Visioning Board Elections

I would like to be on the visioning board because I truly respect Spiritus Christi’s mission and dedication to the Rochester area. I have found such a loving and energizing community here and I would be honored to work alongside my fellow parishioners in looking to the future of our church.

In terms of relevant experience I have participated in strategic planning meetings for a group called Enactus in which I held a leadership role in during college. I am also familiar with strategic planning through my Masters program in social work with a concentration in community practice. I take pride in my ability to listen to and observe others and feel this skill would serve me well as part of the visioning board.

My personal vision for Spiritus involves channeling the collective pain and grief experienced with the passing of Fr. Jim into strengthening our wonderful ministries as well as seeking a permanent home for this congregation. I believe that by utilizing the
inherent strengths of individuals and this community that we can share in even more depth and understanding with each other.

I have been a part of the Spiritus Christi community since August 2020 and attend Thursday night mass regularly. My husband, Chris (who was raised at Spiritus), and I were also very blessed to be married at Spiritus Christi on October 5, 2024. With a background in community & public health and social work, I am passionate about equitable healthcare for all, justice for those who are marginalized by society, and disability rights. I believe strongly that the church should be a safe place where all people are welcomed into community with Jesus and each other. The church should be where people are encouraged to become more like Jesus by loving God and others (Matthew 22:36-40). In my free time, I love spending time with my sassy parrot, Emmie, and cuddly dog, Winston. I’m always up to share with you my newest stories about their adventures and antics. I also love attending all of the festivals in Rochester during the summer, including my favorite, which is the Corn Hill Festival.

I love being a part of the Spiritus family and have felt welcomed here since day one, despite not having a Catholic background. I want to be a part of helping others feel the same way. I also have experienced several church denominations over the years so I have a unique ability to understand people with various spiritual backgrounds or roots.

I am someone who always tries to bridge the gap between people who are different from each other. I see diversity in the Spiritus congregation as our community’s greatest strength. I am also good at recognizing the ways that people are more alike than they realize. I have a deep desire to make sure everyone knows that their opinions and ideas are valued at Spiritus. With my background in community & public health and social work, I am experienced at helping people find creative solutions and resources for what they need. I recognize the importance of listening to others and trying to understand their points of view before making decisions. I truly believe that a leader is only as good as their ability to uplift the voices of those who are not always listened to. I would love to serve on the visioning board and to represent the people of Spiritus in this way.

Spiritus has always been a refuge for those who have felt rejection in other church or community settings. This congregation has a precedence of welcoming anyone and uplifting the most marginalized people in our society. These are difficult times in the world where many people are being ostracized for who they are, where they come from, how they look, and what they can or can't do. I believe Spiritus should continue to be a sanctuary for those to find safety and refuge. While many places will close their doors, I see Spiritus as a community of brave people who are willing to uplift the voices of the downtrodden, no matter the cost. Also, as a disabled person with physical/mobility aids, I deeply understand the importance of accessibility. I want to help Spiritus continue to be a place where those with varying physical or mental abilities are always welcome. Thank you for the time to share with you a little bit about me and my love for Spiritus Christi. I am someone that is always approachable and am ready to hear you. I hope to be able to serve the Spiritus community in this way.

Hi, I'm Anna, and I was born and raised in Rochester. My parents are Jeff Young and Brigit Hurley, and my aunt is Eileen Hurley, who many of you probably know. I went to college at a small liberal arts school in Pennsylvania, then earned a Master's degree in Biochemistry in Buffalo, and after a few years decided to finally pursue my childhood dream of becoming a veterinarian! I went to veterinary school at Cornell down in Ithaca, and then stayed at Cornell for another year to complete an internship in shelter medicine. This paved the way for me to be hired as a staff veterinarian at Lollypop Farm back here in Rochester! I have been working there for about 6 months now and I absolutely love it! Not only do I get to care for stray animals and pets surrendered by their owners, but we also provide spay and neuter services to owned animals, and sometimes even emergency surgeries for owned pets if they have no other option! I enjoy reading, biking, watching films, spending time with family and friends, and exploring all the cool places in Rochester.

I want to be on the visioning board because I would like to get more involved in the Spiritus community. I am always seeking to improve myself and my community, and I would like to be a part of making Spiritus even better than it already is!

I am a very organized and responsible person. I don't have much professional experience with a position like this, but I have lots of experience working as a member of a team and I have acted as an unofficial mediator at times in professional settings.

