Editorial Board
The Editorial Board of Fidelia's Sisters is comprised of ten women who are also part of the advisory board members for The Young Clergy Women Project.
Managing Editor
As managing editor, Ann Bonner-Stewart provides oversight for all sections of Fidelia's Sisters. She is a graduate of Duke University (AB) and Yale Divinity School (MDiv). Ann currently serves as the chaplain at Saint Mary's School, an all girls Episcopal high school in Raleigh, North Carolina. Ann likes reading, spending time with her husband Jeff and daughter Claire, and, of course, great shoes.
Assistant Editor
Sarah Kinney Gaventa is the Associate Rector at Trinity Episcopal Church in Princeton, New Jersey. Her areas of responsibility include Christian Education and Newcomer Ministry. Sarah is married to Matthew Gaventa, a Presbyterian, who will be enrolling at in the M.Div program at Princeton Theological Seminary in the summer of 2009. Together they are the owners of a shepherd/spaniel mix named Henry, who has yet to declare his denomination.
Called and Sent
Katherine Willis Pershey graduated from Claremont School of Theology and was ordained to the ministry by the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in 2005. She serves as the solo pastor of South Bay Christian Church in Redondo Beach, CA. She's a music enthusiast and a book lover, and blogs about these and other obsessions at any day a beautiful change. She and her husband, Ben, have a daughter named Juliette.
Christ and Creativity
MaryAnn McKibben Dana is pastor of Idylwood Presbyterian Church in Falls Church, Virginia in the suburbs of Washington DC. A native Texan, she has lived in the diaspora since 2000, when she moved to Atlanta to begin her studies at Columbia Theological Seminary. She received her M.Div. in 2003. A poet and writer, her work has appeared in various books, webzines, and print journals, and she is currently writing a monthly column for Presbyterians Today. MaryAnn is married to Robert Dana and they have two daughters, Caroline and Meg, and a son, James. When she's not fretting over how to handle three children under the age of seven, she likes to knit splendidly imperfect and misshapen projects.
Divine Details
The Rev. Lara Blackwood Pickrel is a minister in the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). She is a 2003 graduate of Brite Divinity School (MTS) in Fort Worth, TX and received her MDiv equivalency in 2009 (now that's a long story!) from Phillips Theological Seminary in Tulsa, OK. Lara currently serves Hillside Christian Church in Kansas City, MO as Associate Minister for Youth and Young Adults. She is married to Chuck Pickrel, and they have two semi-ferocious felines (Hanna and Shalom) and a fully-precocious West Highland White Terrier (Shelby). During any given week, Lara divides her time between congregational ministry, writing & editing, time spent with family/friends/animals, and watching episodes of Battlestar Galactica.
The Jesus Review
The Rev. Elsa A. Peters was born not far from the magical city of New York. In this small town, she reigned as champion of the Ha Game (which some believe led to her call to ministry) and poured a Grande Drip for a former United States President. She found employment caring for a golden retriever and two cats in London, toiling in a cubicle in New York City, and even moving to Appalachia to host mission groups from across the country for week-long service projects.
Elsa finally said "yes" to God's call and enrolled at Union Theological Seminary. With some of her favorite scholars, Elsa explored the immense topics of theology and ethics while finding sanctuary in her studies of worship and the arts. After mastering the divine, Elsa was called to Maine, where she currently serves as the Associate Pastor of the First Congregational Church United Church of Christ in South Portland. Her ministry is fueled by her deep passion for coffee (fair trade, of course) as she requires multiple cups in one day.
Moms In Ministry
Rev. Alex Hendrickson is the associate pastor for pastoral care at First United Presbyterian Church in Belleville, IL. She has previously served PC(USA) congregations in Arizona and Kentucky. Alex is a 1997 graduate of the University of Arizona and a 2001 graduate of Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary. Alex and her husband, the Rev. Brett Hendrickson, have three young children, Thomas, Lily, and David. Alex's family recently joined a Community Supported Agriculture in St. Louis and enjoy all the fresh produce they've been eating!
The Ones We Love
Katie Yahns serves as the solo pastor of a two-point Lutheran (ELCA) parish, found on the shores of Lake Erie in western New York state. In addition to her degrees from the Vancouver School of Theology (DCS, 2002) and Pacific Lutheran Theological Seminary (MDiv, 2005), she has now earned advanced degrees in Parsonage Living, Fish Fry Consumption, and Lake-Effect Snow Driving--not bad for a West Coast native! Her previous background includes journalism and working in a Seattle art gallery.
Single Rev's Guide to Life
Stacey Midge is the Associate Minister for Mission, Outreach, and Youth at the First Reformed Church of Schenectady, New York. She sings and plays guitar, both solo and with a band, and writes music (when the muse appears). Much of her other free time is spent with her overactive hound, Laila. She blogs with as much regularly as her life allows at The Almond Branch.
Sunday Morning and Beyond
Erica Schemper is the Associate Pastor for Children and Youth at Fox Valley Presbyterian Church in Geneva, Illinois. She is a graduate of St. Olaf College and Calvin Theological Seminary. When she is not keeping up with other people's children and teenagers, she enjoys adventures with her three year daughter and her husband. She blogs about ministry, motherhood, and her knitting at Don’t Flay the Sheep.
Convener
Susan Olson is a Presbyterian (PCUSA) pastor employed by Yale Divinity School and Yale University Chaplain's Office. She loves good preaching, good books, good music, college chaplaincy, and Diet Coke. She is staff to two recalcitrant cats and is a long-time volunteer for The Hole in the Wall Gang Camp and Camp Boggy Creek--two camps that serve children with life-threatening illnesses.
