Someone You Should Know: Jenny Wash

On our Someone You Should Know podcast, we interview Faith members to help us get to know them, see how God is working in their lives, and make new connections within our community. In this episode we get to know Jenny Wash.

• Automated Transcription
• Caleb Effinger 0:06
  Welcome, Jenny, to the show.
  
  Jenny Wash 0:09
  Hello.
  
  Caleb Effinger 0:10
  Good to have you. Thanks so much for taking the time.
  
  Jenny Wash 0:12
  Thank you.
  
  Caleb Effinger 0:18
  Tell us about your your hometown. You're growing up.
  
  Jenny Wash 0:22
  Okay, I grew up on the west side in Redmond, Washington. But I lived in Woodinville, but went to Redmond schools, and I have two older brothers and two older sisters. Youngest, and was there raised most of my life. So
  
  Caleb Effinger 0:39
  Washington, a Washington kid,
  
  Jenny Wash 0:42
  a Washington kid, just on the west side. Yes,
  
  Caleb Effinger 0:44
  this is this is a little bunny trail here. I love bunny trails. Do you west side, east side, like are you? Do you favor one? Obviously, you live on the east side here.
  
  Jenny Wash 0:56
  Well, when I graduated from college, I just kind of needed to get away, and I came to live in Cheney with my uncle, and it was just more my fit. So Eastern Washington is more my fit. Nice West West Side is beautiful and green, and but lots of people and traffic, and not that this isn't changing over here, but it's not anywhere near like Seattle area. Yeah, yeah, yeah.
  
  Caleb Effinger 1:26
  Did you ever make it to the San Juan Islands?
  
  Jenny Wash 1:29
  I have been at Friday Harbor, actually. Yes, beautiful. Yeah,
  
  Caleb Effinger 1:33
  oh my goodness. Yeah. Okay.
  
  Jenny Wash 1:37
  Yeah.
  
  Caleb Effinger 1:37
  Enough said.
  
  Jenny Wash 1:38
  And I went to school in Western Washington University, so that's in Bellingham, which is right in that little bay there. And
  
  Caleb Effinger 1:45
  yes, yeah,
  
  Jenny Wash 1:46
  it's pretty. That's a beautiful time. Anyway, I enjoyed being there too. So
  
  Caleb Effinger 1:51
  yeah, beautiful spot. Okay, so you alluded to a little bit, but your high school and higher education. What what was that?
  
  Jenny Wash 2:00
  So yeah, went to high school in Redmond at Redmond High, and then I went to Western Washington University and got a degree in graphic design and illustration. And then I came here, and then I met my husband Chris, and decided I really wanted to be a teacher. So after getting married, I went back to school at Eastern to get my teaching degree.
  
  Caleb Effinger 2:22
  Okay, very nice. Well, okay, so then your family. So Chris, your husband, talk about the rest of your family.
  
  Jenny Wash 2:29
  So I have my husband Chris, and then I have three kids. I have twins, Michaela and Malia. Michaela is married to Tyler Nebergall, and Malia just got married to Eli Blair, so that's really sweet. Just this past Sunday, and and then I have a son, Jake, who is school counselor at at Cordellane High School.
  
  Caleb Effinger 2:51
  Oh, but he lives here. He just
  
  Jenny Wash 2:52
  got his first job at Cordellane High School as a school counselor.
  
  Caleb Effinger 2:55
  Nice, congrats! Wow, that's that's great. We love Cordellane. Yeah. So okay, so then, what is your career?
  
  Jenny Wash 3:03
  My earlier careers were working in a print shop to use my graphic design skills, and then life has changed, and I had another baby, and I stayed home with Jake, and then I worked for the church here as a curriculum coordinator for a little bit, very part time, and then that stopped. And then I got a job as an admin assistant for a government agency downtown SRTC, working with the infrastructure of transportation.
  
  Caleb Effinger 3:40
  Oh wow!
  
  Jenny Wash 3:41
  And just did admin, and then I got a job at Northwest Christian as a teacher. So I finally got to teach after all these the years that I always wanted to teach when the kids were out of high school. Jake was just starting high school, so I worked there for four years, and then I got a call from Paul Funches and said, "Would you like to be my assistant? And I said, "Sure. So I came here and worked for Paul, and it just stayed. And then I transitioned into the bookkeeping position when Susan Webley retired. So, and I really enjoy it.
  
