| The IPC, founded in 1856, is the oldest Presbyterian church in Latin America. It is involved in a variety of activities from evangelism to serving the displaced, a ministry endangered by war and repression. The IPC reflects Christ’s light in a very dark situation.
Upon returning from a discernment trip to Colombia, Mamie wrote, “I am deeply impressed with the strength of the IPC in its leadership and vision, as well as its commitment to service and solidarity with Afro-Colombian and indigenous communities (especially those who are being displaced). I was struck by some of the similarities between the United States and Colombia, particularly in marginalized communities and their experience of racism in society. I was also struck by the gracious hospitality the IPC offered to our simple delegation. It challenged me to consider my own priorities and to recognize once again the gift of time and presence we can offer to one another as brothers and sisters in Christ.”
Richard, who served as a commissioner to the 218th General Assembly in 2008, reflected on that experience by writing, “It was a time when I saw God at work and where I gained a new and expanded understanding of how God uses regular people to shape and prod the church to become the visible witness to Christ’s love of the world. Our denomination’s reliance on commissioners to discern the moving of the Spirit is truly amazing. As a church, we say that the best way we can do this is communally, through a deliberative, thought-filled and prayer-filled process. It is ultimately an incredibly trusting stance, one that strikes me with both awe and anxiety—which is how I know it was a place where I grew in faith.”
Prior to her appointment as a mission co-worker, Mamie served for four years as an associate pastor of First United Church of Oak Park, Illinois. Before that, she spent a year (2004) as an intern in the planning process for the Council for a Parliament of World Religions in Barcelona, Spain.
Mamie was a PC(USA) Young Adult Volunteer (YAV) for two years, first in Quetzaltenango, Guatemala, and then with Second Presbyterian Church in Nashville, Tennessee. She then served as an intern in the YAV program at the national offices of PC(USA) in Louisville, Kentucky. She also taught 11th-grade history in the Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools in North Carolina.
From 2006 to 2009, Richard served as the pastor and campus minister at Agape House of the University of Illinois at Chicago. He was recognized with the Rookie of the Year Award by the National Campus Ministry Association in 2008. Before that call, Richard was a pastoral resident at Fourth Presbyterian Church, Chicago, a PC(USA) Young Adult volunteer (YAV) at Second Presbyterian Church in Nashville, Tennessee, and an ecumenical intern for the PC(USA) and the United Church of Christ in the Philippines in Davao, Philippines.
Mamie earned a bachelor’s degree in social studies education and American studies—with a double major in American studies—from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She then earned her Master of Divinity from McCormick Theological Seminary, where she won the preaching award and was given the Samuel Robinson Award, which recognized her work on the Shorter Catechism.
Richard earned his bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering from the Colorado School of Mines in Golden, Colorado, and his Master of Divinity from McCormick Theological Seminary in Chicago.
While students at McCormick, both Mamie and Richard were recognized as alternates for the Bernadine Orne Smith Fellowship, an award that is given to the student who has attained the highest excellence in the masters of divinity program.
Mamie and Richard are both ordained to the ministry of Word and Sacrament and are minister members of the Presbytery of Chicago.
Birthdays:
Mamie: December 22
Richard: May 13 |
