Meet the Teachers
Debbie Peterson
Children's Pastor
Debbie is a follower of Jesus and one who wants to always love and know Him more deeply. She is married to our lead pastor, Matt, and they have five sons, ages 18 to 26.
Debbie has been a school teacher for years and is currently teaching sixth grade at Cathedral Oak Academy. She began leading our Awake Kids Ministry in 2017 where she oversees the younger classes and is the main teacher of the Bamboo Classroom (Kids' Rock, Grades K-10th).
She loves kids and sees it as one of life's greatest privileges to walk with families and children as they grow more deeply in their love and relationship with God.
Each quarter, She hosts parenting events to share helpful life experiences and ideas from leading teachers in the field of parenting.
Peas & Pods Class
(16 months - 3 year olds)
Joy Conklin
Meet Joy Conklin. She sees it as a gift to introduce young kids to Jesus and the love of the Father. She believes creating an environment for our kids to experience the Holy Spirit is essential, as “there’s no junior Holy Spirit.”
She’s married to Perry and has 3 children, Justice, Fisher, and Salem. They moved to Winston-Salem in 2020 and began attending Awake shortly after. They deeply value community, serving their church, and being missional-minded both in their neighborhood and abroad.
Karen Tesh
Meet Karen Tesh. She is married to her love and best friend, David, for almost 28 years and is a mom to 9 children. God put it on her heart to be a stay home mom and homeschool her kids and she has been doing that for over 25 years.
She and her family have been active members at Awake Church for almost 8 years. Karen loves “her kids” in and out of the classroom and misses them when they move up to the next class. She loves to be able to share the love of the Father through Bible stories and see them mature in their love for the Lord.
Buds Class
(3 - 4 year olds)
Amanda Dye
Amanda is a stay-at-home mom to four boys and is married to Wesley Dye. Her husband is a Chemist and her background is in high school math education. She has been teaching/tutoring math for over 15+ years. They are also Airbnb hosts in Winston-Salem.
She loves inspiring kids of all ages to know who God has made them to be and to help them pursue the passions He has placed inside each of them.
Teaching the little ones at Awake Church about God and His love for them has been a joy in her life. She is blessed and feels privileged to be able to steward her children and other children along the way.
Rebekah Carpenter
Rebekah is married to Tony and they have two little girls whom she homeschools.
Before becoming a mama Rebekah worked in various roles in early childhood care and education. She has a heart for prayer and the Word of God.
Her favorite part of teaching little ones is sharing God’s love for them and helping them hide God’s word in their hearts. Her educational background is in Child Development and Christian ministry.
Bloom Class
(4 - 6 year olds)
Marianne Myers
Marianne lives in Winston-Salem with her husband, Justin, and two sons, Walter and Oliver. She has been an active member of Awake since 2017 and transitioned from serving at the welcome center to serving in the Kid’s ministry, after having her first son.
Before Marianne chose to stay home with her first baby, she enjoyed working as a cosmetologist in Greensboro for 7 years. She treasures the gift of being home full-time and is excited to be a lead teacher in the Bloom class at Awake.
A love for God’s Word and children fuels her leadership and she can’t wait to learn and grow alongside the children as they spend time with God and worship together each week.
Rene Galyean
Rene grew up in Winston and has attended church her entire life. As soon as she was old enough, she began working with children. First, she started babysitting, and then as a young adult, Rene led and taught at VBS and Sunday School. She also served as a Boy Scout Leader for ten years and substitute taught while her son was younger.
Rene is blessed with one son, a daughter-in-law, and three grandchildren.
She enjoys interacting with children and loves the experience of teaching them new things and seeing the world through their eyes. Rene is thrilled to join the Awake Kids Ministry team and looks forward to teaching young ones about Jesus and what it means to have a relationship with Him!