Eastern Shore Episcopalian - Pre-Convention 2020

Standing Committee Continued
Province 3 Synod Continued
My desire is to fully and actively serve as
a member of the Standing Committee,
which in the absence of the Bishop is the
ecclesiastical authority of the diocese.
While we as a diocese have made great
strides under the leadership of our current
Bishop, it will be important to continue
to prayerfully discern and dialogue those
issues before us as the people of God and
those issues which will be in our future.
Though the Church is in the midst of
great change and attendance at Christian
worship is significantly less than previous
generations, I believe the Church is best
understood as “the Church in the world,”
active in ministry, mission, social justice
and bringing the Good News of God in
Christ beyond our traditional structures
and settings. I am a proud member of
“Episcopal Branch of the Jesus Movement”
and would be honored to have your
support.
Province 3 Synod
Province 3 Synod Rep, Clergy - Mary
Garner
I am the rector of
St. Paul’s Parish in
Centreville in the
Northern Convocation.
I graduated from
Episcopal Divinity
School in Cambridge,
Massachusetts in 2006.
I served extensively
as supply clergy in
the Diocese of Easton from 2008 to 2009
and as Associate Rector at Christ Church,
St. Michael’s from 2009-2012. While
chaplain at Heron Point, I served as the
sabbatical rector at St. Paul’s and became
rector in 2016. I serve on various boards,
including the Corporation and am on
the Standing Committee. I am passionate
Standing Committee, Clergy – Bernie
Schroeder:
The Reverend Canon
Bernie Schroeder was
called to be Priestin-Charge
of Christ
Church Cambridge
on Easter Day, 2018.
Before that, Father
Bernie served as an
Intern and Deacon at
two yoked churches
in the Northern Neck of Virginia, Trinity
and St. Mary’s Whitechapel, from July
2013 through December 2014. He then
served as Interim Rector at St. Patrick’s,
Falls church, Virginia from February 2015
through September 2016. After that,
Father Bernie served as Interim Rector
of St. Thomas’ in McLean, Virginia from
November 2016 through December 2017.
Father Bernie attended Nashotah House
Theological Seminary and graduated with
a Master of Arts in Ministry in 2009. He
was ordained to the Diaconate on August
2,2014 by The Rt. Rev. Shannon Johnston,
Bishop of Virginia, at Grace Episcopal
Church in Alexandria, Virginia. He was
ordained to the priesthood on February
about social justice and mission. My vision
of the church is that it is the love of Christ
embodied in open doors, open hearts and
hands opened in service to those in need,
nourishing all with the bread of life and
the cup of salvation.
Province 3 Synod Rep, Clergy - Rob Laws
Father Rob has been
the rector of St.
Andrew’s, Princess
Anne since 2013.
He has previously
served the diocese
as a member of
Diocesan Council and
as a member of the
Disaster Preparedness
Committee. He currently serves on the
14, 2015 by The Rt. Rev. Susan Goff,
Bishop Suffragan of Virginia, at Grace
Episcopal church in Kilmarnock, Virginia.
On July 15, 2016, Fr. Bernie was made
Canon to the Diocese of El Salvador
for International Relations by The Rt.
Rev. Juan David Alvarado, Bishop of El
Salvador.
Before entering Holy Orders, Fr. Bernie
had a long and distinguished career in
Washington, DC in politics, government
and business. He served as Chief of Staff
to a United States congressman, Vice
President of Governmental Affairs for a
major utility and he retired as President
and Chief Operating Officer of yet another
utility.
Besides his seminary degree, Father Bernie
hold a Bachelor of Arts degree in English
from Michigan State University. He is a
veteran of the United States Army, holds
licenses as a pilot and sea captain and is an
accomplished folk guitarist.
Father Bernie and Carol, his wife of
50 years, split their time between their
principal residence in Chestertown and
the Rectory. Their son, Paul, lives with his
family in Rockville, Maryland.
Disciplinary Committee and is Vice Chair
of the Bishop’s Committee for St. Paul’s
Episcopal Center, Hebron.
In addition to an M. Div, Father Rob has
a Masters in Religious Education and a D.
Min in Christian Spirituality. His D. Min
thesis focused on the Spirituality of St.
Claire of Assisi, and her prayer of gazing.
In addition to spirituality, he is interested
in liturgy, music and arts (especially icons),
eco-theology, and social justice issues.
When not at church, you can often find
him in the gym, an art gallery or planning
his family’s next travel adventure.
