OUR TEAM
Each of our coaches is a certified life coach through the Certified Life Coach Institute. Additionally, all of our staff have personally walked the healing journey themselves and come alongside our clients from a place of relational understanding.
Our Trauma and Healing Life Coaches have each experienced personal trauma and, combined, have more than 75 years of walking in healing today.
Our Couples and Marriage Life Coaches have a combined 75 years of marriage experience to offer our clients.
Our Family and Adolescent Life Coaches have more than 100 years experience working with children, adolescents, and families.
Our coaches have worked around the world and are deeply invested in our community. If you're looking for a place where people know and love the Lord, people who "get it" and can meet you where you're at, while having the professional training and experience necessary for the job, you've come to the right place.
Welcome to J. Rapha Consulting.
COACHES
Samantha Means, MDiv, CLC
Chief Executive Officer
Trauma & Healing | TRI Speaker
Samantha is a U.S. Marine veteran, an author and speaker and founder of J. Rapha Consulting. She specializes in coaching people with complex Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) as well as assisting their loved ones to learn how to navigate the healing process together. She has served internationally in a counseling fashion in more than 15 countries, worked with youth in drug rehabilitation, individuals in various stages of palliative care, military veterans, and served countless women working with healing from sexual trauma.
Samantha provides workshops for friends, family members and the community of loved ones who suffer from traumatic symptoms to know how to come alongside the hurting and provide the support and unity needed to walk out healing. She was diagnosed with complex PTSD in 2007 and has a healing journey with Jesus Christ that inspired the foundation of J. Rapha Consulting.
When she's not at the office, Samantha can be found at one of her favorite restaurants in town, reading a book in the sun, or somewhere in the mountains with her dogs and her horse.
Jennifer has been leading and running Genesis Process groups and porividing pastoral marriage counseling since 2015 before coming to J. Rapha. In 2013 the Lord laid healing deep on her heart, first for herself and her family, and then for her community. Her deepest desire is to see a community transformed by the healing power of Jesus Christ.
Jennifer has been married since 2005, has been a military spouse since 2008, and she and her husband have one teenage daughter. When she's not in the office Jennifer loves being out in God's beauty seeing the wonder of everything He's created.
Jennifer Crow, CLC
Chief Operating Officer
Couples & Marriage | Family | Groups
Tracy Dole
Office Administrator
Identity Life Coach
Mom to a large family, Tracy has spent years learning how to push into connection and value relationship. Her experience spans from special needs parenting of a medically fragile child, homeschooling her crew, parenting through several traumatic events including the loss of a child, a house fire, and her husband’s stroke, to parenting while going to school full time and entering the workforce.
Returning to school in 2017, she attended North Idaho College and received her technical certificate in Medical Assisting. She received certification through the AAMA, the highest certification available in the United States. She worked for nearly three years at the Kootenai Heart Failure Clinic as a Certified Medical Assistant, where she loved getting to know and care for her patients.
Tracy’s heart is to come alongside parents and help them learn how to connect with their kids and how to be a safe haven for them. For nearly two decades, Tracy has been ministering to grieving moms and moms of kids with heart defects, sharing her own journey and compassionately loving and encouraging them.
Tracy is blessed to be mom to 11 kids, some grown with their own families and some still at home. She and her family live on their small farm near Tensed, Idaho. She attends Plummer Bible Church where she serves on the worship team. Tracy enjoys spending time with her kids, music, cooking, painting, and learning new things.
Bethany Elle, CLC
Trauma & Healing Life Coach
Bethany has a long list of accomplishments and passions that she brings to J. Rapha.
First and foremost, she is a friend of God. She is also a wife for more than forty years, a mother of five, grandmother of six, an author, Sozo facilitator, art Sozo facilitator, Genesis Process facilitator, personal mentor, ministry leader, sexual abuse healing coach, speaker and event planner, and Bethel School of Supernatural Ministry (BSSM) graduate and small group leader.
When she's not pursuing these ventures Bethany loves to travel, spend time with her family and friends, read, write, and be with her dogs.
Bethany has been saved through Jesus and has personal experience with mental, emotional, and physical healing through Christ. He's given her a heart to help and serve others and Bethany has chosen J. Rapha Consulting as one more place to do this.
John Ernst, M.A, CLC
Trauma & Healing Life Coach
I'm a US Navy veteran and after my time in service I became a youth pastor for about fifteen years until the Lord led me in a different direction.
Even as a young man my heart had tears for the poor and needy. Why so many suffering not only physically but mentally? Why so many depressed and down trodden? Why so many broken?
