PROGRAM
Emmanuel Alums Grafton Antone, MDiv, 1990, DD, 2007 Contact: grafton.antone@primus.ca Founder of Toronto Urban Native Ministry and former Speaker of the All Native Circle Conference of the United Church of Canada. Grafton is an Elder at First Nations House and Faculty member for the Aboriginal Studies Program at U of T. Carmen Palmer, MDiv 2007 Contact: Carmen Palmer carmen.palmer@utoronto.ca Previous degrees: Bachelor of Arts, French Literature and East Asian Studies, University of British Columbia, 2000 ARCT (The Associate of the Royal Conservatory of Music) diploma in piano performance, 2000 Current position: Doctor of Theology Student in Old Testament/Hebrew Bible, Lay Certificate in Theology Program Mentor Previous work: United Church Staff Associate for Youth, Young Adult, and Families in the Vancouver area. Congregational work in Seniors ministry. United Church Camp councillor and leadership training staff. ESL teacher in Japan. Coffee Barista. Piano teacher. French tutor and provincial exam marker. Excessive volunteer. How you got where you are : I initially moved to Toronto in 2004 to start Emmanuel s Master of Religious Education program. I had enjoyed writing biblical dramas and had worked with various congregations to create and perform a number of original pieces, and intended for this program to further these dramatic endeavours. After the first year, I transferred into the M.Div. program and became a candidate for ministry. A love of language study and an observation of the potency of biblical narrative led me to begin doctorate studies in Old Testament/Hebrew Bible at the conclusion of my M.Div. Professor Judith Newman helped me to develop an interest in the Dead Sea Scrolls area of research. Words of Wisdom: Let your education serve as a continued source of discernment. Carefully selected life-giving volunteer activities and participation in interesting workshops/events can lead to connections and possible new opportunities. Never hide! Cheri Di Novo, MDiv, 1995, DMin, 2002 Contact: cdinovo50@rogers.com Current Position: MPP Parkdale High Park with portflios for women, small business, transportation, citizenship and immigration, housing, employment standards. Previous Work: Minister at Emmanuel-Howard Park in Parkdale 2 Richard Charmbers, MDiv, 1986 Contact: richard.chambers@utoronto.ca Previous Degrees: BA, BEd, subsequently an M.Th Current Position: Director, U of T Multi-Faith Centre Previous work: Associate Executive Minister: Justice, Global & Ecumenical Relations, General Council of The United Church of Canada How you got where you are: I was interested in educational ministry. I received excellent advice from a General Council staff person to go get a bona fide teaching degree and some teaching experience before seeking a vocation in the church. This was some of the best advice I ever received and followed. I got some cross-cultural experience way outside my comfort zone. While we live in a global village, if one hasn t actually lived for a year in a community where one s first language isn t the language of choice one hasn t really experienced the global village. Living on a First Nations reserve for a year gave me some real sense of why the United Church needed to address the issue of Indian Residential Schools. Words of Wisdom: Discern your passions. Go interview someone in the position you d like to have someday and ask how they got there. Don t be shy about seeking out the seemingly unapproachable for vocational insights.
