Our Staff
Lead Pastor
Rob Ayer
I joined the SLC team in September 2022. I love Jesus and His church. I've been a Pastor for more than 27 years because I have felt called to challenge and encourage Christians in their faith so that they would know and share the love of Christ.
I was born in Ontario but always felt like I was born in the wrong province. Me and my family moved to BC in 2004 and have not looked back - as if to prove the saying, "Wise men come from the east, and fools go back!" I have been happily married to my best friend, Jackie for 31 years, and I am the proud father of our son Joshua (married to Katie) and our daughter, Cailey.
I love listening to all kinds of music, I love to sing, and I try to keep beat (from time to time - see what I did there?) on the drums (like a human metronome). I enjoy hiking the rivers of Chilliwack BC, riding my bike, shooting hoop on our laneway, watching movies (fav. = Raiders of the Lost Ark), and reading fiction and non on my back porch sipping a diet coke, jazz music in the background. And (like everyone else on the planet, it seems) I'm learning how to play pickleball.
Community Life Pastor
Darrel Schmidt
I have the privilege of serving as Community Life Pastor which means I generally have my finger on the pulse of our church family. Specifically it involves overseeing Life Groups, care ministry, outreach/evangelism and our senior’s ministry, Prime Timers. I began this role in 2019 but previously served as youth pastor from 1989-1997.
I have been very happily married (I really mean that!) to my wife Maureen for 30 years and we have two wonderful adult children and two grandpuppies!
I love spending time with people but also enjoy my personal time. Nothing beats sitting down with a good book, playing guitar and harmonica or enjoying a TV show or movie with my wife. Maureen and I love to hike, play table games and even tackle the occasional puzzle. I also love to cook and bake and have made a few friends as a result! On my commutes to the office I enjoy listening to a variety of podcasts and music. I have been known to cause more than a few people to roll their eyes at my sarcastic humour.
Pastor of Student Ministries
Bryan Penner
I’ve been a youth worker in both churches and parachurch ministries for most of my adult life. In my role here at South Langley I get to work alongside an amazing group of people to plan and implement our youth and young adult programming both on-site and in our community.
I married up, and now my amazing wife Jillian and I are proud parents of SLC’s only pastor’s kid. His hobbies currently consist of eating, sleeping, pooping, and being cute for a few minutes occasionally.
Music and food have always been a big part of how I spend my time. Occasionally I moonlight as a guitar player, and I’m currently re-learning the piano. I also enjoy cooking, and I’ve recently become passionate about cast iron care. I won’t include any other hobbies because they tend to shift, so by the time this bio is published they may have changed.
Youth Director
Carissa Chmelyk
I currently look after various roles at South Langley Youth including event planning, admin and connecting with students. I am passionate about making opportunities for students to make memories and build deep relationships. I have also recently taken on the behind the scenes planning of children's ministry. I have been attending SLC for over 15 years and also spend time with the young adults and volunteering on the worship team.
My hobbies outside of work include painting, singing in my car, and hanging out at gymnastics with my sister. I love spending time with my family, friends, hamster and my boyfriend Russel. I also spend a lot of personal time cooking while indulging into a tv series/listening to music.
Business Manager
Allison Penner
As SLC’s Business Manager, I spend a lot of my day chasing down the details. I am responsible for Finance, HR, and Operations, and I work closely with our volunteer Stewardship team. I make sure our staff have the processes and tools in place for a smooth-running ministry. I have been attending South Langley Church since 1994, but I didn’t join the staff team until 2021.
My husband Cam and I have been married longer than either of us care to remember, and we have two adult children. I enjoy music and can often be found playing on one of our worship teams on Sunday mornings. I must confess to having a small problem with bass guitars, because they seem to follow me home. Unfortunately, I can only bring one member of my collection to work at a time on the back of my motorcycle.
Administrator/Graphic Design
Dawnelle Guenther
I am SLC's Administrator and Graphic designer. My parents are charter members of South Langley Church and so I have been a part of this church family since my birth. My roots here go deep and I consider it such a blessing to work at a place that I love.
I've been married to Tony for over 40 years. We have three adult daughters, 2 sons-in-law and five grandkids! As my husband would say, "Our quiver is full!"
When we're not working or spending time with family, Tony and I love exploring British Columbia. I also enjoy knitting, gardening, playing Munzee with people from around the world and creative writing. My life-long dream was realized in July 2021 when I published my first novel!
Custodian
Rod & Ruth Bahnman
I am the Custodian at SLC. My responsibilities cover the cleaning of the indoor spaces and keeping them in readiness for used by the various groups and activities which occur over the week. I joined the staff in July 2021.
My husband of more than 40 years, and I began attending SLC in 2017, after a move into the Langley area. We become members in 2022. Rod has been an occasional and much appreciated assistant for me in my duties.
We have two adult children and one very energetic grandson. Our senior dog is also a very important family member. In our free time we enjoy walking our dog, gardening, feeding the local birds and spending time near water and relaxing with family and friends. Baking is something I really enjoy doing and Rod & I are on the volunteer team for coffee time after church on Sunday morning.
Address: 20098 22 Ave, Langley, BC V2Z 1X4
General inquiries email: info@southlangleychurch.com
Phone: (604) 530-2646
Office Hours: 9am - 4pm, Monday to Friday
On Site & Online Sunday Services: 10am - 11:30am
South Langley Church is caring community filled with awesome people and friendly staff who help us walk through life and explore our faith together. Here are some of them: