Ephrata Mennonite School
Tanner Burkholder
Senior
Tanner Burkholder is a senior at Ephrata Mennonite School this year. He loves hunting and is a very good hunter. He is also a big softball fan. He also is a very skilled woodsman and loves to go hiking on any good occasion.
His favorite food is fried chicken. His favorite restaurant is Mission BBQ and he likes their pulled pork.
His favorite kind of music is Southern Gospel and he is a huge fan of Gold City, a quartet out of Alabama. His favorite song is Cast My Bread Upon the Water, also by Gold City. He loves to sing bass and does a fantastic job. His favorite subject in school is Math.
His favorite flavor of pizza is chicken bacon ranch. His favorite things to put on burgers include pickles and barbecue sauce.
His favorite kinds of books to read are biographies. He is also a part of the school choir known as Ministry Arts Team this year and also last year. He was also a Bible Quizzer in sixth grade.
Some of his favorite beverages include sweet tea, Dr. Pepper, and root beer. He is also a big time fan of the Kendrick Brothers who are Christian Baptist movie producers out of Georgia. Some of his favorite movies include Facing the Giants, Fireproof, and Courageous.
His favorite pets are dogs and his family has three and also sells puppies when the time is right. He also enjoys campfires. He also enjoys fishing and knows quite a few good fishing spots. He really, really enjoys the outdoors.
Tanner is literally the middle child of five children. Tanner is preparing to go to college in the fall at Lebanon Valley College in Annville, Pennsylvania. He has gone to Ohio Wilderness Boys Camp twice to help out for our school Mini Terms and one of his brothers volunteered there at one point.
Tanner is a very nice guy with a good heart.
Written by: Brayden Heisey
David Liffey
Junior
David Liffey, the son of Brendan and Sheila Liffey, joined Ephrata Mennonite School in 2021 as a freshman. He is now a junior. His classes that he takes are Geometry, World History, Practical Christian Living, Student Newspaper, and Intro to Business. His favorite is the Student Newspaper, where he collects information and writes about people’s interests.
David’s favorite part of school is the social life and sports. David’s favorite sport is basketball. David is the youngest of a family of 5, having 3 siblings. They moved to PA from New York City in 2021.
Some of David’s dreams are to be a successful, Christian father, as he also wants to start a business in the future. He also wants to travel the world, especially Western Europe.
David currently attends New Covenant Mennonite Church, where he also goes for youth group. One of David’s prominent role models is Nate Smucker, who is one of his youth leaders at New Covenant. David especially looks up to him for his leadership qualities. David is looking forward to his youth group traveling to Jamaica in the next year to Jamaica Relief Ministries, which is a children’s home and ministry. While they are there they will be building a house for a family.
David is a great friend to everyone, and with his extroverted personality and upbeat way of life he can easily light up the room as soon as he steps in the room.
Written by: Brodrick Smucker
Teryn Heisey
Sophomore
Teryn Heisey is a sophomore at Ephrata Mennonite School. This is her 8th year in the school and she has been making the most of her time taking classes that interest her. She is currently taking Geometry, Biology, Personal Finance, Bible, Culinary Arts, and Physical Education.
When asked what she most looks forward to, she said Gospel Haven Invitational Tournament.
Teryn is the youngest of 6 siblings and is the first to attend Ephrata Mennonite. When she was asked who she looks up to the most in her community, she said her sister Tiffany, who is closest in age to her in the family.
Anyone watching volleyball at Ephrata is likely to see Teryn on the court. She is on both the Lady Legend’s Junior Varsity and Varsity teams and plays right side and outside hitter, as well as a defensive specialist.
Teryn dreams of becoming a missionary overseas to witness to people and bring the word of God to them. She said that she was most interested in missionary work in Mexico, Jamaica, and Thailand.
She enjoys school, hanging out with her friends, and making friendships, but she is looking forward to following God’s will for her life after graduation. She is currently attending New Covenant Mennonite Fellowship on Sundays and Wednesdays.
Written by: David Liffey
Luke Gibson
Freshman
Luke Gibson is now a freshman at Ephrata Mennonite. Luke has gone to EMS for his whole life except for 2 years in which his family lived in Florida for mission work. He is enjoying high school, and is taking classes that peak his interest. His favorite classes include chemistry, history, and culinary arts.
He has an older sister and brother, as well as a younger brother. Luke enjoys spending time with his family and friends.
Luke is a man of many talents. His favorite hobbies are as follows: skateboarding, lifting weights, music, and Jujitsu.
