Alex Suk
“Michigander”
Transplant from Flint, MI. Relocated to Seattle in 2007 after graduating from Michigan State University. Favorite pastimes include eating, sports, and eating while watching sports. Has attended UPC for five years and serves as a Worship Elder.
What’s your favorite thing about Jesus?
That he loves all of us and calls us to share that love with one another.
What neighborhood do you live in and what do you like about it?
I just moved to Queen Anne. There are a ton of restaurants and cafés within walking distance. (How to Cook a Wolf is my personal favorite.) And I can take the bus to anywhere in Seattle, which is good because I hate driving.
Three words your friends use to describe you.
Chill, funny, hungry
What’s the last book you read and enjoyed?
The Extra 2% by Jonah Keri. It’s a book about the 2008 Tampa Bay Rays and how they used analytics to build a team that went from worst to first in the AL East, despite having one of the lowest payrolls in baseball. It’s like Moneyball, but without Brad Pitt.
What’s the farthest you’ve traveled from home, and what do you remember most about it?
I’ve been to South Korea three or four times. The most memorable trip was in 2002 when I was there for the World Cup.
Is there a verse from the Bible that has gotten you through a tough time?
Romans 5:1–5. No matter what I’m going through, God is always present and looking to teach me something. It’s a reminder to look for Jesus within the chaos.
Mercedes Friend
“A Friend Indeed”
Spent college summers leading backcountry adventures for youth with YoungLife’s Beyond Malibu. Applied for the YMM internship from the remote base camp and has worked with the Edge since August. Likes exclamation points! (pictured left)
What’s your favorite thing about Jesus?
My favorite thing about Jesus is that he calls us to live a life of adventure that is never comfortable, but always fulfilling. He wants to be down here in the messy, beautiful, brokenness of life with us.
Do you know any Bible jokes?
Ooh, I’ve got a good one for you: Need an ark? I Noah guy!
What’s your hometown?
Flagstaff, Arizona—all the way up at 7,000 feet! If you ever need to train for the Olympics, check it out! You might just run into Lopez Lomong or the Japanese swim team.
Three words your friends use to describe you.
Compassionate, funny, strong
What’s the last book you read and enjoyed?
The Charming Quirks of Others by Alexander McCall Smith
What’s the farthest you’ve traveled from home, and what do you remember most about it?
The farthest I’ve traveled from home is up to Alaska to spend a month in the wilderness. Years later, I still remember how wild and beautiful everything was, from icebergs to glaciers to mountains to rivers. Going up there set me on the path to working with Beyond Malibu in British Columbia for the past three summers.
What’s your birth order?
I am the oldest! I have one younger sister, Madeline, who is amazing!
Breanne Berg
“Woman of Many Talents”
Known for her penchant for salsa dancing, her enthusiasm for sushi and time with friends, as well as great book recommendations. She started at UPC as a ministry coordinator with the Language Institute and last year became the director.
What’s your favorite thing about Jesus?
I love Jesus’ statement to his disciples that what is impossible with man is possible with God. I’m banking on it.
Do you know any Bible jokes? No, but how about a UPC joke?
I remember laughing every time I walked into the copier room on the second floor and seeing a storage bin on the shelf that said on one line, “do not touch,” and on the second line it said, “Presbyterian women.” I mean, that’s pretty funny.
What neighborhood do you live in and what do you like about it?
Ballard. I love the places that still exist that we went to as kids—Larsen’s Bakery and the Locks. I also love some of the fantastic newer places like Señor Moose Café and Zayda Buddy’s.
What’s your hometown?
Seattle
What’s the farthest you’ve traveled from home, and what do you remember most about it?
In September I got to take a road trip throughout Central Europe (Poland, Slovakia, Hungary, Austria, and Czech Republic) with some good Polish friends. I was just along for the ride because they planned everything. It was a blast to kick it in the back seat of their SUV and listen to all of them argue in Polish about which road to take, how many kilometers we were from our next stop, etc. I got to ride along in ignorant bliss!
What’s your birth order?
First-born (maybe a little bossy?)
Three words your friends use to describe you.
Loyal, friendly, (and for a handful of friends) Guërita
Is there a verse from the Bible that has gotten you through a tough time?
Psalm 34:18: “The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.”
Alison Ashmead
“Artiste”
After dabbling in UPC communications on a contract basis, Ali joined the staff as a graphic designer in 2011. In 2012 she took responsibility for the design and layout of the UPC Times. Between design, ministry, sports, and now expecting her first child, is there anything she doesn’t do?
What’s your favorite thing about Jesus?
Where to begin… I love that I don’t fully understand him because that in itself gives me hope. I love that he’s always there—the most intimate of friends—no matter what we find ourselves in the midst of.
What neighborhood do you live in and what do you like about it?
