I was born and raised in Greece, a suburb of Rochester, New York. My Dad worked for Eastman Kodak, and I have 2 sisters and one brother (unfortunately he died in 2019).

Growing up, I always wanted to be a lawyer and I graduated from Washington College of Law in Washington, DC.  At the end of law school, I adopted my son Matthew (my natural nephew) due to neglect. I worked in law firms until 1997, when I moved to Buffalo to work at Benderson Development Company.

I met my late husband in 2000 and we married in 2002. Jim took me to his church, Middleport UMC, his lifelong church. I come from a long line of Lutheran pastors, going back to as far as I can trace my family, but suddenly I was a Methodist.

When I begin to hear a call to ministry after 20 years in the legal field, it was not something I expected or, to be honest, wanted. I was pretty sure God was making a poor choice. However, I finally accepted that God was serious, after the decline, and eventually, death of my granddaughter, Maya, from Tay Sachs. It was my faith in God, the love and support of my husband, and the care of the Middleport UMC church family that helped me cope with Maya’s loss and become a more committed disciple of Christ.  I am blessed to have 3 grandsons, ranging in age from 7 to 25.    

I have found that my experiences in life are used by God in my ministry, from my legal background to being an adoptive parent to raising a difficult child to watching a beloved child die. We pastors are not perfect, and it is in our brokenness, that we connect with others and share the good news of salvation, redemption and healing. What an amazing journey of grace and faith it has been!

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