From a young age, my relationship with Jesus felt real to me. I grew up in the suburbs attending Wheaton Bible Church till I was 18, and I felt a sense of God’s presence and nearness to me. In high school, I grew in a deeper capacity in my relationship with the Lord by encountering and knowing His Holy Spirit. This was a major milestone in my faith. It sent me on a journey to seeking more of God for myself.
During my college years at The University of Illinois, I attended The Vineyard Church and was actively involved in its college ministry and ministry school, SoKM (School of Kingdom Ministry). We saw many new believers come to faith and become activated in the gifts of the Holy Spirit, which greatly encouraged me. In this ministry and at university, I learned how to charitably and respectfully represent my faith in a pluralist setting.
After college in 2020, I married my best friend Ben who I first met in middle school theatre at Wheaton Christian Grammar School. We moved to Northern California, and spent the better part of our 20’s a part of Bethel Church’s ministry school and church environment. This move was out of a desire to give God my life in a greater capacity and prayerfully seek after his calling on my life.
While in Northern California, I also began my professional career in nonprofit communications, working with both Christian and secular humanitarian organizations, first as a Communications Specialist and later as the Marketing and Communications Manager.
At the end of 2024 we sold our home in California, crammed in our Kia with our cat Penelope, and ventured back to the burbs for Ben to complete grad school at Wheaton College.
I’ve spent the last ten years a part of charismatic churches. While grateful for the emphasis placed on experience and God’s tangible presence and how such a focus leads to a heart alive, we moved to Rez in search of a tradition that is able to unify the experiential with the liturgical and historical – a heart alive and a heart rooted.
We are newer to Anglicanism but have greatly enjoyed becoming part of Rez and calling it home for me, Ben, and our baby, Moselle. Fun facts about me – my hobbies include coffee, exploring nature, spending time with friends and family, and petting stray cats when I encounter them on the street.