Elders
Russell Beene
Russell Bene was born May 7, 1953 in Magnolia, Arkansas and moved to West Monroe, Louisiana with his family in 1961. He met Sue (Pectol) while they both were working at Camp CH-YO-CA Christian Summer Camp. Russell and Sue married on December 28, 1973 and moved to Lubbock. He graduated from Lubbock Christian College in 1976 and began teaching school and coaching athletics. Presently Russell and Sue are school teachers in Lubbock and have directed White River Youth Camp for over 16 years.
They have been members at Sunset for close to 30 years, they have three daughters who attend Sunset and they have five grandchildren.
Don Click
Don Click was born November 24, 1952 and raised in Big Spring, Texas. He met Sheila while attending Broadway church of Christ Bible Chair. They were married December 1, 1978. He graduated from Texas Tech University with a degree in Engineering Technology. Don joined IBM in March 1976 and is currently a Project Manager for internal projects.
Don and Sheila have been at Sunset since December 1978. He served as a deacon for a number of years before becoming an elder in October 2007. They have two daughters, Allyson, born in 1986 and Kelli, born in 1989. They both graduated from Lubbock Christian School and both are attending Harding University.
Don’s favorite verse I John 5:13. He enjoys woodworking and his favorite foods are Mexican and Italian.
Bob Crockett
Bob Crockett was born in Mobile, Alabama, on November 11, 1941, however, he grew up in El Paso, Texas. He graduated from Abilene Christian University.
Bob met his wife, Jan, at the Montana Street congregation in El Paso. They married August 28, 1964. They have three sons, Cliff, Kevin and Steve. Cliff and his wife, Karen, have three children, Daniel, Katie and Benjamin. They live in Dallas. Kevin and his wife, Jenny, have two daughters, McKenzie and Kerrigan. Steve and his wife, Kathy have two daughters, Calley and Madison. Both Kevin and Steve, along with their families, attend Sunset.
Bob and Jan have been members at Sunset since 1977. Bob has been an elder in his current tenure since 1993. He was also an elder from 1986-1988.
One of Bob’s favorite scriptures is Philippians 4:13. Bob is the owner of a commercial real estate business. His hobbies include tennis and golf. His favorite foods are Mexican and Italian.
John Epperson
John Epperson was born May 29, 1951 and raised in Pampa, Texas. He attended Lubbock Christian University. He and Becky met at LCU, married on December 21, 1971, and soon moved to Houston where John attended U.T. Dental School in the Medical Center. After 2 years in the U.S. Air Force, they returned to Lubbock to live and start their family.
John and Becky have two children, Travis and Cassie. Cassie's husband, T.J. Randers, has joined John in dental practice. Travis is married to Hollie, and is completing his education at Baylor Dental School in Dallas.
John has been an elder at Sunset since May of 2000. He and Becky married at Sunset and have a long family history and involvement at the congregation. John's favorite scripture is Ephesians 2:4-10.
Some of his hobbies are reading , sports (especially basketball), and aviation. His favorite foods are most anything Becky cooks. Becky and John like to travel in the United States.
Edwin Foster
Edwin Foster was born in his parents’ home at Wilson, Texas on April 21, 1935. He was raised on a farm and graduated from high school at Wilson. He met his wife, Mary Alice, at Wilson and they were married May 26, 1956 right after she graduated from high school. Edwin attended Texas Tech and graduated in 1959 with a degree in Textile Engineering.
Edwin and Mary Alice have three daughters: Peggy Agnew, Debra Dickson and Jana Snyder. They have 8 grandchildren.
They have been members at Sunset since 1995.
Edwin’s favorite scriptures are I Timothy 5:8 and James 3:13-18.
Mike Gaylean
Mike Galyean was born September 2, 1951 in Bentonville, Arkansas. His family moved to Grants, NM in 1965, where he graduated from high school in 1969. Mike’s parents moved to Hobbs, NM in 1971, and he met Charlotte there in 1972. Mike graduated from New Mexico State University in May 1973, and they were married in December 1973 after she completed studies at Abilene Christian. They moved to Stillwater, OK, where Mike attended graduate school at Oklahoma State University. After completing a Ph.D. in Animal Nutrition in 1977, they moved to Las Cruces, NM, where their three boys were born. They lived in Las Cruces for 13 years before moving to Clayton, NM to an off-campus research center for 6 years. In 1998, the family moved to Lubbock, where Mike works as a professor at Texas Tech. Their oldest son, his wife, and daughter live in Carrollton, TX. Twin sons (one married and one single) live in
Cincinnati, OH, where they attend graduate school.
Mike and Charlotte have been members at Sunset since 2010. He enjoys teaching adult Bible classes, trout fishing, driving his old cars, and spending time with Charlotte anywhere, but particularly in the mountains of northern New Mexico.
