Rev. Edward B. Simmons  | The Rev. Edward B. Simmons was named Executive Director of Mountain T.O.P. in 2006 after the retirement of founder and past Executive Director, George Bass. Simmons holds a bachelor's degree from the University of Central Florida, an MBA from the University of Houston, and received his pastoral training from Chandler School of Theology and Perkins School of Theology. He spent 15 years at Enron Corp. before entering the ministry in 1993. He is an ordained deacon in the United Methodist Church. He previously served several churches in the Texas Annual Conference as the Minister Administration. Simmons had an 18 year affiliation with Mountain T.O.P as a camper prior to being appointed executive director. His call to full-time ministry in the United Methodist Church came while participating in a Mountain T.O.P. camp week. He has been married to his wife Glynn for over 30 years. |
Jay W. Koelbl | Jay joined the Support Staff as Service Area Manager in January of 2009. He was the first member of the Support Staff to formally be trained by his predecessor, Jeff Grammer. Jay, with the help of his fellow staffers and volunteers, is responsible for field operations for the A.I.M., BreakOut, and Y.S.M. programs. He interacts with the county residents to meet their expressed needs with the abilities and gifts of our participants. He graduated in December 2008 from Middle Tennessee State University with a Bachelor's Degree in Mass Communications and a focus in Recording Industry. It is the nicest framed piece of paper he owns. Mountain T.O.P. is an integral part of Jay's faith journey. He has been a participant many times, and served on Summer Staff four years before accepting this position. Jay loves his job and this mountain. |
Julie Willems  | Julie came to Mountain T.O.P. in 2007 after serving in the Hurricane Katrina recovery efforts in Mississippi. At Mountain T.O.P., she serves as the logistical contact for every group coming into camp. Julie started out as a mechanical engineer, but migrated back over to the world of missions, a passion that began for her at Mountain T.O.P. as a youth. |
Kim VanGundy | Kim VanGundy was named Program Manager - Resource Development in the Fall of 2007. VanGundy holds a bachelor’s degree in Sociology/Criminal Justice from Northwestern College in Orange City, IA. She spent 10 years at Canyon Camp & Conference Center before coming to Mountain T.O.P. In 2008 she became certified in Camp/Retreat Ministry in the Oklahoma Conference of the United Methodist Church and Drew University. She is also a certified Ropes Course Facilitator. In her spare time, Kim enjoys creating quilts, hiking, and spending time with Maray, the 180 pound English Mastiff that lives in her home. |
| |
Thomas Harness
| Thomas Harness was named Program Manager - Service Area and Ministry Support in September of 2012. Thomas has previously been the Ministry Intern in the summer of 2012 as well as fall of 2010. Additionally, he served on the summer staff for three years. His first contact with the Mountain was as a camper in 2006. Thomas is responsible for assisting in securing projects for all fall & spring programs, assisting in the support of the summer staff Field Managers and serving as a member of the Program Team for ministry activities (camps, retreats, special activities, staff training). He enjoys cooking, adventures and trying to bring back 70's swag. |
Betsy Galbraith | Betsy Galbraith is the current Ministry Intern. January thru May she is responsible for recruiting campers for all programs and for increasing the visibility of the ministry in the community. Once the summer comes around her main duties will be helping the Support Staff with administrative functions and supporting the summer staffers. She comes to us after recently graduating from Franklin College in Indiana where she majored in Religious Studies. Betsy has been a camper to Mountain T.O.P. several times and served on summer staff for three summers. Aside from life on the mountain, Betsy has a passion for traveling the world, working with youth/children, bicyling, and most importantly spending time with her family! |
Buddy Boyce |
Nathan “Buddy” Boyce was a member of Blakemore UMC (Nahshville, TN) and had the opportunity to be a part of the first Mountain T.O.P. staff in 1975. He served on the field staff for 2 years and was camp director for an additional 2 years. Buddy graduated from the University of Tennessee (Knoxville) with a Marketing degree. He is an avid Vols fan and currently lives in Nashville. Buddy serves as Development Resources Manager for Mountain T.O.P. His main focus is contacting individuals and companies for potential in-kind contributions. |
