Emmanuel Mennonite

Where are they now?

One of the many wonderful things about taking part in the Mennonite Church Canada Assembly is the chance to connect with people across the country--some I'd never met before, others I see only on occasion. This time in Saskatoon (June 4-7), I was able to connect with a number of our previous pastoral interns.

- Johanne Beattie, who just finished her internship at Emmanuel, is now living in Saskatoon with her husband Josh - I saw them the day I lost my voice (which is a whole other story!), so I could only whisper (!) but I was glad to have some hot tea with them in their new apartment, to hear about Johanne's second internship at her home church (which includes leading some of the youth on an inner-city missions trip) plus working at Starbucks while Josh is working in construction--they say hi to everyone at Emmanuel!

- Alissa Bender continues as an associate pastor in Calgary and has recently been licenced toward ordination.  This summer she will lead a group of 14 youth and adults to the Mennonite World Conference in Paraguay.

- I had lunch with Terry Lesser who is now an associate pastor and the proud father of a not-qute-two-year-old daughter

- Jonathan Neufeld is a community pastor at Seattle Mennonite Church and works for the seminary on a quarter-time basis

- Other former interns not at the Assembly:  one of my discussion table mates was Gerald Gerbrandt, who said that his daughter Virginia has just completed a year of studies at Associated Mennonite Biblical Seminary (AMBS) and is now doing some learning and service in Chicago; Tim Froese from our congregation also continues his studies at AMBS; Dierdre Reimer works with youth in Vancouver; unfortunately though, I've lost touch with James Bartsch and Shirley Joiner, so if anyone knows where they are now, please let me know!

I always enjoy working with interns--to be energized by their gifts and new ideas, and to help grow them as leaders in the church. I'm thankful that this has been a very significant part of my ministry over the years and look forward to more in the future.  Thank you, Emmanuel, for your support and the influence you have on the wider church in this way.