Who are the Elders and what do they do?

The Board of Elders is responsible for the spiritual development of the Church under God's authority. The Elders of Marietta Church of God would like for you to know that you may contact them for spiritual and physical needs as they can serve.

Stan & Beverly Belyeu

Beverly and Stan Belyeu were both raised in Oklahoma, near the Oklahoma City area. They were married on March 16, 1973 and have three adult children: Anthony, their oldest, Darrell, and Sarah. Anthony has been married since June 2002. He lives with his wife Ashley in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Darrell and Sarah are currently living at home to save on rent expenses. They grow up, but you just can't get rid of them.

Stan grew up attending Post Road Church of God in Midwest City, Oklahoma. He was saved and filled with the Holy Ghost as a teenager. Beverly started attending Southern Hills Church of God when she was twelve. She was saved, baptized, and filled with the Holy Ghost the same year. Stan began attending Southern Hills Church of God when he was twenty. He and Beverly met at church, and began dating. They were married the following year.

Stan served on the pastor's council at Southern Hills, and taught Adult Sunday School class for many years. He also led Christian Service Brigade, a boys club at church. He began singing in the choir at Southern Hills as well. Beverly taught first grade Sunday School. She taught Joy Bells and worked in the nursery and also sang in the choir at Southern Hills.

Stan has been employed with General Motors since 1979. He started on the assembly line and is now working in the payroll department. Beverly has been teaching since 1985. She is currently teaching kindergarten at Hayes elementary in Cobb County.

The Belyeu's moved to Marietta in August 1999 as a result of a job transfer, and chose Marietta Church of God because back then Sunday School started at 9:45 A.M. Other churches started at 9:30 A.M., which was way too early for their daughter, Sarah. They liked Marietta Church of God from the first visit.

The people were friendly and the music was good.

Stan and Beverly are both active members of the sanctuary choir. Stan currently serves as Church Clerk and teaches one of the adult Sunday School classes (Sunday School now starts at 9:30 A.M. - sorry Sarah). He and Beverly have been instrumental in organizing several church-wide events, including July Fourth picnics and Fall festivals. They have many good friends here that they have met doing this work.

Jeff & Gale Bowen

Jeff and Gale came in January of 1992 to join the staff of Marietta Church of God. Since that time, although no longer officially on staff, they have served in many capacities and church ministries—deacon’s board, youth ministry, men’s ministry, discipleship leaders, choir, band, drama, ladies’ ministry, teen talent, nursery, Sunday school teachers, etc. Jeff is an ordained minister with the Church of God.

The Bowen’s were married in August 1975 at Milford Church of God (where Jeff is a founding member). They have three daughters. Rebekah was born in 1982 and is married to Petr Sramek and presently serving as a missionary in Prague, Czech Republic with Project Antioch. Rebekah and Petr have a daughter born in February 2006. She and her family plan to move stateside in the fall of 2007. Jessica, born in 1984, is a survivor of childhood cancer (Wilms tumor). Jessica was a patient at St. Jude’s Hospital in Memphis, TN from the age of 15 months to 18 years old, when she was released in perfect health! She is married to Casey Smith and lives and works as a realtor in the Acworth/Marietta area. She and Casey have a son born in March of 2006. Elizabeth was born in 1988 and is attending college at Florida School of the Arts, studying photography. She is engaged to be married to Jonathan Kier in the summer of 2008. All three girls were home schooled through graduation, with Rebekah completing a degree in English at Lee University, which she is now using to teach English as a second language and using as a witnessing tool in the Czech Republic.

Jeff was born in Williamson, WV, moving with his family to Marietta when he was 5 years old. Although his father was a Marine, they lived in one city for all of his growing up years. He attended and graduated from Wills High School, going on to Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College in Tifton, GA, then to Athens to complete his bachelor’s degree and earn a doctorate in veterinary medicine at the University of Georgia. The Lord laid a call on his life to ministry which led to 4 years at the Theological Seminary in Cleveland, TN. Ministry of one kind or another (including pastoring Newnan Church of God for 3 years) has been an important part of Jeff’s life. He enjoys golfing, fishing, playing the guitar, singing, writing songs, preaching, napping. He owns and works at The Ark veterinary clinic in Hiram, GA, where a great bit of ministry takes place.