The following scripture personally challenged me: “Open your mouth for the speechless, in the case of all who are appointed to die. Open your mouth, judge righteously and plead, the cause of the poor and needy." -Proverbs 31:8-9
I started the adventure of education and got my BA in Theology and Counseling and MA in Professional Counseling, which led to a lot of personal growth, knowledge, and skills while working in the body of Christ and the mental health professional arena.
I love to learn so I would consider myself a lifelong student. I have done everything from professional wrestling for the CWF, bounty hunting, to being a head coach for high school football. I find my passion is to see people succeed in life regardless of where they have been in the past.
I provide a restorative Biblical intervention with the goal of positive behavioral change, and doing so has led many people to health, wholeness, and has empowered individuals and families with a renewed relationship with our Lord Jesus Christ. I have a passion to take the complicated and make it simple for those that feel broken while supporting them in their healing process.
I have been blessed to see the world. I've been all over Europe, the Middle East and South America. I've lived on the East Coast and the West Coast. I have been blessed with family and friends that cover me with their prayer. In my free time I love to go to the gym, hang out with family and friends, play table top games, and cook.
Michelle Tiffany, CLC
Trauma & Healing Life Coach
Michelle was born in Coeur d’ Alene, Idaho and raised all over north Idaho. She and her husband of nearly 25 years raised both of their adult children in rural North Idaho as well. Some complications early in her adult life led to involvement with the law and court-ordered mental health and substance abuse treatment. Michelle learned how to live life under a microscope, and it did nothing to help the ongoing emotional and behavioral instability she experienced. To make her situation more difficult, the most prominent psychiatrist in town said the best life she could hope for was to stay medicated enough to not end up permanently institutionalized.
However, God was writing a different story. Jesus intruded upon Michelle’s chaos with the truth about who He really is. She wrestled with the belief that God only loved her because He had to. Her glorious discovery was that God the Creator actually liked who He made Michelle to be. She stopped focusing on behavior modification and grabbed on to what God said is true. Her relationship with Him changed into a life coach/mentorship/discipleship kind of relationship. With the help of a friend who was led by Holy Spirit and had a regular relationship with Michelle, she developed a hunger for truth and a complete inability to be quiet about who this God is.
She learned that healing from Complex PTSD does not deny that the trauma and abuse caused tremendous harm, it just no longer gets to hold a position of authority. The physical, psychological, and sexual abuse perpetrated in childhood and adolescence created a huge pile of coping mechanisms that were no longer helpful in adulthood. With the help of Jesus and a fantastic life coach, Michelle learned not only a new way of living but a new way of relating to God and others.
Michelle spent a decade working with others in addiction recovery. In 2016, Michelle became a trained volunteer through Healing Rooms International, attended training for Sozo Inner Healing through the Bethel Transformation Center. Michelle helped bring Art Sozo Training to Coeur d’ Alene, Idaho after witnessing a dramatic healing in her eldest child through the Art Sozo Process. Utilizing art and creativity as a means of allowing God to bypass our defenses, became a major part of Michelle’s life. In 2018, she began attending Christian Leaders Institute with a focus on restorative justice. She received additional education and training through the Center for Aromatherapy Research and Education and became a Massage Therapist in a drug and alcohol rehabilitation center with full freedom to utilize all of the tools in her tool bag. Becoming a Licensed Ministry Chaplain as well as a Certified Life Coach Minister has allowed an expanded access to spaces to simply be present with people.
So long as God keeps the batteries powered, Michelle has no hesitation in grabbing the flashlight to go back in and shine the light on the path so others can find their way out. When Michelle isn’t off to find people to love on, she’s at home loving on her farm animals, roasting coffee, or fixing stuff. She enjoys restoring old buildings, trucks, gadgets, furniture, or fixing any random broken thing. People often joke about her always working, but she is certain that if she likes what she’s doing it absolutely isn’t work.
Tanner Wittchow, CLC
Trauma & Healing Life Coach
Telehealth Only
With a passion for helping others to be seen, heard, and valued, Tanner treasures connecting others to the transforming work of Christ. It is His work that Tanner seeks to share with hurting people, "so that they can experience grace and healing in a relationship with the Father that will last a lifetime." In fostering an atmosphere of sincerity, honesty, and vulnerability, Tanner has partnered with many people over the past 9 years in both a counseling and ministry setting. These have included working with addiction, anxiety, crisis intervention, depression, grief, and matters of faith just to name a few.
