Gary & Jennifer Blevins moved to Wichita from Council Grove 10 years ago. He grew up in Edgar, Nebraska, and joined the Army after high school. Gary served as a firefighter for 34 years in the Army and retired 10 years ago as a fire chief. He is now a “happy househusband,” as he puts it. Gary has two daughters who live in Charleston, SC, and four grandchildren. Jennifer grew up in San Jose, CA, and joined the Army in 1997. She was active for four years and was first stationed at Ft. Riley. She then served 20 years in the Army Reserves, working as a firefighter and a heavy equipment mechanic, retiring in 2022. She now works for the Department of Defense as a heavy equipment inspector and takes care of her widowed mother, who lives next door. Jennifer was baptized at Northside in October. She is a big Nebraska football fan and, in her spare time, enjoys repairing cars for several widowed friends. In Council Grove, Gary & Jennifer lived in a house on a lake and had a boat and boat dock behind the house. They enjoyed fishing most days from the dock or the boat. They also love going on cruises (13 so far), usually in the Caribbean. Gary & Jennifer have been married 17 years.
Zarya Ketterman was baptized at Northside on November 1. (“Zarya” rhymes with “area.”) She’s a good friend of Brooklyn Scott, who invited her to attend Family Camp this year. That weekend experience with several hundred Northside members convinced Zarya that she wanted to know more about God and the church. Zarya lives in El Dorado and graduated from Circle High School in 2023. In school, she was big into sports. She almost went to state in bowling, she played first base on the softball team, she played post on the girls’ basketball team, and she played on the offensive and defensive lines for the football team! Zarya worked in the school tech lab and thought she wanted to get into cybersecurity, but after a year of college studying computers, she has decided that’s not for her. She is the head cook at the Thunderbird Grill in Towanda and has worked there for two years. Zarya enjoys reading and working out at the YMCA with Brooklyn, who she met her senior year when they were in a photography class together. Zarya has a brother at Fort Sill going through Army basic training and a sister who lives in Wichita. She has already gotten involved at Northside, helping to clean up after Family Fellowship Meals. She also attended this fall’s ladies’ retreat and plans to help Jamie Womack with the bookstore at the 2025 Women Walking with God conference.