CEF Leaders

CEF Santa Barbara is prayerfully steered by a local board of men and women who display strong spiritual and professional traits and have a heart for children. The CEF board strives to support our local children in their knowledge and love for the Lord Jesus Christ through supporting Good News Clubs and Summer 5-Day Clubs. Board members work to offer financial and emotional support to insure that these activities continue so that His Word can be taught through fun, engaging activities. Some of the CEF board activities include fund-raising, building awareness for CEF programs, and cultivating collaborative relationships with others in the local faith community.

We currently have openings on our CEF Board. If you feel the Lord leading you to learn more about this opportunity, please contact any of our board members for details. Thank you, board members, for your service!

Meet the Board

Justin Etherton, Board Co-Chair

Justin Etherton is the owner and founder of Etherton Real Estate Group. He loves helping his community both through his company and personally. Examples include sponsoring kids to go to summer camp, annual canned food drives, as well as volunteering at church and with the youth. Justin graduated from Westmont College with a degree in Business Economics, played soccer and was captain of the soccer team. He helped lead his team to the first national tournament in a decade. Justin met his wife Erin while attending Westmont College.

Justin wouldn’t be where he is today without the Lord, his wife and his family. Justin has 3 boys that are the joy of his life and he loves coaching their sports teams and spending time with his family. Recently, Justin has enjoyed both century road biking and mountain biking.

“My vision for CEF here in SB is to see it flourish and grow from where it is today. I believe the staff and past board members have done an amazing job getting CEF to be recognized in the community and it will be my goal to continue and expand on that legacy. I would like to see a revival in Santa Barbara County and that can start by bringing God back into schools through our children.”

justin.etherton@cefsantabarbara.org

Rob Schultz, Board Co-Chair

Rob is a Senior Wealth Advisor with Omega Financial Group, a local Financial Consulting and Wealth Management firm and a partner with Argos Global Advisors, a hedge fund based in Santa Barbara. Rob enjoys his work with pre and post retiree clients, foundations, and other non-profit entities. With Argos Global Advisors, he oversees investor relations and trading. Rob earned his Bachelor of Science degree from San Jose State University in 1994.

Rob has completed the education and examination process to earn the designations of CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ (CFP®) and Chartered Financial Consultant (ChFC®). Additionally, he has earned the designation of Chartered Retirement Planning Counselor™ (CRPC®).

Rob and his wife, Dena, have resided in Santa Barbara since 1998. They stay active with their three boys and can be found enjoying time at the beach, running, playing tennis, hiking, and camping/backpacking.

rob.schultz@cefsantabarbara.org

Peggy Wilson, Board Vice Chair

Peggy was born and raised in Southern California. She is a mother of 3 now grown children (2 sons & 1 daughter) and has three grandchildren.

Peggy enjoys spending time with her husband, visiting their kids and grandkids, gardening, reading about the American Founding & history, reading the Bible, and walking her faithful dog. Keeping life simple and close to God is a priority.

Peggy is passionate about CEF and its mission. She was a “classroom teacher of CEF” for a time and saw the impact and importance of sharing Jesus with little ones. Peggy is delighted to be a board member and share the vision of CEF.

peggy.wilson@cefsantabarbara.org

Clay Beccue, Board Secretary

Clay is a fiduciary financial advisor with Presidio Financial Advisors serving individuals, families, and organizations. Over the years, Clay has most enjoyed getting to know people and how he can best help others. Clay earned a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from the College of the Holy Cross. He holds the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) and Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst (CAIA) designations. Clay and his wife, Lauren, live in Santa Barbara with their three children. Clay enjoys exercising, outdoor activities, and spending time with family.

clay.beccue@cefsantabarbara.org

Louise Lindberg, Board Treasurer

Louise was born on a farm in Missouri and has lived in California for 40 years, 34 of those years in Santa Barbara. She accepted Jesus Christ when she was 13 years old. Louise retired from Community Action Commission of Santa Barbara County after 19 years as Fiscal Director, but she continues to do books for a couple of organization and has been a member of Oaks Bible Church for 15 years. Louise is involved in small groups, works with the children, and does miscellaneous ministries through Oaks Bible Church. She loves music, sings in the choir, and rings handbells. In her spare time Louise loves to read, walk, Danish dance, ski and garden.

