Pastor Josh Baker
Josh Baker is a 39 year old, never married Children’s Pastor currently working in a fast moving multicultural and multi-language 1,000+ member church with five services in the Washington D.C. area. He has been a Christian since 4 and was baptized at age 26. He has worked professionally in small, moderate, and large sized churches for fourteen years and has a total of 25+ years in the ministry industry. He is a business administration graduate of LeTourneau University and a Fellows Graduate from the C.S. Lewis Institute. He has been a featured performer and lecturer at multiple Awana Conferences and been a trainer and mentor of ministry leaders for many years, including seed-planting Awana programs in numerous churches. At his own church he has directed for eleven years the Children's Ministry of Capital Baptist Church, children ages birth through 6th grade. In the church he designs and oversees most creative display work and large scale special events. He has also written and directed more than twenty full scale drama productions based off popular children's movies and books parodied with a spiritual emphasis for the church and have included: Wizard of Oz, Chronicles of Narnia, Polar Express, Lion King, Secret Garden, Inside Out, Wreck it Ralph, Alice in Wonderland, Mulan, Frozen, Magorium's Wonder Emporium, Charlie Brown, The Little Match Girl, and the Broadway play Wicked.
In addition to his work at the church and this ministry, he also runs kidminwardrobe.com, a props and costuming resource rental provider for schools, churches, and non-profits. He also hopes in the near future to launch an online script download site.
When he is not doing ministry, workshop teaching, or traveling with Living Like Lucy, Pastor Josh enjoys cooking, crafting, sports, watching kid movies, and reading comic strip books like Peanuts, Garfield, and Calvin & Hobbes.
Kerrie Barone, Lucy Understudy for Jadis
Kerrie is 18 years old and has been performing since she was six years old. She has trained with agents, managers, and coaches in the acting industry when she performed with AMTC (Actors Models and Talent for Christ). Kerrie has also danced for six years and performed in many recitals. Kerrie sings in her church’s praise team and is the lead singer in her youth group’s praise team. She has sung a solo at American Heritage Girl’s national convention. Kerrie has stage performed as the lead character Miss Persimmon Crudmudgeon in The Pirate Show, as Little Red Riding Hood’s mother in Totally Red, as Mrs. Soames in Our Town, and as Grandmother Tzeitle in Fiddler On the Roof among many other productions. Kerrie is a 2017 High School graduate and will be attending Word of Life Bible Institute in the fall. She plans to continue her love of acting while minoring in either theatre or film in college.
Fellow Narnians
The following individuals are also a large part of this ministry and the success of it thus far:
Allen Boichot, Media, Tech, and Transport
Carrie Pearson, Public Relations, Chief Creative, and Drama Coach
The Actors' Parents! Especially for all the hands on help with the exhibit and the driving!
Capital Baptist Church, Home Base and Aslan's current sleeping cave
Tim Grant, theatrical backdrop painter and prop restoration expert responsible for the restoration care of the Wardrobe and the Orieus statue.
Should you ever need any set or backdrop painting done, Tim is the best!
Tim's website: here
Lorelei Smucker, Lucy
Having just recently discovered a mysterious open wardrobe while on visit to a Professor's old house, this talented young actor has found herself in the land of Narnia. She is currently learning from Lucy and Susan what it takes to be a Narnia Queen. With her singing and acting skills she is certainly not long to inheriting the throne! Lorelei has performed as Molly in Annie, Purdita in 101 Dalmations, and in her most recent role as the female lead Katrina Van Tassel in Sleepy Hollow. Lorelei has also been a competitive gymnast for five years, plays soccer, loves horseback riding, art, and reading,sings in her church choir, and participates in Awana and American Heritage Girls. She also takes jazz, tap, and ballet.
Katelyn Barone, Jadis the White Witch
Katelyn is a captivating actress who was meant for the stage. She is 19 years old and has been performing since she was seven. In 2013 she trained with and performed in front of many respected agents, managers, and coaches in the acting industry with AMTC (Actors, Models, and Talent for Christ) Katelyn has danced for six years and sung in a church choir for nine years. Katelyn has stage performed as Peasblossom in A Mid Summer Night’s Dream, as Medusa & Atalanta in Circus Olympus, and in the productions of the Pirates of Penzance, The Somewhat True Tale of Robin Hood, and Something’s Rotten in the State of Denmark among many other productions. Katelyn is a graduate of Word of Life Bible Institute and is currently working towards becoming a missionary in a foreign country.
Micah Gueck, Edmund
Micah has dreamed of acting since he was very young. “Officially” acting since 2015, he has publicly performed in two plays, his most recent being Sleepy Hollow and has written and performed many plays for his family. Having read the Chronicles of Narnia series several times over, it is evident upon meeting him that he loves all things Narnia (especially Turkish Delight) and was a shoe-in for the role of Edmund. In the times where he isn’t acting, writing, or completing schoolwork, you can find Micah reading or playing on his computer. Micah is elated to be acting in this group and he looks forward to what God has in store for this ministry.
