I grew up in several parts of Virginia as a pastor’s kid. I am the oldest of two daughters. Women just started to be ordained in 1970 in the Lutheran Church, so I did not really see women as pastors growing up. I pursued a degree in English, Linguistics and Speech with a certificate in secondary education. I taught high school English for two years in Baltimore, MD, and one year in Hagerstown, MD. After discerning that I would rather teach people about Jesus than Shakespeare, I moved to Gettysburg for my Master of Divinity. My internship was in a town of 35 people in northern North Dakota. I fell in love with the Midwest and ended up completing the requirements for my degree at Wartburg Theological Seminary. I had a wonderful mentor who encouraged me to get my PhD in Religious Education. I went on to Garrett Evangelical Theological Seminary on the campus of Northwestern University for my PhD in Congregational Studies with an Emphasis in Religious Education. I served my first call at Mt. Zion Haugh’s Lutheran Church in Keymar, MD, for nine years. During that time, I was also an adjunct professor at Lancaster Seminary, Wesley Seminary and Gettysburg Seminary. I was the Director of Lifelong Learning and Certificate programs at Gettysburg for a time.
I am a certified Healthy Congregations Facilitator. I enjoy combining my ethnographic studies and listening skills with family systems theory. I like to read and play Scrabble with my mom. Someday my craft room will get finished at home, and I will be able to get back to doing some artistic endeavors. I also enjoy domestic and international travel. I always have our backgammon board with us when my husband and I travel to play while waiting for our food in a restaurant or in the evenings with a glass of wine. We enjoy living in Kearney with our nine-year-old Maltese/Bichon mix, Natasha.