Mary Lee Laing, Master of Pastoral Studies (MPS), 2002 Previous degrees: BA; RN. Current position: Chaplain: Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH ) Previous work: On-call work and summer job in Spiritual and Religious Care in downtown hospitals (as a student and a new Graduate). Worked in Nursing capacity in Emergency, Research and in Public Health. How I got where I am:. The supportive and stimulating environment of Emmanuel College. Belief that faith is a verb, and trusting that I would be able to discern why I was at Emmanuel in the first place! (other than curiosity). The privilege of journeying with students when I was a member of the Education and Students Committee. By opening myself to the call of work in my home congregation. An understanding and supportive family. Sufficient time for reflection. Prayer Words of Wisdom: quote from When the Heart Waits by S.M. Kidd To be fully human, fully myself. To accept all that I am, all that You envision, That is my prayer. Walk with me to the rim of life, Beyond security. Take me to the exquisite edge of courage, And release me to become. The Rev. Dr. Karen Hamilton, M. Div. 1986, M.Th. 1997, D. Min. 2001 Contact: Hamilton@ccc-cce.ca 416.972.9494 ext. 22 Previous degrees: B.A. 1979 Current position: General Secretary, The Canadian Council of Churches Previous work: Minister, St. James-Bond United Church How you got where you are: I have always heard God s voice very strongly in Scripture and particularly the Old Testament. That reality took me into Christian/Jewish dialogue and then into InterFaith Dialogue more broadly. I have also always had a passion for Ecumenism and a deep belief in the reality of God in all our denominations and traditions. Because I also speak French and have substantial experience in polity and leadership in the Church having been President of Toronto Conference and Chair of the Bearing Faithful Witness Task Group, I applied to and was called to leadership in The Canadian Council of Churches. I have taken all of these experiences, passions and commitments into the writing of my book The Acceptable Year of the Lord: Preaching the Old Testament with Faith, Finesse and Fervour which was published in 2008 and which won the Catholic Press Association Award for Scripture in 2009. Words of Wisdom: Read the Bible, build Ecumenical and InterFaith relationships, do justice, love kindness and walk humbly with your God. And do not let financial and membership concerns in our denomination cause you to close inward. Jeanette Unger, MTS 2006 Contact: 416-978-2785 student.minister@utoronto.ca Previous degrees: B.Th., B.A. Current position: Associate Chaplain Previous work: A collection of various jobs inbetween my studies: research assistant for sociology professor, childcare, organic gardener, volunteer coordinator, receptionist How you got where you are : The chaplaincy was looking for a student on campus to work several hours a week. I was finishing my M.T.S. degree at the time and wondering how to apply my learning in the world around me. A friend encouraged me to apply (giving me the nudge I needed!) and I ve grown into the role over time. I began working about eight hours a week co-facilitating a grief support group for students and it has grown from there. I really enjoy the setting for campus ministry spiritual care with creative and questioning young adults in an academic setting as it brings together a lot of what I love. Words of Wisdom: Above all else, know that you are loved by God. Share that love with others. 3
Won Hur, MDiv, 1994 Contact:: 905-477-4365, ebenezeruc@gmail.com Previous degree: B.A. in Economics with minor in philosophy and East Asian Studies, U of T, 1989 Previous Work: Cold Lake Pastoral Charge, ANW Conference (1994-99), United Church Overseas Personnel, (1999-2002), Teaching English at all girls Jr. & Sr. high school in Japan Current Position: Minister at Ebenezer United Church, Markham, (2003 to present) How you got where you are: After a profound spiritual experience in the Rocky Mountains, and then reading the book, Zen in the Art of Archery, these have led me to Japan to practice archery for three years. Upon returning to Canada, there was a call to write. This has led to various writings in: The Seasons of the Spirit, The Clergy Journal, Exchange, Advent Awakenings, and Three Ways of Grace. Also, the inner longing for God has led to becoming a spiritual director. The search of health led to offering healing through Reiki. Words of Wisdom: God does not ask anything else of you except that you let yourself go and let God be God in you. Meister Eckhart Beth Theis, MTS, 2009 Contact: beth.theis@utoronto.ca; Tel 416 535-6739 Previous degrees: BSc, MSc Current position: Epidemiologist and unit manager, provincial