Connor Bluestein, Peter
Connor has enjoyed drama and acting from a young age. He loved to stage his siblings and friends in movies he directed. In continuing his passion for acting, he starred as Brom Bones and The Headless Horseman in Sleepy Hollow. He also performed the role of Ratsbeak in The Reluctant Dragon. Connor has played piano for more than five years, plays on a varsity soccer team, is actively involved in Civil Air Patrol, and writes computer programs in his free time.
Michael Eicher, Father Christmas
Mr. Mike has been a faithful ministry supporter of this ministry's home base church for well over a decade, performing many key roles within the programing of the church. He has taught Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace University course, directed Vacation Bible School with his wife, taught the 2's Sunday School class also with his wife, and helped out on countless other church programs and events.
Mike has performed in multiple Christmas season church play productions often comprising lead roles. He also performed alongside Matthew Chandler for many years in the huge Easter season production The Day He Wore My Crown.
Ashley Boichot, Susan
Ashley is 21 years old and a graduate of Chantilly High School. She has taken Tech Theater in school and been a performer with Pastor Josh for almost ten years, the longest tenure out of everyone else who's ever performed. Her roles have been quite varied and extensive. They have included roles in parodies of Lion King, The Pirates Who Don't Do Anything, Charlie Brown, Alice in Wonderland, Finding Nemo, Wreck-it Ralph, Little Match Girl, Secret Garden, Mulan, and the Broadway show, Wicked, among so many others. She has starred as the lead role in the Little Match Girl, Susan in Narnia, and become well-known and loved in her role as Dorothy from Wizard of Oz and Wicked. Before becoming Susan, she actually began her Narnia adventures as Lucy in a musical rendition of Prince Caspian at Capital.
She has also traveled with Pastor Josh as Susan and promoted this ministry at a regional Awana Leadership Conference, the Children's Pastor's Conference (CPC), and the C.S. Lewis Institute. She has also played the role of Susan for a summer day camp, many photo shoots, and several YouTube videos.
She currently is employed by Capital Baptist Church as their Preschool Playhouse Director and she hopes to go to college soon and study elementary teaching and theater and performing arts.
Ethan Gueck, Peter
Ethan is a 17 year old who prefers action and adventure from another era. As a child he used to pretend to live in fantastic worlds as a knight or soldier or some other protagonist seeking the good of others. It seems only fitting that he assume the role of Peter fulfilling those childhood fantasies, and growing into the kind of man he wishes to become. Ethan has performed since the age of 8 and his most recent performance had him in the lead role of Brom Bones in the production of Sleepy Hollow. In his pursuit of medieval adventure, Ethan enjoys a bit of fencing, calligraphy, medieval literature and poetry, painting, art, music, and memorizing Shakespeare. He hopes you enjoy his efforts to assume the throne at Cair Paravel that Aslan has entrusted to him and you will gain something valuable as well from what you have observed.
Lewis Bliss, Edmund
Lewis has performed in local productions as Ichabod Crane in Sleepy Hollow, Peter Pan in Captain Hook, Flounder in The Little Mermaid, as well as Fiddler on the Roof, The Sound of Music, Dr. Dolittle, Totally Red, The Reluctant Dragon, Alice in Wonderland, and Mulan. Lewis has also appeared in a Theatre of the Stars production of The King and I at Wolftrap Theatre. Lewis is a gifted improviser, a nationally ranked orator, and (like his namesake, C.S. Lewis) a prolific writer of plays, poetry, and music.
Matthew Chandler, Professor and Mr. Beaver
Matthew has been performing in one manner or another since he was a small boy. His first role that he recalls is that of “A Crooked Little Man” in a grade school production. In high school, besides being in plays, he began doing celebrity impersonations. Writing stories and making his own comic books at an early age, he still enjoys these hobbies. Active in church, Matthew began acting in various Christmas and Easter plays at Central Baptist Church, which later merged with Capital Baptist Church. This led eventually to the honor of portraying Jesus in the two-hour play The Day He Wore My Crown, which was performed several times each year during the Easter season. Between 1996 and 2006, thousands of people saw this re-enactment of the last days of Christ’s life, His death and Resurrection. In addition, Matthew wrote and performed in many skits promoting upcoming church events, which were often parodies of movies and TV shows. Getting involved in puppetry over thirty years ago, he blended his talents of writing, performing, and impersonations into weekly puppet shows developing characters that both the children and adults came to love. After a few years of not doing regular puppet shows, he met Pastor Josh Baker and the love of puppets was rekindled. Matthew starred in numerous productions with Pastor Josh, both as an actor and also with puppets. Together they have taught and performed in multiple locations in the D.C. area. Matthew has not only had the role of The Professor for Pastor Josh in his Narnia productions but also Mr. Beaver using his puppet skills. Today Matthew is still doing puppet shows as Bugs 2 Blue Whales Puppet Tales (https://www.facebook.com/b2bwpuppettales) at various events in Northwest Florida with his wife of 37 years, Kathy where they presently reside. Despite no longer being local to the performing group, Matthew still makes himself available for travel to locations.
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