Through listening and serving others, he has developed a great love for joining with people to identify barriers, overcome obstacles, and engage with the fractured part of our stories. He does this by drawing on his experience as a pastor, a counselor, and as a person in equal need of grace. Equipping those he serves with prayer, practical tools, and tangible steps has been both a daily duty and delight for years. He is deeply concerned with the heart and believes that God has given us all incredible minds that heal and work for His glory. It is Tanner's goal to help others see how Christ is redeeming the ruptures in our lives.
When he is not behind a desk, Tanner enjoys being a husband, a father, and being out in nature with his dog, aka the German Shedder.
Madeline Loren, CLC
Couples & Marriage | Family
I have spent the last 42 years being challenged, stretched, given the opportunity to see myself from another angle by the same wonderful man who also provides amazing encouragement, support, and a deep, faithful love - my dear husband. Life has given us some insane challenges. Yet, we are continually learning how to embrace not only the peaks but also the valleys, gaining new skills and perspectives as our marriage grows richer through it all.
I cherish our seven children and our uniquely blended family. My husband had a four-year-old daughter when we married. Together we later gave birth to two wonderful children and decided five years later to provide foster care to a sibling group of three, each with varying special needs, including autism.
After three years of foster care, they all became “legally free” for adoption and they officially joined our family. We had our hands full for sure, but it turned out that we weren’t done yet. We received a shocking but blessed surprise that I was going to have a baby at age 37, that we would be a family of nine and definitely would need a full size van with extra room in the back for LOTS of groceries.
In the midst, by God’s grace and my husband’s support, I was able to go back to school at age 38 and earn a Bachelor’s Degree in Human Lifespan Development addressing Physical, Psychological, Social, Emotional, and Spiritual domains. Upon graduation, I was able to complete half of my Master’s Studies in Rehabilitation Counseling before moving in 2012 to North Idaho. Unfortunately, there was no program available for me to complete my degree.
My passion, my heart and motivation, has always been relationship with, as well as service and ministering to people. Through the years, this led me to create and launch many social service programs and ministries, as well as also volunteering within other established organizations. This has allowed me to work closely with children, teens, and adults from every socio-economic conditions. The needs varied from those wrestling with addictions, disenfranchisement, experiencing loss and grief, to repairing hurting or broken marriages, families in crisis, and holding up under the pressures of societal/professional demands, disabilities and illness, as well as dying and death.
My role was offering hope for life beyond their current circumstances, helping them develop goals and strategies for success, and providing tangible means and resources by which to accomplish them.
It has been my privilege to also come alongside individuals, providing guidance as they discover their unique design and their life’s purpose, providing tools and encouragement as they gain new perspectives, see beyond and overcome barriers to begin their journeys down new paths with new possibilities.
When I am not here at J Rapha Consulting, you can find me riding my horse, kayaking, hiking, spending time making memories with family and friends, and leading worship at my church.
Thank you for letting me tell you a bit about my story. I hope to have the opportunity and privilege of hearing yours, and walking beside you as you add to its chapters!
Matthew Taylor, CLC
Couples & Marriage | Family
Matthew’s passion is to see healthy marriages and families who don’t merely survive, but thrive! Marriages and families where wounded hearts are healed, hope is restored and relationships, through Christ, become all that God intended. Matthew’s heart is to provide a safe, non judgmental, grace-filled space for people to share. He understands every person’s need to be loved, heard and understood. Matthew is very compassionate and empathetic, and loves people enough to give them the “kick in the pants” that may be necessary to be more than conquerors.
Matthew served in the medical industry in southern California. He left his medical career and all that was comfortable to serve God full-time in international ministry. Matthew has traveled the world extensively, which has given him priceless experience that cannot be gained in the traditional context of education, being exposed to many different cultures. He served in full-time ministry for 20 years, mainly focusing on discipleship, when God called him to serve the local church in America as an associate pastor over community outreach and missions. He continues to use all facets of his formal training, travels and life experience to disciple, guide and consult those that God entrusts to him.
Matthew moved here to North Idaho just under two years ago and lives in Hayden with his bride of 13 years, and three children ages twelve, ten and two. Matthew and his wife homeschool and coach their kid’s sports. As a tight knit, and fun-loving family they value quality time, making memories, experiencing new adventures, and presenting hospitality. They love enjoying God’s creation, especially if it involves food, bodies of water and fun!
Matthew is excited to journey with people to experience restoration and healing and celebrating healing, progress, and transformation together. God is the architect and author of relationship, marriage and family. It was all His idea; lets look to Him for answers and His original design as we journey together, in victory! No one is meant to journey life’s many challenges alone!