I live in Phinneywood. I love how walkable it is and its proximity to Greenlake, my friends, and most of all to the freeway (to get out of the city as much as possible). I also love our street; it’s refreshing how neighborly it is.
Three words your friends use to describe you.
Intentional, creative, passionate
What’s your hometown?
Albuquerque, New Mexico, which boasts the world’s largest hot air balloon festival, amazing food, and a great climate—300 days of SUNSHINE!
What’s the last book you read and enjoyed?
To Heaven and Back, by Mary C. Neal, MD. Before that, Unbroken by Lauren Hillenbrand—an absolute must-read.
What’s the farthest you’ve traveled from home, and what do you remember most about it?
There are three trips that are especially memorable to me. I traveled with UMin to the Dominican Republic in 2005, which intensified my relationship with the Lord and cultivated a greater love for diverse cultures. In 2006 I traveled to Puerto Rico for a close friend’s wedding—that’s where I first met the man I would later marry. I toured Europe with my dad a few short months after my mother passed away in 2009—everything about that trip was glorious, painful, and unforgettable.
What’s your birth order?
I’m the last of three.
Is there a verse from the Bible that has gotten you through a tough time?
Isaiah 26:4: “Trust in the Lord forever for in God the Lord we have an everlasting rock.”
John Forsythe
“Never Sits Still”
After being baptized on his 24th birthday, has dipped his toes into the following: driving the UPC van, leading core groups, volunteering at the Welcome Kiosk, Larson Fellowship, and generally caring about people—on top of managing a finance company.
What’s your favorite thing about Jesus?
Jesus has taught me that despite my successes or failures, trials, tribulations, and mistakes, his love for me is unconditional. He is always there for me with open arms.
Do you know any Bible jokes?
A UPC deacon is talking to another church member, commenting, “When you get to my age you spend a lot more time thinking about the hereafter.”
“Why do you say that?” inquires the member.
The deacon replies, “Well, I often find myself going into a room and thinking, What did I come in here after?”
What neighborhood do you live in and what do you like about it?
I live in the Mt. Baker neighborhood. I’m close to Lake Washington, can bike to Seward Park or stand-up paddle to Leschi, and there are lots of running paths. They close the roads along Lake Washington in the summer for bikers and joggers. It’s heaven!
What’s your hometown?
Gig Harbor (Fox Island), Washington
Three words your friends use to describe you.
Energetic, adventurous, fun
What’s the farthest you’ve traveled from home, and what do you remember most about it?
Kenya and Tanzania—went on safari and climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro. Most memorable moment was standing on top of Kilimanjaro with my dad, looking around in all directions, feeling like we were on top of the world.
Any hidden talents?
On Saturdays in the fall, I can get more done by 9am then most people get done the whole day—run by the lake, laundry done, food prepped, walkways swept, lawn mowed (sorry neighbors, yes, that is my mower you hear), dishwasher emptied, grill cleaned, and truck washed—for a very good reason: I can watch uninterrupted college football for the next 11 hours.
Wallace White
“Ol’ Reliable”
Married to Catherine (by Pastor James B. Notkin). Third-year Sunday school teacher with his kids, Ellie and Caroline. Part of UPC since 2003, and leads the mechanical engineering group of a Belltown consultancy, Stratos Product Development.
What’s your favorite thing about Jesus?
I’m drawn to his compassion, as shown to the woman caught in adultery in John 8, but most of all I keep coming back to his complexity. We’re wont to cling to a single aspect of him, but in the gospels he kept surprising his followers and enemies with the richness of his full character. I like the saying that you can’t put God in a box; he’s too big and multifaceted to be summed up in one thing.
What neighborhood do you live in and what do you like about it?
We live in Bryant and enjoy being near my wife’s family, our kids’ classmates from Bryant Elementary, and friends we’ve gotten to know over eight years there. It feels close to everything too—something strangely true about many neighborhoods in Seattle.
What’s your hometown?
Nashville, Tennessee. Where’s my accent, you ask? I watched too much TV growing up, and I’ve lived on the West Coast since I was 18. We enjoy going back to Nashville each year to see family.
Three words your friends use to describe you.
Reliable, friendly, and old. In college, an acquaintance joked to someone, “Wallace? He’s a cool guy—for forty!”
What’s the farthest you’ve traveled from home, and what do you remember most about it?
Lately I’ve been to India and Brazil for my medical diagnostics project for the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. In both countries, my colleagues and I were gripped less by the difficulties of the poor, great though they are, than by the wealth of the seemingly indifferent who pass by them daily. It didn’t take long, though, to recognize the speck in my own eye, remembering the need all around us right here in Seattle.
What’s your birth order?
I have one older brother in Atlanta that everyone thinks is younger. We’ve always been good friends.
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