Province 3 Synod Rep, Lay - Jane Morgan
I live in Salisbury and
worship at St. Paul’s,
Vienna and St. Mary’s,
Tyaskin. That puts
me and my husband
The Rev. Dennis
Morgan in both the
Middle and Southern
Convocations. I share
with others in our
small congregations the ministries of Lay
Eucharistic Minister and Visitor, Altar
Guild, coffee hour prep, Community
outreach and bulletin proofreading and
stapling.
It is important that we in our parishes
do not become isolated. To that end,
I have been a volunteer receptionist at
Bray House in Easton for over ten years,
have served on Diocesan Council, Trinity
Cathedral Chapter, Hillsboro Retreat
House Advisory Circle, Province 3
Synod Representative, and as a General
Convention Deputy.
The Province, the link between The
Episcopal Church and the dioceses,
does much to prepare us for General
Convention. Although I am not running
for General Convention, I remain a deputy
until the beginning gavel of GC 2021.
Keeping abreast of issues is especially
important since the next GC is the
summer of 2021 in Baltimore.
My vision for the church is being a
place or opportunity to explore our
relationship with our Lord Jesus. This
takes many forms, some which we may
not have discovered yet. Therefore, we
must recognize that previous models for
the church may no longer work, and we
should be open to the leading of the Holy
Spirit to help us discern a spiritual balance
between the “old” and the newly revealed.
Province 3 Synod Rep, Lay - Kathy Wise
As a member of
Great Choptank
Parish,Christ Episcopal
Church, Cambridge,
in the Middle
Convocation, I have
served in many roles
– both in my own
church and in positions in the Diocese
of Easton. I have loved opportunities to
be a Eucharistic Minister and Worship
Leader, a member of a shared-leadership
Bible Study group, a delegate to Diocesan
Convention, a Vestry member, Senior
Warden, and part of our parish Search
Committees. In the Diocese, I have been
a Deputy to four, and an alternate to
two General Conventions, served on the
Standing Committee, the Commission
on Ministry, the Youth Task Force, as
a Consultant to churches for Mutual
Ministry Reviews and Search Committees,
and most recently as the Co-Chair of the
Transition Committee for the election of
Bishop Marray.
I have been a clinical social worker for over
50 years, working as a family therapist,
and before retiring, as the program
administrator for home visiting and school
based heath prevention programs. After
being a widow for 16 years, I remarried
eleven years ago, and my husband, Doug
Ridley, and I are enjoying sharing family
events with children, grandchildren and
great grandchildren, travel opportunities,
and participating together in church and
community activities.
As the chair of our Stewardship
Committee, I have been inviting
parishioners to share each Sunday what
they celebrate about our church, and about
where they see God at work in our life
together. I believe that as we recognize
and practice sharing with one another at
church where God is at work in our lives,
we become more comfortable sharing our
faith stories beyond the church walls. My
vision for the Church and for the Diocese
is to see growing opportunities at the
Diocesan level, and within and between
our individual churches, for equipping our
members to become more comfortable
and more skilled at sharing their faith
stories with one another. As we learn to do
this with fellow believers, we will become
better able to share our stories of Jesus’
love and grace in our families, in our work
places, and in the communities where
we live, being light and salt throughout
the Shore. Caring for the business of our
churches and the Diocese is important;
“equipping the saints” is essential!
Province 3 Synod Rep, Lay - Tim Strack
I am a member
of Christ Church
Denton who serves as
a Jr. Warden, Vestry
Member, Morning
Prayer Worship Leader,
and as a Eucharistic
Minister. I served as a
Delegate to Convention
in 2018, 2019, and
2020 and as an Alternate in 2017. I actively
volunteer to help update the Diocesan
website. I enjoy being involved in my
community. At Christ Church Denton I
started a monthly Game Night, open to the
public, where families and individuals can
come play board games.
I grew up on Kent Island and now live in
Denton with my husband, Alex, and our
9 pets: 2 horses, 4 potbelly pigs, 2 dogs,
and 1 cat. I work full-time in Information
Security for a Big Data company. I began
working in Information Security in 2007
but started in the greater Information
Technology industry in 2000.
It would be an honor to serve my Diocese
at the Province 3 Synod.
What is your vision for the church? In
short, and in the words of our Presiding
Bishop, to be “The Episcopal Branch of
the Jesus Movement”. I see a world around
us with many challenges: aggression
towards our neighbors instead of love,
a mental health crisis, gun violence, an
opioid epidemic, and so much more. My
vision for the church is to be an outreach
church…to actively work in whatever
ways we can to heal this world while also
spreading the good news of Jesus Christ.
We must work to bring people back to a
way of love instead of aggression. A way
of compassion for those who need help
instead of pushing them away or forgetting
about them. To get outside the physical
church and heal this world as “The
Episcopal Branch of the Jesus Movement”.
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