Kerri Rush, CLC
Family Life Coach
Kerri was born in Rapid City South Dakota. She lived most of her life in Bakersfield California where her dad worked in the oil industry. She married in 1990 and over the next thirty years she was blessed with seven beautiful children and, most recently, grandchildren.
In 1994 she began to hunger and thirst for God’s Word and began attending Bible Study Fellowship (BSF), a non-denominational Bible study where she hung on every word. In the midst of a rocky marriage Kerri found strength and peace in God through Bible Study, prayer, and fellowship. Shortly after joining the study she was invited into leadership and was privileged to be a Group Leader and Children’s Leader for the last twenty nine years.
Kerri surrendered her life and a career to God's calling for her to be a stay at home mom of her seven children where she homeschooled them in the BSF school program until 2022. She is passionate about God’s Word and having a personal relationship with Jesus.
After thirty-two years of marriage, Kerri suffered through a divorce. What seemed to be defeat, God showed her is a redirection of her life. She's learned that she is a child of the Most High King (Jesus). God does hate divorce but he loves those who are going through the suffering and trauma of divorce. As a Family Life Coach her goal is to bring healing and restoration to families no matter the trauma they've been through.
She established her purpose statement when she completed a course through a ministry called Brushfires. "She must impact the lives of others, as part of a ministry through coaching, sharing scriptural truths and helping them to find their place in a God honoring ministry.” The Lord confirmed her purpose through the opportunity He gave her to work and serve at J. Rapha Consulting.
Kerri is passionate about knowing the truth and walking in the truth. She knows that Jesus is the Way, the Truth and the Life. No one comes to the Father accept by Him (John 14:6). She continually seeks to find the truth in all areas of her life whether it is Scripture, health, finances, etc. She loves to research natural ways to heal. Jesus is the Great Healer. She seeks Him for wisdom. She has a great passion to help others find these truths as well.
Rachael Kane, CLC
Adolescent Life Coach
Born on the east side of Washington state, Rachael lived in a small town with one older brother who she looked up to all her life. She grew up playing flag football and going to church but didn't understand who God was. "I just knew if I didn't follow the rules and if I didn't get saved I was going to go to hell. I never had an accurate picture of who Jesus was because my relationship with my earthly father was based on fear."
Rachael grew up in a violent household, isolated from friends and coped by listening to KLOVE radio while hiding under the covers. "I knew God was with me no matter how bad it was outside my room." She and her mother tried to leave for years, but due to limited resources and only being allowed 30 days in a domestic violence shelter they were always forced to go back home. She fell into a depression that led to coping by using whatever she could to self-medicate. When a teacher recommended going to Narcotics Anonymous, Rachael dropped out of school.
"I didn't understand what that even meant. I do know though, that if I took action back then and got help I may have been able to avoid the next twenty years of pain and darkness."
Rachael and her mother were able to find their own apartment when Rachael continued to struggle with addiction and began medication to help with withdrawal. "It seemed to help for awhile but without dealing with my trauma and the pain I was holding onto I was not getting better." Eventually, Rachael's choices led to her being homeless.
In July of 2015 Rachael was told about the Union Gospel Mission. She'd reached a point that she was ready, and she checked in for the two-year L.I.F.E Recovery Program.
"I vowed to not walk out when things got hard. I spent two years working on myself and experiencing Gods unconditional love and grace, and I graduated in in June of 2017. Due to her experience with domestic violence, she did her practicum through UGM with Safe Passage, where she ended up staying on staff as a shelter advocate. She was able to gain experience in support services and found her passion for being on the floor with residents and connecting with people in crisis. In 2020, Rachael combined her experience as a residential floor staff and her life experiences with recovery and began working with adolescents and young adults who struggled with mental health, drug addictions, and other behaviors.
Rachael has shown to have an uncanny ability to connect with and understand adolescents who struggle with trauma and addiction. Rachael sees past their behavior to the unmet needs they're trying to address. Before joining J. Rapha Rachael worked with Children's Village in Coeur d'Alene as a direct care provider where she taught children life skills while helping them overcome trauma, neglect, and loss.
Susanna has worked with youth of all ages in a variety of settings since 2015. Prior to joining J. Rapha she worked closely with children and adolescents affected by domestic violence.
Not only does Susanna have the professional experience of working with youth, she also has personal experience and understanding of the widespread effects of trauma and how these effects impact mental well-being.
"I am so excited to connect with you over our common ground and learn from you through our differences. I know the healing journey can be one that is rocky and overwhelming, but I am here to walk alongside you as we navigate its ups and downs."