cancer agency Previous work: Cancer clinical trial coordinator; health record administrator How you got where you are: I grew up in the United Church in rural Saskatchewan, where the Reverend Walter Farquharson, later Moderator, was my minister. After leaving home at 18 I was away from Christianity for 25 years, exploring other spiritual paths. Finding Bathurst United in Toronto, through a political contact, was my way back into church, and contacts there led me to Emmanuel, first for the Lay Certificate and then for the MTS. Travel toward my current employment was also not in a straight line, and included work in English hospitals and studies in archaeology and anthropology. Words of Wisdom: Not wisdom so much as a wish, that the United Church might come to value personal spiritual practice and the arts more seriously. Judy Russo, MRE, 2006 Prison Chaplain Karen Marks, Diploma in Theological Studies: Health Ministries - 2004, Master of Theological Studies 2007 Contact: 905.649.3030 karen.marks@sympatico.ca Previous degrees: RN, BA (Honours) Current position: Ontario Regional Parish Nurse Coordinator for InterChurch Health Ministries Canada Previous work: Registered Nurse and Parish Nurse How you got where you are : I participated in a Parish Nursing Ministry Pilot Project with InterChurch Health Ministries (ICHM) in 1996 at Claremont United Church and remained Parish Nurse until 2005. From 2001 to 2007 I was Parish Nurse at St. Mark s United Church. I felt I needed theological education and began with the diploma program and continued with the MTS program. In 2007 I became Parish Nurse Coordinator for ICHM, acting as a spokesperson for ICHM and parish nursing ministry and administering the IPNRC Basic Parish Nursing Education Program, which has been delivered through a partnership with Emmanuel College Continuing Education since 2003. Words of Wisdom: Only through tending to the whole self - body, mind and spirit - can true healing occur. 4
Timetable Name Presentation Occupation/Area of Interest Degree Time Grafton Antone 3:15 First Nations House M. Div. Carmen Palmer 3:20 Doing Advanced degree M. Div. Cheri Di Novo 3:25 NDP MPP, Ontario legislature M. Div. Richard Chambers 3:35 Director of Multi-faith Centre M. Div., MRE Mary Lee Laing 3:40 Chaplaincy, CAMH; on Alum exec. MPS Karen Hamilton 3:45 General Secretary, Canadian Council of M. Div. ; D. Min. Churches Jeanette Unger 3:55 University Chaplain MTS Won Hur 4:00 UCC overseas; now at Ebenezer United M. Div. Beth Theis 4:05 Member, Bathurst St. United; Epidemiologist MTS and unit manager, provincial cancer agency Judy Russo 4:15 Prison ministry MRE Karen Marks 4:20 Coordinator, Parish Nursing Program Diploma in Health Ministries, MTS Margaret Mooney 4:25 Social Justice & outreach Lay certificate Paul Stott 4:35 Lay person; key leader in GCE MTS Margaret Mooney, Lay Certificate in Theology, 2009 Contact: mooney_margaret@hotmail.com, 416-293-5694 Current position: DLM Candidate, Toronto Southeast Presbytery; Worship Chair, St. Mark s United, Scarborough; Vice-President, Scarborough Interfaith Affordable Housing Association; a coordinator, Out of the Cold program held at Knox United Church, Scarborough. Full-time day job Office Manager, Tri-Air Systems. How you got where you are : My passions are outreach and social justice issues with main areas of interest being homelessness and affordable housing advocacy, families, and Aboriginal issues. For the past three years, I was the Outreach Chair at St. Mark s, where we worked with West Hill Community Services, Out of the Cold, Affirm United/UCC s Gay Pride Parade float. I took three courses at Emmanuel that focused on Native Tradition and Spirituality, one being a summer course at Five Oaks with Francis Sandy Theological Centre students and Native elders. I am fortunate to have strong support from St. Mark s and several ministry personnel who are kindred spirits. 5 Paul Stott MTS, 2009 Contact: paul.stott@sympatico.ca Previous degrees: B.Sc. Current position: Retired from paid work, active UCC volunteer (Chair General Council Executive s Permanent Committee on Governance & Agenda) Previous work: Professor of Computer Science, Ryerson University How you got where you are? After taking early retirement in 2003, I started my MTS studies and began my 6 year term as Toronto Conference lay representative to the General Council Executive. I am a life-long United Church member who has served in a variety of roles in the four courts of the church. My MTS studies allowed me to develop an interest in hymnology, leading to membership and active participation in the Hymn Society and its Southern Ontario Chapter. Words of Wisdom: From American author Gail Godwin Something s your vocation if it keeps making more of you.