Jill
Jill is an ESFJ (What does this mean?)
It is questionable that she loves maroon pants and tucked in blue shirts... she is a pale red-head though.
Jill is a Massachusetts native who was blessed to live in the same house her whole life. Growing up had the blessings of playing in the woods, walking to and from neighbors homes, going to school with the same friends and feeling very blessed in my community. Good old days! Jill didn't always think it a blessing to be the fourth of five children in a large family, but now that family support and love is a major thing that keeps her and her little family living in New England.
Jill met Ben at the end of high school. He was a nice kid from youth group who kept calling her with interesting fun facts. “Do you know that more babies are born during a full moon?” Jill did not know that. Conversations soon evolved from discussing the moon to hours on end just sharing life.
After four years at Gordon College Jill and Ben got married. They enjoyed their cats, hiking, crafting, gaming, bought their first home and hosted a house church. Jill enjoyed working 9 years in special education and then was delighted to switch gears and be an at-home parent when her daughter was born.
“I think we should homeschool” says Ben one day. Homeschool! ? Jill loved schools and teachers and wondered what this would look like. Her prayer became, “God if this is a good fit for us, please help me get excited”. And so it was! Homeschool doesn't mean they hate public school. But the joys of getting teach your own children are awesome. Watch them learn on their own initiative...capitalize on time together as a family...think outside the box on what a learning opportunity is. It has not always been easy for Jill, but it has always been a learning opportunity that has challenged Jill examine her own needs and presuppositions and depend on God to guide her family.
These days Jill enjoys being involved in ministry to women, through bible studies and mentoring. She enjoys being involved in various homeschool communities. Jill enjoys studying and working on areas of marriage, addictions, digestive health, and loving on her husband, family and neighbors. She is still often found pondering the merits of maroon pants.
Ben
Ben is an INTP.
Ben spent most of his time growing up in PA. His parents kept a tight reign on him, and he moved fairly often during grade school. Ben was also rather nerdy, wore big glasses, was bereft of social skills, and had no friends. Because of all these factors, Ben was disposed to spending much of his time either by himself or playing with his younger brother and sister. He read a lot, played in the woods, and had many hobbies throughout the years. To this day Ben is an introvert, perhaps due to his childhood.
In eighth grade Ben moved to Massachusetts, picked up the guiltar, and learned fast. He spent his free time either playing his new axe, on the computer (playing games or hacking his father's Mac with ResEdit), or playing with his siblings.
In high school Ben made his first two friends, and they invited him to a youth group at a local church. This marked a turning point in Ben's social life, or more accurately, the beginning of it. Through this group he met some folks that graciously accepted the nerdy boy from Stow into their circle of friends.
One of these was a beautiful red-headed senior girl that Ben (having no social skills and plenty of raging hormones) decided to call one night because "there was a full moon". This girl politely talked on the phone for a bit and invited Ben to a Young Life meeting. This was to be the start of many long phone conversations and a wonderful relationship. Mind you, Ben was still wearing sweat pants to school and FOLDING his tube socks during this point in his sophomore year. When analyzing the complex thoughts of the girl, psychologists still can't understand why she agreed to talk to or befriend the nerdy boy two years her junior. When asked what combination of drugs, hypnosis, and brainwashing Ben used to convince the girl to date him, he simply replied, "That's my little secret."
During high school Ben experienced hard times at home, and his parents were divorced during his sophomore year. This split Ben's family down the middle, leaving deep scars. His friends, the red-headed girl and her family, Young Life, and church groups helped him through these hard years.
Ben discovered that the music room was a comfortable place to display his talents. He joined all the choral groups he could, even starting a men's a cappella group, and the jazz band as well. He played guitar for Young Life club meetings and at church. During his senior year he acquired his first student and has been teaching ever since.
Ben went to college for music education at UMass Lowell. He married Jill in 2001 and graduated in 2004. He has worked as a music teacher, farmer, IT consultant, web designer, and programmer.
Mr. Holt has many hobbies. He likes computer gaming, coding, biking, hacking, volleyball, frisbee, karate, playing guitar, recording music, hiking, reading, nerf, and buying/selling musical electronics.
Ben is an introvert - he does moderately well in public when he's there, but gets tired of people after a while and likes to crawl back inside his man-cave. Ben is a truth seeker. He likes to debate, discuss, and think.
Ben is a Christian. This means that he tries to be like Jesus. He's far from perfect, however, and often has trouble putting ideas into practice. Ben and his wife formed a house church in 2008 and really enjoy the close relationships that have formed there.
In 2009, Ben found out he was going to be a father. Since he never planned on being one, he was a little shocked and scared. You could say that Ben is not that fond of babies. But as his daughter grows, fatherhood is getting a little easier for Ben.
"The true test of civilization is, not the census, nor the size of cities, nor the crops - no, but the kind of man the country turns out." -Ralph Waldo Emerson