Gale was born in Stuttgart, Germany. Gale’s father was not only a career Army man, he was also a Church of God minister who began the Ministry to the Military for Europe in 1961. Her path to Georgia has many stops, including France, Fort Walton Beach FL, Kaiserslautern Germany, Lakeland FL, Sandpoint ID, Panama City FL, Newport News VA, Ayer MA, Heidelberg Germany, Rome GA, Marietta GA (where she met Jeff), Highland Park IL and back to Georgia to marry and raise a family. She has been a stay-at-home mom since Rebekah’s birth and a home schooling mom since 1991. Gale is now co-director for Christian Family Theatre, a children’s community theater troupe. She enjoys scrap booking, reading, traveling, photography, collecting dishes and beach vacations.

The Bowens now reside in Dallas, GA with their dog, Cleopatra (a shi’ tzu) and their cat, Abigail (not named after Gale).

Alan & Darlene Teague

Alan and Darlene began attending Marietta Church of God after moving to Georgia in February of 1993. They have been involved at the church as Sunday School teachers, in youth ministry, and Darlene works in the nursery.

The Teague’s were married in June 1991 at Eagle Lake Assembly of God in Eagle Lake, Florida. They have two children. Danielle was born in 1993. She is an avid reader and attends North Cobb High School where she participates in marching band and student council. Joshua was born in 1998. He enjoys basketball, video games, and attends Lewis Elementary.

Alan was born and raised in Winter Haven, Florida. He attended and graduated from Winter Haven High School and went on to attend Polk Community College. Alan enjoys spending time with family, teaching, and is a big fan of the Florida Gators. He currently works at Fidelity Bank on Canton Road in Marietta.

Darlene was born in Charleston, SC. She spent her early years in South America where her parents were missionaries. She has lived in South Carolina, Florida, and Georgia moving as her father has ministered at various churches with the Church of God. She is a graduate of Southeastern College with a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology. Darlene enjoys spending time with family and organizing scrap booking nights at the church. She currently works as a Kindergarten paraprofessional at Lewis Elementary in Kennesaw.

The Teague’s now reside in Kennesaw, GA with their children and a beagle, Molly.

Ron & Wren Gallup

Laurentia (Wren) was born and raised in Sag Harbor, Long Island, New York, with a Catholic background. Her father was a master craftsman in construction and her mother came to this country from Lithuania, engraving bomb sights during WWII. Ron was born and raised in Michigan and lived in numerous towns as his father was a Free Methodist minister. Their average stay in a town was four years.

Ron and Wren met while Ron was stationed in Montauk at a US Air Force radar site on the tip of Long Island. They were married and have a daughter, Ruth Anne, and two grand children, Chelsea and Cristopher, who reside in San Marcos, Texas.

When Ron was discharged from the Air Force, a move to Georgia was made to pack up household goods for his parents, who were in Kenya. He found a job at Lockheed and put in 39 years, retiring in 2003. Wren started substituting in the Cherokee County School System and ended up with a full time job at Etowah High School as the counseling office secretary for 26 years. She retired in 2006.

They were introduced to Pentecost by Ron’s parents on their return from Kenya and started attending the Assembly of God Tabernacle on Boulevard Avenue in Atlanta, where Jimmy Mayo was Senior Pastor. When the 40 mile one-way trip became too much, they started attending the Toonigh Church of God. A change to the Sunnyside Church of God in Canton followed and then a chance to help in the start of a new work, the South Canton Church of God, presented itself. In 1997, they made the move to Marietta CoG. They have been involved in most all aspects of church work—choir members, women’s and men’s ministries, holiday dramas, Sunday School teachers, Sunday School Superintendent, church council and children’s church directors. They say working with children kept them young. They have been in the Church of God since 1966.

Ron’s hobby is old cars and they currently have a 1952 Chevy Belair 2-door hardtop and a 1939 Chevy 2-door sedan. The ’52 has been featured in a couple of national automotive magazines. They have traveled all over the eastern and mid-western states in old cars for many summers. This also helps Wren in her hobby of collecting teddy bears. Often the back seat of the car is full of bears and small furniture on the return trip home. She has hundreds of them and you can’t go anywhere in their home without dozens of them watching you. At Christmas every year, a whole new group replaces the everyday bears. Since her retirement, she also enjoys the extra time for reading.