The Vine Staff
Travis & Jennica Conklin
Lead Pastor & Welcome Director
Travis grew up in the mountains of Montana while his wife, Jennica, was born and raised in the great Hoosier state. Both have been serving in ministry since their youth, and spent most of their first decade of marriage helping with church plants. It was through helping other pastors with church planting that they discerned their calling to plant a church in Goshen, in 2014. Travis & Jennica enjoy life with two children: a son, Ezekiel and daughter, Elliet. Travis is a natural-born entrepreneur and often dreams up business ideas he’ll never use, just for the fun of it. In his free time, he prefers any activity that gets him outside and into the woods. Jennica is one of 8 children, so she never developed a large need for alone time. She loves anything that involves being with people and laughing: a game night, a bonfire, or a day at the beach. They are both passionate about helping people connect to God and each other through intentional relationships.
Jordan Moore
Worship Pastor
Jordan grew up here in the Elkhart area. He has been serving full time in ministry for the last 12 years. He loves serving through leading worship and developing leaders. Jordan and Cheyenne moved into the area two years ago from California. They have two children, Elliot and Birdy. They are passionate about serving Jesus alongside others. As a family they love going for walks and discovering new places to eat and drink coffee.
Bill Sauer
Discipleship Pastor
Bill was born and raised in Elkhart where he met his lovely wife Valerie in 1994. Married in 1996 they have 4 grown children, Sean, Katie, Megan and Nathan and 10 grandchildren that keep them busy. Bill loves running, hiking, camping and anything that keeps him in the woods. One of Bills favorite places is the Upper Peninsula of Michigan where many hiking and camping vacations have taken place. Bill has been in the RV Industry for 25 years in various service and warranty positions and has been employed with Lippert Components in Goshen for the last 8 years. When not doing one of these things Bill also enjoys reading and traveling. Bill has a heart for helping and guiding people and feels that this is why God has called him to pursue ministry.
Lisa Welling
Newcomer Coordinator
Lisa Welling grew up in Warsaw, IN and moved to Goshen after she graduated from college. She met and married Tim Welling a little over a year and a half later. They have 4 grown boys, Joshua, Nathan, Jeremy, and Daniel. They also have a daughter, Renee, and daughter-in laws, Mariah and Lindsey. Lisa spent over 13 years homeschooling her children, leading co-ops and serving in various ministries in the church. She has a passion to help people connect to Jesus and help them take the next steps to understand the life changing love of God. Lisa loves reading and starts her mornings talking to God with a mug full of good coffee. She especially likes to spend time in nature intentionally seeking to hear from God through his creation.
Jenna Kuhns
Office Manager
Jenna was born and raised in Shipshewana, IN before her family moved to Goshen in her teens. Her obsession with books, language, and everything Japanese led her to attend Purdue University where she received a Bachelor of Arts in Linguistics and Asian Studies while working part time as a Financial Aid Counselor. While attending Purdue, she married Jared Kuhns and the two moved back to the area after graduation. Jenna and Jared are both avid gamers and love playing board, tabletop, and console games, and can often be found gaming together on date nights. Jenna has a passion for warm fuzzy blankets, caffeine, teaching God’s word, and game nights.
Carmen Woolley
Children's Ministry Coordinator
Carmen grew up in Millersburg, IN and received her Bachelors of Elementary Education from Indiana University. After college she worked as a teacher for a few years but was then led to work outside of the education realm. She quickly learned that she had a desire to work with and positively impact the lives of children which led her to start volunteering in the Quest Kids class on Sundays. Carmen felt led to work with children again permanently and was very excited to join The Vine Team in 2020. Carmen currently resides in South Bend with her husband, James, their son, Reid and their four-legged fur babies. Carmen loves working with children and is passionate about leading them to Christ. In her spare time she enjoys spending time with family and friends, reading and taking walks in nature.
Preston Baker
Children's Ministry Coordinator
Preston Baker grew up in Warsaw, Indiana and moved to Goshen as a young adult. He met his wife, Karin while attending a church in Elkhart where they both served for a number of years. Preston and Karin live in Goshen with their chug (chihuahua pug) Zoe. He has a huge heart for serving and sees church members as family. He has attended and started volunteering in children’s church since the fall of 2017. Preston enjoys doing many things and has had a wide variety of jobs over the years: cake decorating, concrete foundations, computers, production scheduling, and church staff. His pastime is mostly movies, video games, and watching YouTube videos to fix stuff around his and his mother-in-law’s houses.
Kyrie Yoder
Children's Ministry Coordinator
Kyrie has worked in childcare for a number of years and she enjoys learning about the children she interacts with. The early intermediate years are very formative times in a child’s life and Kyrie believes it is important for children to have positive influences in their lives as they grow and mature.