Where are you from? I was born in Florida, went to university in Upstate New York, but I have spent the majority of my life in and around the city of Philadelphia in Pennsylvania.
How did you find St Margaret’s? When PJ was a baby we had one of Paul’s uni classmates and his wife over for dinner. Tessa is from Oxford and living in Philadelphia and I enjoyed her so much. When Paul was accepted at Oxford, I asked Tessa for help in finding some places to submit my resume. She was a schoolmate of one of Andrew’s sons and sent him my information. It turned out St. Margaret’s had been looking for someone with my qualifications for over a year and after Skyping with Andrew it felt like it was meant to be.
What are you involved in in the church? I’ve recently started as the Children’s Worker.
What do you like about the church? The people! Church is one of the last places in society that is truly intergenerational, and that is so valuable. And I think it’s so incredible to have people so dedicated to children’s work here. Liz is amazing to watch interacting with kids in Sunday school and during SAMMYS. And have you noticed the way Michele’s face lights up when she talks about the kids in church? I’m really feeling the enthusiasm around having a dedicated children’s worker at St. Margaret’s, and it’s pretty exciting to be a part of.
What are you looking forward to over the next few months? I am so happy to be here for autumn in Oxford. I’m happy to have my family together at last so that we can experience the change of seasons with our son and share his wonder with the world together. I’m introducing a big, shiny gold box that will hold our weekly story during toddler group, and I can’t wait to see the children’s faces each week as we reveal what’s inside.
What three words would you use to describe your faith? I find summing up my faith in only 3 words to be difficult. I find I relate especially to teenagers as they struggle with their faith because I feel like I struggle with mine constantly. Especially coming from America as it is right now, I feel like I’m constantly questioning why God let’s bad things happen, how we can take babies from their mothers for no reason, how 53 people can die from mass shootings in the month of August and nothing gets done about it. I pray daily for the Rohingya and the atrocities that have happened to them, for the suffering of woman and girls in Sudan. I have days when I feel like I have lost faith, but I have more days when God is clearly telling me that I am, and you are, His hands and feet and we need to and can take care of the people who need taking care of. And because faith is a journey with different paths, my three words will probably change. But today my three words are Challenging, Heavy, and Joyful. Those three words don’t look like they go very well together, do they?
Tell us something most people would never guess about you… I have read almost every book M.C. Beaton has written. Almost…