Spiritual Advisor - Fr. David Sommer: My name is Fr. David and I am the father of 5 kids (16, 14, 11, 6, 3). Oldest two are boys and the rest girls. My wife and I have been married for 20 years in August. I was raised in a small coastal town by the name of Isla Vista in California and having lived there for 19 years I moved to Alaska where I met and married Heather. Before becoming a priest, I was a General Contractor and home builder (I still occasionally swing a hammer). Now I help my iconographer wife install icons in churches around North America.

For nearly 11 years, I have been a priest—first serving in Wilkes-Barre, PA while I finished seminary and then in Snohomish, WA for 10 years where I currently serve the church of St. Thomas. Mt involuntary hobby is to drive kids around but the thing I really love and miss is the great Pacific Ocean.

 

 

 

 

 

President - Charlie Kassaseya: I was born Los Angeles, raised in Riverside and live in Orange County; so I always carry a tube on sunblock. In 2008, I graduated from San Diego State University with a bachelors degree in Integrated Marketing Communications. During that time, I was blessed to be able to study International Business and Consumer Behavior in a small Northern Italy town called Paderno del Grappa. 

In 2012, I was received into the church through Christmation  at Saint Andrews Orthodox Church in Riverside, CA. It was there where I learned the fundamentals of Orthodox Christianity. I was named after Saint John the Baptist - so if you ever see me, don't be surprised if I answer to both John and Charlie. After living in San Diego for 7 years, I recently moved to Irvine, CA where I currently attend Saint Barnabas Orthodox Church. 

Since the weather is always pretty great in SoCal, I try and stay as active as possible. I really enjoy any type of outdoor activity (hiking, surfing, snowboarding) as well as watching good movies.

 

 

 

Vice President - Yara Arnouk: My name is Yara Cathrina Arnouk. I was born in Loma Linda, CA but I spent most of my years in Syria where I grew up. I currently live in Glendora, CA and I attend St. Nicholas Cathedral in Downtown Los Angeles, CA. My patron saint is St. Catherine of Sinai. I am currently Majoring in Chemistry, Pre-Dental and minoring in Biology at Azusa Pacific University where I work as a Chemistry tutor for fun. I am also a tutor for Children with special needs. My hobbies include meeting new people, reading a bunch of books, re-watching One Tree Hill (all 9 seasons), and doing yoga somewhere because running is just not my thing. I have been on a YES mission trip in Downtown LA, and I plan on going to Mexico for a dental mission trip in the next year.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Treasurer - David Romano: I was born the same year that Fr. Seraphim Rose reposed. Coincidentally, Fr. Seraphim and I also share the same birth state of California (maybe that's not such a coincidence). I grew up in the high desert of southern California near Joshua Tree National Park. After high school I moved to the coast to get a bachelor's degree in Linguistics from UC San Diego, and a Master's in Education from Concordia University, Irvine. After working as a high school mathematics teacher for three years, I transitioned to software engineering and am currently in the employ of a small technology company.

In 2010, I was received by baptism at St. Barnabas Orthodox Church in Costa Mesa, California and chose King Prophet David as my patron saint. I am currently a parishioner of St. Andrew Orthodox Church in Riverside, California. Besides attending church services, I enjoy spending time with family, reading, exercising outdoors, and watching the better films on AmazonPrime. (I highly recommend the adaptation of Dostoyevsky's Demons.

 

 

 

 

Secretary - Juliana Tannous: Hello, my name is Juliana Turk Tannous. My husband David, and our 1 year old daughter, Adella are members of St. Mark church in Irvine. I have been married for 2 years. I have been attending that for almost 20 years with my family. We are Palestinian but I was born in Jordan and my family came to the states when I was 2 years old.  I received my bachelors degree in Human Development from Cal State Fullerton and went on to get my teaching credential and masters degree from Chapman University. I am a high school science teacher and mainly teach biology. Now, I am a stay at home mom now and am not working. 

I was thoroughly involved in the church life since I was a child. In my teen years I held several offices at the parish level and eventually became president of what was then known as the "Western  Region". I attended PLC's, conventions, mid-winter meetings, mid-summer meetings, fellowship meetings, young adult events and even the College Conference. I have made many life-long friends from all over the states and Canada because of the opportunities Teen SOYO and the Antiochian Archdiocese has provided me. I am very thankful for that. I look forward to working with all of you!