I think Spiritus should be a gathering place for people who share values of acceptance, compassion, and the unconditional love of God, and who want to live out those values. I would like us to be a community that stands strong against hatred and divisive forces both from within and without the community. I would also like to bring more young adults into the church to help sustain it in the future!

I would like to serve on the Visioning Board as a way to give back to the Spiritus Community and help to shepherd a shared vision of our Church into the future. The Spiritus Christi community has been such a gift in my life over the past few years, and to be able to help the community thrive would be an honor. I believe this is an exciting and impactful time to be involved as we have made the decision to move to an ownership model rather than a renter model, and would like to bring my experience to the Visioning Board through this transition. My goals in serving would be:

1 - to help uphold the Core Beliefs of Spiritus Christi,

2 - to support the future of our current ministries and pave the way for new ministries to bloom

3 - to represent not just my own vision but that of the community in the role.

Professionally, I come from a business background and have experience shaping and executing a strategic vision in a team environment. I have been responsible for creating financial aid strategies for colleges and universities to meet their enrollment and financial goals, creating pricing and promotion strategies for the midmarket segment of Staples' contract & commercial business, and serving in a project management role in a tech startup. These experiences have allowed me to learn to balance data-driven decision-making with the important qualitative input of the people closest to the customers in each company. Holding both an understanding of financial and other pragmatic impacts of a decision with the real human impacts has been critical to finding success across these roles.

Personally, I have always found it important to give back to communities I've been a part of: I served as a student representative on the Committee on Mission and Priorities during undergrad, I was an active planning member of a Business Resource Group during my tenure at Staples and served as President of Spectrum (student LGBT+ organization) during my graduate program. In these roles I aimed to facilitate the broader vision of the community I represented. I take an active listening role in engaging with the community and bring those points of view to the table in these decision-making groups. I also learned about long-range strategic planning along the way.

My personal vision is that we grow in a sustainable, generative way in our next chapter. I think moving to an ownership model will create a level of stability that will allow us to have an even greater impact in the community. It will also come with challenges that will take consideration and careful planning to navigate, but I have faith that as a parish we have all we need to see them through with some guidance from the Holy Spirit. I hope we can build on our foundation and that stability to be an even more inclusive (across race, gender, age, introvert/extrovert, etc) and more impactful (through our ministries, small moments of connection among parishioners, and the inspirational messages from our priests and homilists) faith community.

I first visited Spiritus Christi in 2016 and instantly felt at home. As a gay, Jesus-loving woman, finding a church that embraces both my identity and my faith in Jesus was a challenge, but Spiritus Christi was like a breath of fresh air. Since joining, I've had the joy of participating in two mission trips to Chiapas, Mexico, engaging in the Prison Outreach program, and being part of many annual events. I run a thriving process serving company, am a proud single mom to a wonderful four-year-old boy, and I believe that charity and faith should always be at the heart of what I do.

I would love to join the Visioning Board because I feel our church has so much potential to grow, especially now with what is going on with the world. I have some creative ideas to share that could help spread our message and expand our congregation, and I truly believe this is part of my calling.

When I first started my company back in 2008, I was completely new to the industry. I stepped into the role of a process server because my father fell ill, and I needed to take over his small process serving job. Sadly, he passed away, and I decided to turn this role into my career and build it into a business. Over the years, I've been able to grow my company significantly, from $43,000 in sales in the first year to nearly $2M this year. I would love to see Spiritus grow in a similar way—not for financial reasons, but to create a welcoming and safe space where people can connect with God and Jesus without fear of judgment. I want to help fill people's hearts so they feel strong and supported in facing life's challenges. I believe my experience in growing a business aligns with the growth of Spiritus, and having me on the Vision Board could really help us flourish in meaningful ways beyond just financial success.

My personal Vision for Spiritus is to warmly welcome more young people who may not have heard of Spiritus yet, or who are on a journey to discover themselves (as many of us are), and help them find a place they can call home. I also hope to reach out to more gay individuals who might be struggling to build a relationship with God or Jesus, and show them that it is absolutely possible to embrace both their identity and their faith, despite what they may have been told by others. I feel it's my Purpose to share this message and help others see that they too can have a fulfilling relationship with Jesus and God. I want everyone, regardless of their background, to experience the same
warm welcome I received at Spiritus. I dream of seeing our church filled with people at every service, so much so that we might even need a larger space to accommodate our growing family.