  Jenny Wash 4:18
  Oh, so I love being
  
  Jenny Wash 4:20
  here at the church, so
  
  Caleb Effinger 4:22
  that's sweet. Well, if Paul calls you again, we will not let him take you. So
  
  Jenny Wash 4:29
  I'll say no this
  
  Caleb Effinger 4:30
  time. Sorry, Paul. Okay, so then how did you how did you come to know Jesus to your testimony?
  
  Jenny Wash 4:36
  So I didn't become a believer till we were about 2728, and we were here at Faith. So when I had twins, I joined a twins club, and then within that, there's two families that went to Faith Bible Church, and they invited us to go to Faith, and we just really loved it. We had some. Previous, I wasn't raised in a Christian home, and just maybe every once in a while you go to church on special occasions, but not really, really wasn't taught the Bible. And I knew I, I actually dated some of that was a Jehovah's Witness, so I knew that religion a little bit, and then so we were just kind of in limbo, living our lives. And then with the babies, we said we need to find somewhere to go. So the two families invited us, and we just kind of stayed, and we just grew from there. And then I was at a women's retreat when I actually just gave my life to the Lord, and said I want to be Christian, so that's
  
  Caleb Effinger 5:43
  amazing. Was that retreat through Faith Bible Church? Okay, okay, yep, that's awesome. Yep. So the next question was how you ended up at Faith, which you already alluded to. So you were invited
  
  Jenny Wash 5:56
  from families. From families. That's yep.
  
  Caleb Effinger 5:59
  Wow, all these cool clubs, twins club. I've never heard of that before. That's
  
  Jenny Wash 6:04
  great. That's awesome.
  
  Caleb Effinger 6:07
  Okay, so then your ministry involvement at Faith Bible Church. What does that look like?
  
  Jenny Wash 6:13
  We have always worked in children's ministry. So when we came here, the girls were Michael and Aliya were about a year and a half, maybe two. We just kind of jumped in just that program, and I love kids, so that's where I was kind of like I found a fit. And then we taught in our three-year-old class with Dan Jarms and Milton Becky Flock. So those were our people with us in the threes, and then we changed to Awana. We helped in Awana, and then it went to King's Kids, and then Discovery. So we just stayed with the Wednesday night program, and then when COVID hit, our kids were, are the groups that we were working with were fifth graders, sixth graders, and then we decided that we would go up into use when when Ian came, which was something that we would would have said no, we wouldn't have now ever gone into youth ministry, but it's great. Yeah, and we're glad we're part of it. So it's a great group of people.
  
  Caleb Effinger 7:12
  That's great. And Ian, those Brits, they have that charming accent. I it's it's always hard to say no to those accents. Oh man! By the way, thank you so much for pouring into the youth. It is-it's really. I know that's a really impactful time for them, and so I'm so thankful they have your family in there. I know that's a huge blessing. So, so that was your ministry involvement. What is God teaching you now?
  
  Jenny Wash 7:48
  Wow, so much that He is in control. That I need to trust in Him, and obviously this is an anxious time for a lot of people, and it's heartbreaking. And so, I just have found myself just kind of emotions kind of go on awry at times, but knowing God is in control and my house is still there and we have our health, but just trusting in Him through this whole process and finding the good and the beauty in Him and in their in our surroundings. Malia's wedding was one of those. This is such a blessing that that was able to go forth, and I described it as amongst the destruction, a little daisy grew from it. So that was our little wedding of little daisy growing from the destruction. But anyway, that was sweet, and just relying on him, just remembering that he's in control, and put things in perspective that way. So
  
  Caleb Effinger 8:50
  yeah, yeah, yeah, that's sweet. And it was such a God honoring wedding. So, so how can we be praying for you right now?
  
  Jenny Wash 8:59
  Um. You know, I I think it's just just helping me us just focus on keeping relying on keeping relying on God through this time. I just I think prayer just be thankful, making sure I'm thankful for all the things that I have, and reminding myself to be thankful and not look at the inconveniences right now, and just being thankful for what I have. So prayer for just that focus and reminders that to to pray and be thankful first, and it just will hopefully bring me peace too, not being inconvenienced. I patience is another one. Just you have to be patient to do the things you want to do right now, and it's you know it's not going my way, but it's what God wants and just teaches us all that too. So focus.
  