louise.lindberg@cefsantabarbara.org

Christopher Haskell

Christopher Haskell is a local attorney who has been practicing for 33 years in the area of complex business litigation. He is married to Pamela Dillman Haskell, and together they have five children. Mr. Haskell has served on the Board of Directors of the Santa Barbara Rescue Mission, Santa Barbara Christian School (now Providence School), the Sansum Diabetes Research Institute, and Calvary Chapel Santa Barbara. Mr. Haskell is currently a member of the Advisory Board of the Center for Entrepreneurship, Ethics & Enterprise, and was the founder of the Santa Barbara Christian Lawyers Association (SBCLA). SBCLA meets on a monthly basis for lunch, a Bible study and prayer. SBCLA members include active and retired attorneys, retired judges, and law school students. Mr. Haskell has attended Calvary Chapel Santa Barbara since 1991.

chris.haskell@cefsantabarbara.org

Rod Walters

Rod Walters is a native of Santa Barbara and has been a volunteer with CEF for many years. He is blessed to be working with a dedicated team of volunteers and staff in bringing the good news of the Gospel and discipling children in the truth of God’s word.

rod.walters@cefsantabarbara.org

Ana Perez

Ana was born and raised in Guatemala, and came to the U.S. when she was 18 years old. She has four adult kids (two of them are twins!) and one young granddaughter. Ana and her daughters run a Christian daycare called “Little Blessings,” which gives them a great opportunity to share the love of Christ every day.

Ana likes to swim, but her favorite activity is creating lesson plans for the children in her daycare, for her church Bible study children’s program, and in Good News Club.

A Lompoc resident, Ana runs two Good News Clubs – one at La Honda School and one at her home. “There are no words that can express the feeling I have while serving not only in the church, but also in the school system. There is a great need for God in the children’s little hearts. I’m looking forward to seeing what else I can contribute to CEF.”

ana.perez@cefsantabarbara.org

Kevin Calbow

Kevin accepted Christ as his Savior at the age of 11 during a local church Vacation Bible School. Since then, it has been Kevin’s mission to live a life dedicated to loving and serving God. Kevin is an active member of Anthem Chapel in Goleta, CA, where he serves in various capacities.

Kevin is happily married to Melanie, and has two wonderful daughters. He works for Yardi, providing software solutions for the Affordable Housing industry. Kevin’s first exposure to Child Evangelism Fellowship and its mission to bring the Good News of Jesus to the youth in our communities was in high school, where he was trained to lead summer 5-Day Clubs.

In his personal time, Kevin enjoys mountain and road biking, teaching his girls to ski, traveling with his family, and exploring the culinary delights of Santa Barbara as a bit of a foodie.

kevin.calbow@cefsantabarbara.org

Charles Newton

Dr. Charles Newton was the first in his family to become a Christian. He came to faith in Christ at the age of 14 after hearing the Gospel for the first time in a small Baptist church. Within six months, he felt a clear call to ministry. He immediately started serving in various ministries at his church, passionate about helping people know and follow Jesus.

Charles attended Andersonville Theological Seminary, eventually earning his graduate degree in Christian Counseling. During this time, he served in different leadership roles within various Children’s Ministries, Youth Ministries, and Addiction Ministries. He later served as a missionary, founding a missions organization focused on reaching unreached people groups, planting churches in Africa, and engaging in Gospel work in Muslim-majority nations where Christianity is illegal. Now serving as pastor of Carpinteria Baptist Church in Carpinteria, California, Charles continues to lead with a heart for evangelism, discipleship, and bold, biblical ministry. He is honored to serve on the board of CEF and is committed to helping children hear and respond to the Gospel.

charles.newton@cefsantabarbara.org