learning, singing, and exploring new places with her family, although she is known to be left behind reading every single plaque and trail marker and information poster along the way! Monica invites readers to contact her with ideas for the Features pages, and looks forward to exploring together with the Christian Courier community what it means to follow Christ in every part of the story of our lives.
Peter Schuurman, Contributing Editor
Peter Schuurman has been writing for the CC since 1997 in various capacities. Some of his journalism displays his training in ethnography—the art of writing about people from interviews and participant observation. He lives in Guelph, Ontario, with his wife Joy and three young children. They attend New Life Christian Reformed Church, where Peter has served on the Preaching Team. He also serves as adjunct professor in the Religion and Theology department at Redeemer University College. As of spring 2016 he received his Ph.D. for research into megachurches, specifically a leadership study of The Meeting House and its pastor Bruxy Cavey.
Rachel Baarda, Social Media
Rachel Baarda grew up in the St. Catharines area, where she wrote her first story for Christian Courier when she was ten years old. She has a B.A. in English from Brock University and an M.A. in Communications from the University of Ottawa. She also is social media coordinator for the Evangelical Fellowship of Canada. When she's not doing social media online, she enjoys writing for Christian Courier and other publications.
Rudy Eikelboom, Columnist
Rudy Eikelboom, a Professor of Psychology, has now been on the dark side of the University as Chair of the Psychology Department at Wilfrid Laurier University for five years, and his hair is considerably grayer. He is proud of his two children and three grandchildren (soon to be four). A member of the Waterloo Christian Reformed Church, he serves on the Waterloo Campus Committee. Despite all these activities, he still enjoys working with rats when he can find some time.
SARA POT, COLUMNIST
Sara Pot is a new columnist with CC. She lives in St. Catharines, Ont. with her husband, four daughters and their golden doodle; she welcomes conversation and feedback to thepotfamily@gmail.com.
Sonya VanderVeen Feddema, Freelance writer
Sonya VanderVeen Feddema is a freelance writer living in St Catharines, Ont.
Tom Wolthuis, Columnist
Rev. Tom Wolthuis is a minister in the Christian Reformed Church.
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