He has been skating for 4 years now and once ollied his skateboard off the stage at school. He continues to learn more about skating.
In BJJ, a form of jujitsu, he has competed in 2 tournaments and won both, he’s been doing that for 3 years now, and wants to pursue the hobby as he continues to get older. Luke is a cultured man and enjoys many genres of music. He looks forward to listening and feeling music. Music is a way to relax and motivate Luke. Luke tends to enjoy the little things in life. He notices little details most people will miss.
Written by: Mitchell Good
Hailey Martin
Junior
Hailey Martin has been attending Ephrata Mennonite School since Kindergarten and is now a Junior. She is very involved with things at school. She has served on the Student Council for two years and this year had the opportunity to be President. Her job as President includes being the spokesperson, brainstorming, and organizing events. Hailey enjoys playing sports and plays on two sports teams. Although she is sad that volleyball season is over, she is looking forward to the start of basketball season. She is taking two AP classes this semester, AP Language and Composition and AP Calculus. Although these classes are difficult, she has been learning a lot.
While she isn’t in school or involved in school-related activities, you can find her working at her part-time job at Dutchway Farm Market, hanging out with her friends, or spending some alone time reading. Hailey attends church and the youth group at New Covenant Mennonite Church. This past summer the youth group went on a missions trip to South Dakota. This coming summer, she is looking forward to going to Jamaica with her youth group.
Hailey has some big plans and goals for her future. After she graduates, she wants to go into the medical field, specifically with labor and delivery. To accomplish that goal, she is currently taking a college class, anatomy and physiology, at HACC. She is able to do that through Ephrata Mennonite’s dual enrollment program. She hasn’t decided what college she wants to go to, but one on the top of her list is Pensacola Christian College. However, these plans might change as she follows God’s will for her life. Hailey Martin is an excellent student and a friend to all and is excited to see what the rest of the year holds.
Written by: Shakira Burkholder
Shauna Stoltzfus
Sophomore
Shauna Stoltzfus, the daughter of Calvin and Geneva Stoltzfus, joined Ephrata Mennonite School in 8th grade. She is now a sophomore. Shauna’s favorite thing about school is volleyball, as she helps the Legends volleyball team. She is very passionate about sports and enjoys them. Shauna’s classes that she participates in are Geometry, English/Language Arts, Theater Arts, History, and PE (Physical Education). Out of the 5 classes she participates in her favorite is geometry. Outside of school she enjoys playing volleyball or hanging out with friends.
Shauna’s plans after high school is to follow God’s will for her life. She wants to either devote herself to mission work of God’s choosing, or go to college for cosmetology and start a business in that line of work. Although at the moment, she works at the village cafe in Intercourse, PA.
She really enjoys working there and loves to be with her co-workers.
Shauna attends church at New Covenant Mennonite Fellowship. She really enjoys the friendships she has made there and the Youth Group that the church has. With these things, she is proud of the person she has become spiritually in the past year, rooting herself with Christian beliefs and surrounding herself with great friends, which she is blessed to have. Shauna will be traveling to Jamaica next year with her youth group, and another time with her family. Which are both supporting JRM, or Jamaica Relief Ministries. Her sister is helping in Jamaica, which is a blessing. Shauna hopes that God’s will will be fulfilled in her life, and trusts in him with everything. Shauna is a great friend to everyone and has a passion to be kind and helpful to others.
Written by: Brodrick Smucker
Mitchell Good
Senior
Mitchell Good is a senior here at Ephrata Mennonite School. This is his first year in the school and making the most of it by taking a lot of classes that interest him. He’s currently enrolled for the first semester in college and career, psychology, student newspaper, Bible, and he takes a couple days a week and leaves early for work-based learning.
He has 1 sibling here at Ephrata Mennonite, his younger sister Alaina who is in 4th grade.
When he was asked who he looked up to in his community, he said Rick Rhodes, as a spiritual leader and motivational speaker.
He plays basketball and soccer, and has in many previous years. He has been a starter on his basketball team for several years, including middle school, JV and Varsity. He is currently a striker on the Legends soccer team.
He said that if he were to redo any school year, it would be his freshmen year because of a 9th grade guys camping trip.
He also takes the time to appreciate the little things around him, and he enjoys reading and art. He attends New Covenant Mennonite Fellowship, and attends there on Sunday mornings and Wednesday nights for youth small group. He works for his dad at Good’s Glass Service, where he spends most of his time in the summer.
He is looking forward to graduating this year, as he wants to take time to travel and experience different cultures.
Written by: David Liffey