Meet Our "Family"
 kevin shirin
media publishing director
Kevin skillfully juggles the business side of Thriving Family. He oversees budget, production, distribution — and so much more. Kevin's keen money-stretching skills particularly come in handy when he, his wife and their seven kids go grocery shopping.
Editorial
 michael ridgeway
editorial director
Michael
has spent more than a decade editing magazines in North America and
Asia. After a long stint in Taiwan, he returned to the U.S. with his
spunky wife and two rambunctious children. His concern for families (and
especially for fathers and husbands) motivates him as he works with
unruly syntax and wayward grammar.
 andrea gutierrez
senior associate editor
Andrea's passion for editing emerged somewhere in her 8-year stretch at Focus. Andrea loves exploring nearby mountains with her family—or, a fan of a good deal, she can be found sifting through other people's castoffs during garage-sale season.
 vance fry
senior associate editor
Since college, Vance has worked as a teacher, writer and editor. At home, he and his wife try to be good parents to their kids, a task made slightly more difficult by the fact that they are now outnumbered 4-2.
 troy griepentrog
senior associate editor
Troy is passionate about building strong marriages. He and his wife love
watching old movies together. Special date nights might include silent
movies with live music. Troy has been a German teacher, worked in
advertising and enjoys writing and editing. His grandkids call him Opa — which is German for "Grandpa."
 sarah hilgendorf
associate editor
When Sarah and her husband moved to Colorado seeking adventure, they didn't realize they'd soon begin the biggest adventure of all — parenting! Sarah loves to see parents encouraging and supporting one another (let's face it, this parenting stuff can be tough!), and after freelancing for years, feels blessed that "helping families thrive" is now at the top of her job description.
 scott denicola
copy chief
Scott has held various editorial roles since joining Focus on the Family in 1989. He and his wife have been married 20 years. Their petite daughter was adopted from China; their lanky son is asked regularly if he plays basketball.
 sheila seifert
parenting editor
With
over a decade of freelance and college-teaching experience, Sheila
turned in her unfinished manuscripts and lesson plans for the editorial
pen. This wife and mother of three enjoys her family, books, soccer and
old typewriters, to name a few.
 pam woody
marriage editor
After 30 years of marriage, Pam holds a special interest in the changing role of women in the home. Inspired by her three adult daughters and years of mentoring, her other focus is on issues related to marriage in today's culture. Although Pam came to CO from TN, her roots will always be Canadian—eh?
Design  cary bates
art director
Cary's experience and skill as a photographer and designer allow her to visually influence Thriving Family. When she's not using her creativity within the pages of the magazine, she goes for runs or walks and enjoys the beauty of God's creation. She and her husband have two young boys, and they like to cycle together on beautiful afternoons.
 jody reiner
senior designer
Jody
welcomes the variety and challenge of graphic design. Her longest
career was that of a stay-at-home mom, but she also once worked in air
traffic control for the FAA. She enjoys time with her husband and
visiting her daughter wherever the Air Force takes her and her pilot
husband.
 jim cail
senior designer & prepress specialist
Jim was raised in West Africa as the child of missionaries. Serving as a designer at Focus for 15 years, he has used his artistic and technical skills to help bring all the Focus magazines' prepress work in-house. He loves to support other designers by doing cool stuff in Photoshop. At home, he enjoys playing with his new grandson.
Business  linda arnold
editorial assistant
Linda is a Minnesota native. She spends her days keeping the Thriving Family team organized and her evenings and weekends enjoying family, which includes two very precious grandchildren.
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