Steve German
Steve German was born June 27, 1957 in Amarillo, Texas and grew up there and in Dumas. He met Libby at the Sunset building in the east foyer where Jim McGuiggan held a class that was too large for most of the building classrooms. Libby grew up in Hobbs, New Mexico and graduated from Harding University. Steve graduated from Lubbock Christian University in 1979 and received his Ph.D. from Texas Tech University in 1997.
Steve and Libby have three children, Gerianne and Gina, both students at Lubbock Christian University, and Cody who is a sophomore.
The Germans have been members at Sunset since the early 1980’s; Steve has been active with the Children’s Education ministry and the Missions ministry.
Steve’s favorite scripture is I John 1:5-7 and he enjoys teaching adults.
Kirby Huffman
Kirby Huffman was born on October 30th, 1943 in San Antonio, Texas. He grew up near Rochelle, Texas in McCulloch County on a dairy/livestock farm. He met Lynn on a blind date for a football game at Texas A&M during the fall of his senior year. He has a Bachelors of Science degree in Dairy Science and Agronomy and a Ph.D. in Plant Physiology. Kirby served as an Infantry officer in Vietnam and later served in the Texas Army National Guard for 9 years.
Kirby and Lynn were married on August 27th, 1966. They have three children: Kathy Crockett of Lubbock, Kip Huffman of Lubbock and Karin Kuykendall of San Angelo. They also have 5 super grandchildren: Calley and Maddy Crockett, Bill Huffman and Sam & Kaitlin Kuykendall.
Kirby has been a member of Sunset from 1994 to 1996 and from 1998 to present. He has been an elder since July 2011.
Kirby enjoys working with livestock and hunting. His favorite foods are any of the great meals his wife cooks, especially chicken fried steak and venison with gravy.
Bob Jackson
Bob Jackson was born in Prescott, Arizona where he lived until 1961. He attended Abilene Christian University two years and then transferred to Texas Tech University were he earned a Bachelor of Architecture degree. He and Sandy met at the Texas Tech Bible Chair. They were married in Lubbock on July 2, 1965. They have three children and five grandchildren. Children include Cassandra Massie and her husband, Chad and sons Josh and Noah; Menda Lippe and her husband, James and daughters Jenna and Macy and Chris Jackson and his son Ryan.
Bob and Sandy attended SIBI (SSOP at that time) in 92-93 and then worked in full-time ministry in the inner-city of San Antonio for four years before coming to work for the school in 1997.
Bob has been a member of Sunset since 1997. He was appointed an elder in April 2005.
His favorite scripture is Romans 8:38-39. His hobby is restoring antique automobiles. His favorite foods are roast, prime rib and fudge.
Stuart Jones
Stuart Jones was born in Dimmitt, Texas, on January 1, 1936. Stuart received a Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering from Texas Tech and later received a Masters in Chemical Engineering with a nuclear engineering focus in 1963 and a Masters of Bible and Ministry from LCU in 1998. Then in 1998 he received his Doctor of Ministry degree. He married Cecilia on September 6, 1958 and moved to Port Arthur, Texas. They have four children - Dana Marie who lives in York, Nebraska with her husband Tod and son Matthew; Melanie Carol who lives in Austin with husband Tim and three daughters Kendra, Geneva and Audry; Virginia Gayle lives in Lubbock with her daughter Heather and Harold Dean lives in Dallas with wife Brett and children, Mackenna, Graydon and Bay. They moved to Cape Town, South Africa as vocational missionaries in 1966. They returned to the states in 1982 and then moved to Lubbock to begin Senior Adventure in Mission in 1994.
One of Stuart’s favorite scriptures is Psalm 19.
Stuart’s favorite food is tex-mex with curry and rice a close second. Hobbies include cooking, writing, reading, travel and fixing things. He loves to study and teach.
Sam King
Sam King was born in Las Vegas, Nevada, on September 27, 1948. He grew up in Dimmitt, TX. He married Lue Jane on July 7, 1977. Sam graduated from SSOP in 1990 and from Texas Tech in 1996. He teaches art at the middle and high school levels.
Sam and Lue Jane have five children: Jonathan, Tim, Brian, Daniel and Janelle. Tim and his wife Terra live in Lubbock and are going through SIBI as is their son Brian and his wife Melissa. Jonathan lives and works in Lubbock. Daniel is a freshman at Texas Tech and Janelle is a freshman at Coronado High School.
Sam’s favorite foods are pizza and hamburgers. He loves trout fishing, leather tooling, painting and ceramics.
