Tamara Willey, Editor
Lisa has been drawing and painting since before she can remember. It is her favorite way of expressing herself. It was not until high school that she really started getting into graphic design. She received her Bachelor's of Fine Arts degree from the University of Alabama in Huntsville and now works as a graphic designer for Hexagon PPM and a freelance graphic designer.
Lisa believes that good design and advertising is key to the success of any business or program. Lisa says, "I want to use my God-given talents to help others succeed."
Michele Hudson, Copy Editor
Ivan has loved to draw since he was a toddler. His illustrations appear in books in Asia, North America, and Central America. His passion for the human body led him into the medical field. Ivan received his bachelor’s of nursing from the University of North Alabama and works as a nurse.
“I am happy to share my illustrations with you. I hope children especially will learn to love Jesus through the stories and drawings,” Ivan says.
Ivan Mader
Lisa Parker, Web and Graphic Designer
Melisa Selin Gümüş, Translation Manager
Tamara has taught her own and other children since 1988. She enjoys music, history, genealogy, and exploring methodology for assisting students with special learning needs. Tamara received her BA in psychology from Excelsior College in New York. She is pursuing training in Christian counseling and in Orton- Gillingham dyslexia therapy.
Tamara says, "I am honored to be part of this ministry, which seeks to bless so many lives with the fundamental skills of learning, and especially with the beauty and saving power of the gospel of Jesus Christ."
We are pleased...
... to present the Life of Jesus and Syllable Stories to you. We are thrilled to offer these works free
and copyright free. You can download, share, adapt, or print as many as you like.
We only ask that you use our work in a way that honors the Word of God.
Please let us know where and how you use our work. Thank you!
Statement of Mission
Easy Read English is an exceptional tool for promoting English language literacy to the entire globe. We open the world of reading to early, struggling, dyslexic, and non-English speaking readers using the Word of God as our texts.
Through Syllable Stories, we present lessons based on the respected and time-tested Orton-Gillingham instructional approach (structured literacy). These lessons revolve around easy-read, short stories based on the life of Jesus for those at about a second-grade level.
Statement of Fidelity
Writing, especially for children, is a sacred trust. Our work is created to be faithful to the Holy Bible without denominational distinctives. We consulted many versions and gospel accounts to create these easy-read versions of the stories.
In our Bible lessons and elsewhere, we use the New International Version, unless otherwise specified. We link to the World English Bible in others.
Statement of Faith
We believe the Bible to be the inspired, the only infallible, authoritative Word of God. We believe that there is one God, eternally existent in three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
We believe in the deity of our Lord Jesus Christ, in His virgin birth, in His sinless life, in His miracles, in His vicarious and atoning death through His shed blood, in His bodily resurrection, in His ascension to the right hand of the Father, and in His personal return in power and glory. We believe that for the salvation of lost and sinful people, regeneration by
the Holy Spirit is
absolutely essential. We believe in the present ministry of the Holy Spirit by whose indwelling the Christian is enabled to live a godly life. We believe in the
resurrection of both the saved and the lost; they that are saved unto the resurrection of life and they that are lost unto the resurrection of damnation. We believe in the spiritual unity of believers in our Lord Jesus Christ.
(As adopted by the National Association of Evangelicals.)
Our Motivation
Faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the Word of Christ.
Romans 10:17
We will tell the next generation the praise-worthy deeds of the Lord, his power and the wonders he has done.
Psalm 78:4
So is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.
Isaiah 55:11
Unless you speak intelligible words with your tongue, how will anyone know what you are saying? If then I do not grasp the meaning of what someone is saying, I am a foreigner to the speaker and he is a foreigner to me.
1 Corinthians 14:9,11
For you this whole vision is nothing but words sealed in a scroll. And if you give the scroll to someone who can read, and say, “Read this, please,” they will answer, “I can’t; it is sealed.” Or if you give the scroll to someone who cannot read, and say, “Read this, please,” they will answer, “I don’t know how to read.”
Isaiah 29:11-12
Ivan Mader, Illustrator
LEARN TO READ AND WRITE IN AMERICAN ENGLISH!
Carol Hale, Publisher and Author
Sam Johnson, Assistant Production Manager
Kim leads our weekly prayer group. This is the basis for our every success. Kim is an altar prayer minister at church and she enjoys praying with people wherever she goes. Kim likes gardening, playing piano and guitar music, and watching her two grandchildren. Kim also serves on our translation team.
Kim says, “I look forward to serving and helping this team so others can benefit by learning English and especially for the opportunities for them to know Christ.”
Ivan Mader
Sam Johnson, Assistant for Productions
Steve March, Production Manager
Lisa Suggs, Graphic Designer
About Us
Carol has a passion for creating curriculum for children. For five years, she was the editor of the education section for The Denver Post. She has written and published many books for teachers including Phonics Without Worksheets and mountains of curriculum for educators and Sunday School teachers.
Now also an Orton-Gillingham dyslexia tutor, Carol says, “Easy Read English is a culmination of many loves and years of experience. It is my hope and prayer that young and old all over the world will come here to learn to read new words and also discover The Word, that is Jesus Christ.”
Steve is responsible for the production and promotion
aspects of the ministry. He brings more than 30 years of sales, marketing, and business operations experience to our organization.
“Easy Read English is making English-language learning available to people all around the world - young, old, reading disabled, emerging readers, and non-native speakers while spreading the Word of God. I feel blessed to be able to share my faith in God through this wonderful mission," says Steve. "It is also fantastic to know we are helping change lives by making the gift of literacy available to everyone for free."
Kim Suggs, Prayer Coordinator
Michele enjoys using her writing and musical talents to inspire others. She holds a degree in Journalism from the University of Central Florida. She has worked over the years with nonprofit organizations, advertising agencies, corporations, and as a marketing consultant.
Michele is writing an inspirational book to encourage others who have suffered trauma. Michele says, “I cherish my relationship with Jesus Christ and count it a blessing to be part of a mission that shares God's abounding love and grace.”
Sam takes our Word files and transforms them into amazing videos, Power Points, and other platforms. We so appreciate Sam's talents in attention-to-detail and keeping us moving forward. An 18-year-old believer in Jesus Christ, Sam attends Rivertree Church. He was homeschooled up through high school. Sam enjoys music, reading, and volunteer opportunities.
Sam says, "I enjoy my work for Easy Read English because I am able to use my computer abilities and learn new skills. I also get to use creative problem solving to see God's Kingdom grow through this useful tool."
Melisa Selin is a Turkish missionary who recently graduated from college. She can speak three languages. Her proficiency is Russian translation. Melisa loves to volunteer, serving and teaching children. We are blessed to have Melisa edit our work, build new lessons, and bring her abundant enthusiasm to our mission.
Melisa says: “I think this website is very fulfilling to those who use it to learn English. At the same time, they are learning about Jesus. Easy Read English has helped me to discover new concepts in English and to improve my pronunciation.”