Team Bios

Lyall Sutton - Our Fearless Leader
Ready for anything and always on the go, Pastor Lyall is the Senior Associate Pastor at Bethany Baptist Church and our team leader. In the week after the Thailand conference, Pastor Lyall will celebrate his 50th year on this earth and 26 years of marriage to his wife Sheila. Lyall and Sheila have two children: Megan is 23 and works in Peoria; Ben is 21 and in his final semester at Moody Bible Institute. In his free time, Pastor Lyall enjoys traveling, cooking, biking, skiing, and spending time with his family.

His favorite memory is of his ministry sabbatical when he and his family spent five weeks touring Europe and visiting missionaries in Slovenia, Austria and Czech Republic.

If you are looking for a high energy, positive person to start your day off right, go find Pastor Lyall. He’s sure to greet you with a smile, positive words, and a crazy idea for the day.

Kim Turner – Team Medic
Kim is a 22 year old nurse at OSF St. Francis working in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit. When she isn’t working or sleeping, Kim likes to hang out with family and friends, walk her dog, read, scrapbook, and of course, shop! If she gets hungry, Kim looks for chips and salsa or goldfish crackers.

One of Kim’s favorite memories is on a missions trip to South Africa. “It really impacted me spiritually and also allowed me to make really close friendships with ‘the South Africa girls.’”

If you aren’t feeling well or we see blood, we’ll send you to Kim. She will get you feeling better (or at least give you a band-aid).

Kevin Gustafson – The Multi-Media Computer Guy
Kevin is creeping up on 30 years old (he still has two and half years to go) and works as a Computer Programmer at Caterpillar. In his free time, Kevin enjoys hanging out with friends. When Kevin is in the mood to snack, he reaches for a box of Cheese-Its.

One of Kevin’s favorite memories is of a missions trip he took to Ecuador. The trip “opened up my eyes to God’s work and love for people all over the world.”

If you need something done, just ask Kevin. He is always willing to help out where needed.

Kari Rabenhorst – The Scheduler
Kari is a quarter of a century old and proud of it. She works as a ministry coordinator at Bethany Baptist Church under Pastor Lyall. In her free time away from the church, she loves to hang out with friends and play games; play softball, Frisbee, tennis, or generally any sport; or read a good book. If she is shopping for a snack, her current picks are peanut M & Ms, cheddar Chex mix, and water.

Kari has many fond memories of time with her family but will always remember their various snowmobiling trips together. It’s always great family time and generally includes an adventure (ex: ran out of gas, fouled a spark plug, took a wrong trail, stuck on the other side of town, ran in to a tree, etc.). “When we hit the trails, something generally goes wrong – but we know that God is in control and the outcome is a great memory!”

If you aren’t sure where you are supposed to be or what your options are for activities, check with Kari. She likely has the whole schedule in her head! Or if you are bored, she is usually up for playing a game or making one up.