Kirt Martin
Kirt Martin was born in Clovis, NM, on July 4, 1953. He was raised in Farwell, Texas where he graduated from High School. He attended Lubbock Christian College where he received a Bachelors Degree in Agriculture Business. He later received his Masters at Oklahoma State and his PH.D from Texas Tech University. He met his wife, Nancy, while attending Lubbock Christian College. They were married on December 27, 1975 in Cincinnati, Ohio. He has two daughters, who are now married. Lucy McDougle and her husband Mike are in Lubbock preparing to be missionaries in Moscow, Russia, beginning in January 2008. Livia Nelson and her husband David are also in Lubbock. Both will finish school in the spring of 2008 as they also prepare to go to Moscow in the latter part of 2008. Kirt and Nancy have one grandson, Canaan, born October 30, 2006.
Kirt has been a member of Sunset from 1978 to 1986 and then from 1992 to present. He has been an elder since May of 2000.
His hobbies are gardening and camping. He enjoys teaching on Creation/Evolution. His favorite food is his wife’s enchiladas.
Gene McGuire
Gene McGuire was born July 1, 1947, in Lubbock, Texas. He and his wife, Kerma, grew up in Muleshoe, Texas. He graduated from Texas Tech University in 1969 with a degree in accounting.
Gene and Kerma were married August 18, 1968. Their children are Jeff, Rachel and granddaughter Kennedy McGuire of Dallas; Russell, Alison and grandson Grant McGuire of Lubbock and Mark McGuire of Dallas.
Gene and Kerma have been members at Sunset since June 2000. Before that, he served as an elder for six years at the Muleshoe Church of Christ.
One of Gene’s favorite scriptures is 2 Corinthians 5:21. Gene is a Realtor. He and his son Russell own the local franchise “Exit Reality of Lubbock.” He likes to travel, especially to Africa where he has conducted gospel campaigns for the past several years. His favorite food is ice cream.
Frankie McKinney
Frankie McKinney was born January 15, 1940 in Amarillo, Texas. He was reared in Lamesa, Texas and graduated from Texas Tech in 1963 with a B.S. in Electrical Engineering. He later became a partner with his daddy, Frank McKinney, in Lamesa where they owned and operated a gasoline distributorship.
Kay was previously married to Ron McIlroy and Frankie to Scarlett. The two families were closest of friends for over 30 years. After losing their spouses to cancer, Kay and Frankie were married in 2000. Their combined families include 6 children and 10 grandchildren.
Frankie served as an elder in Lamesa and previously at Sunset.
Kay likes to shop for bargains and Frankie plays golf. They both enjoy the solitude of their home, as well as traveling together.
George Reese
George Reese was born in Ballinger, Texas. He met Beverly Ann Crockett at ACU and they were married in August 1963. They have three children: Jeff Reese and wife Brenda and their two sons, Justin and Branson; Marcy Smith and husband Glenn and their three children, Andy, Jesse and Ellie; and Stacy Gilchriest and husband Jon and twin daughters, Holly and Samantha.
George is semi-retired and enjoys reading, traveling and any kind of food.
Bruce Thornton
Bruce Thornton was born in Lubbock on March 1, 1951, to Mickey and Janice Thornton. He has always lived in Lubbock and attended Sunset Church since it's inception. He graduated from Lubbock High School and attended Texas Tech and LCU while working on a mechanical engineering degree. Bruce started his own company (Bruce Thornton Air Conditioning Inc.) in 1972. Bruce met his wife Janelle in the Sunset college class and they married in 1973. They have three children, Christi Hadley, Stacey Kirkpatrick, and Derek Thornton, who all attend Sunset and one granddaughter, Hannah Hadley. Bruce has served as a deacon at Sunset for 20 years before becoming an elder. He has been involved in and gone on mission trips for the Church all over the world.
Gary Walker
Gary Walker was born on September 14, 1948, in Boston, Massachusetts. He graduated high school in Berlin, Germany, and went on to study at Lubbock Christian College. While attending Harding College, he met Kathy, whom he married on May 22nd, 1971. Gary also studied at Harding Graduate School of Religion, the University of Central Arkansas, and Bangalore University.
The Walkers’ children are Joel, who lives in College Station and teaches at Sam Houston State University in Huntsville, his wife Laura and grandson Isaac; Ben, who serves as missionary care counselor for Sunset’s AIM program here in Lubbock; and Micah, who works for the federal government in Virginia, and his wife Maggie.
Gary has been a member of Sunset since 1973 and an elder since 1997. He and Kathy served as missionaries to India from 1974 to 1984, and he continues to make annual mission trips there. Gary served as a counselor for Sunset from 1984 until 2000. He is currently a clinical psychologist in private practice. He especially enjoys helping missionaries with their pre-field psychological assessments and preparation as well as teaching courses on Mental Health and Missions and Christian Counseling in SIBI. His favorite food is Italian, and his hobbies include woodworking and his koi pond.