“For you, O Lord, have made me glad by your work; at the works of your hands I sing for joy.” ~ Psalm 92:4
It is with great joy that I send my greetings to you, brothers and sisters of Central UMC. It is indeed a blessing to receive the call to be your new pastor, and I am thankful to God for the opportunity to serve and praise God with you!
We will be getting to know each other for many months to come, and I look forward to the time we will spend sharing stories with one another about our lives and the ways that God has led and continues to lead us on the journey as disciples of Jesus Christ.
My journey of discipleship has led me from Springfield, Missouri, where I spent the first 15 years of my life; to Richmond, Virginia, where I graduated from high school and then Virginia Commonwealth University; to Guatemala, where I coordinated United Methodist Volunteers in Mission teams and studied Spanish; to Wesley Seminary in Washington D.C.; to Hyattsville, Maryland, where I was a pastoral intern for three years; to Calvary UMC in Stuarts Draft, where I have been serving as the Associate Pastor for the last four years. It has been a wonderful journey, and I have felt the presence of the Holy Spirit all along the way, guiding and molding me to be a disciple of Jesus Christ.
People often ask me where my home is, and my answer is always this: my home is the Church. In all of the moving I have done, I have always felt the most at home among the family of God, in every country and every community where I have lived. I look forward to making my newest home with you, the family of God at Central UMC.
I am already thankful for the hard work that I know is happening in preparation for my arrival, at the church and the parsonage. Your generosity and labor is a gift of God, and for that I am grateful!
I hope to see you on Sunday, July 4th as we worship God together, for God has indeed done mighty works, worthy of our praise and song!
With joy, Pastor Kristin
Biographical information
-Born in Springfield, MO
-Moved to Richmond, VA
-Graduated from Virginia Commonwealth University with a BA in Religious Studies
-Worked in Guatemala coordinating United Methodist Volunteer in Mission teams
-Graduated from Wesley Theological Seminary with a Masters of Divinity
-Served as a pastoral intern at First UMC Hyattsville, MD for 3 years
-Served as the Associate Pastor at Calvary UMC in Stuarts Draft for 4 years (Staunton District)
-Served as a team chair for the Conference Board of Global Ministries for three years, and will be the President of the BGM starting July 1
-Worship Team leader for Annual Conference