  Caleb Effinger 10:00
  Yeah. Well, we will be praying for that. Okay. So shifting gears a little, I call this Seth's speed round.
  
  Jenny Wash 10:09
  Ian has one of these teeth. Yes. Call the hot seat. The hot seat.
  
  Caleb Effinger 10:13
  Okay. Are you ready for the hot seat, Jenny? Sure. Cats or dogs?
  
  Jenny Wash 10:25
  Dogs.
  
  Caleb Effinger 10:25
  Yes. Pineapple on pizza? Yes. Okay. Moving on. Do you have pets?
  
  Jenny Wash 10:33
  No, not right now. We just lost our dog or passed away a year ago, October. It was 12 and a half. So we've had a dog for 33 years, 32 years of our marriage. We've always had a dog of some sort.
  
  Caleb Effinger 10:48
  Okay. Okay. Okay. Favorite book besides the Bible?
  
  Jenny Wash 10:54
  I don't really have a favorite book. I read and I like to read, but I don't read a lot. So find your. Well, you're a
  
  Caleb Effinger 10:59
  bookkeeper, so you like do you like numbers? Then sure, I like order.
  
  Jenny Wash 11:04
  I like to do tasks, but I like historical fiction. And to be honest, I just like children's books because that's what I like to read to my grandkids. Yes.
  
  Caleb Effinger 11:13
  Oh, I have grandkids,
  
  Jenny Wash 11:14
  Amina and Dottie. By the way, those are my grandkids. The the
  
  Caleb Effinger 11:17
  cutest too, by the way. Yes. Favorite band?
  
  Jenny Wash 11:22
  That's a hard one too. I listen to a lot of music, but okay. Don't think I'm weird, but I like Chris Stapleton.
  
  Caleb Effinger 11:30
  Yes. Okay. Yes. We love Chris Stapleton. We saw him at
  
  Jenny Wash 11:33
  the Gorge.
  
  Caleb Effinger 11:34
  Oh my goodness! It was
  
  Jenny Wash 11:35
  amazing.
  
  Caleb Effinger 11:36
  I I approve now that you now that you need that. But favorite movie or TV show?
  
  Jenny Wash 11:41
  I had to think about this too because I don't know if I have a favorite, but I do like the movie Yesterday. It's about the Beatles.
  
  Caleb Effinger 11:48
  Oh, okay. Have you seen it? I have not.
  
  Jenny Wash 11:51
  It's a good one. And Princess Diaries.
  
  Caleb Effinger 11:53
  Of course, of course, yes. Best surprise gift.
  
  Jenny Wash 11:59
  30 years ago was finding out I was having twins, but that was the gift-a surprise. No, okay. Just being surprised, being pregnant altogether was a little like, "What? Yeah, we're not ready. Okay, but when we found out we had twins, that was awesome.
  
  Caleb Effinger 12:15
  Let's go. Yeah. Okay, what would you do with an extra with extra time, if you didn't have to sleep,
  
  Jenny Wash 12:23
  I think I would watercolor paint and work on my art and developing my art.
  
  Caleb Effinger 12:29
  Nice. Okay, favorite place to eat out in Spokane.
  
  Jenny Wash 12:33
  I have two. I have Zuly's. It's that Mediterranean girl up up there on the hill, and but I mostly go with like friends and daughters, and but Los Habaneros is our favorite. Chris and I like to go to.
  
  Caleb Effinger 12:47
  Okay,
  
  Jenny Wash 12:48
  that's up north.
  
  Caleb Effinger 12:48
  Yes, okay.
  
  Jenny Wash 12:49
  It's really good.
  
  Caleb Effinger 12:50
  Okay, good to know. Okay, you can get down off the hot seat now. We are done with those questions. Okay, Jenny, thank you so much for your time. It's been a joy chatting with you, and I'm glad our church can can get to know you more.
  
  Jenny Wash 13:05
  Great, thanks
  
  Jenny Wash 13:06
  for having me.
  
  Transcribed by https://otter.ai
  

Caleb Effinger

Caleb and his wife, Melisa, have been members at Faith since 2025 and have two daughters. Caleb hosts our Someone You Should Know podcast and has hosted his own podcast called "Strong Courageous Men".

View Resources by Caleb Effinger