I have a longstanding curiosity about culture and how groups work together, courtesy of having attended the Industrial Labor Relations School at Cornell University. My interest in nonviolence came from becoming a stay-at-home mom with three kids, from being a 'stepmom' and from navigating the learning opportunities of being in a politically and religiously diverse marriage with my beloved spouse of 33 years. I had the chance to connect these interests as a volunteer on the Center for Nonviolent Communication board, from serving as director/celebrator of Bay Area Nonviolent Communication in Oakland, Ca, and then serving as director of the MK Gandhi Institute for Nonviolence in my hometown of Rochester, NY. I have been a student and a practitioner in the fields of nonviolence, organizational change, anti-racism and restorative practices for 20+ years.

I have been a manager and an organizational leader for 25+ years. At the Gandhi Institute, I am proud to have helped to establish projects and policies embedding restorative justice in the Rochester City School District, other K-12 districts,
the University of Rochester, Rochester Institute of Technology and elsewhere. I worked with the Western NY 7th Judicial District to utilize restorative practices in civil court cases, a first of its kind project. These days, in addition to working at the University of Rochester, I volunteer on numerous projects focused on advancing human rights and equity. I value volunteering with the Indigenous Peoples Day Rochester project (https://www.indigenouspeoplesdayrocny.org/) and with the Exploring Racism Project (https://exploringracism.org/). I help to facilitate a monthly support group on war tax resistance with Pace e Bene and with friends from https://nwtrcc.org/. Last and not least, I’m grateful to have published a book titled Culture Shift: Nonviolence at Work in September, 2024 about the usefulness and urgent need for applying principles of nonviolence at work.

I am willing to serve on the Visioning Board to strengthen the community at a challenging time, and because someone I respect and value asked me to serve.  Lastly, it's a way to honor Fr Jim's immense contribution to my life, my family and thousands of others over the last 38 years since we met.

My bio contains relevant information on this question.  I served in my first advisory board capacity at Corpus Christi Childcare in the mid-80s and have served in many add'l capacities for nonprofits since-as a nonprofit leader, board member, volunteer, consultant and facilitator. My current commitments center on projects related to anti-racism and human rights.

The culture and values of Spiritus have provided contagious inspiration as well as embodied commitment to me and countless others over the decades.  I think these are Fr Jim's true legacy. Care for the culture and values matters to me more than specific strategies re buildings, projects, etc.  It is the community's 'secret sauce', in my opinion, and a vital contribution during this extremely challenging period for our community, country and world.

I've been a member of Spiritus Christi for 13 years and became a member at one of the lowest points in my life. The family at Spiritus Christi embraced me and shepherded me through my divorce and gave me a fresh start and new beginning in life and love with my husband of eight years Michael Korn whom I met in choir. (Father Jim was right—Spiritus and Choir are good for your love life!) On a personal note, it's been very important from the beginning for me to give back in gratitude to Spiritus Christi for all its given to me. Serving on the Visioning Board is a
natural progression in this spirit of service.

For seven of nine years, I served as the Board Chair of Grace of God Recovery House. I currently serve on the Board of the Spiritus Christi Prison Outreach.  I've worked with the fundraising committee for the Prison Outreach and helped develop the strategy to raise the funds for the new Nieslen House—and also co-MC the Prison Outreach gala with Todd Schirmer.  In addition, I very recently joined the HAB Committee to help find Spiritus Christi a new home. I served as chair of Reverend Myra's Ordination Committee, as a member of SPARC and still sing with our Spiritus Christi Mass Choir with my husband Michael. Prior to starting Persistent Courage my life, career and leadership coaching business, I worked in many corporate roles locally and nationally.  Most recently I served as an Officer and Vice President, Brand Strategy & Marketing for Blue Cross Blue Shield nationally and internationally overseeing brand, marketing, customer experience and market research.  I left because the company's values were not congruent with mine.

Personally, I'm a servant leader, approachable and listen to understand.  Asking thoughtful questions to gain understanding to make sound decisions is a cornerstone of my approach.  I'm also not afraid to confront challenging situations or discussions with kindness and truth.

Our community and world are challenged every day in ways that none of us ever thought possible, Spiritus Christi is a safe haven for all people not just in Rochester--but nationally and all over the world. I want to serve on the Visioning Board to ensure we continue to be a beacon of hope, light, love and acceptance locally, nationally and globally. I want to see our church and ministries grow and flourish based on the values and vision that Father Jim created for us.

Spiritus Christi needs to remain a church that is relationship-centered—with us as individuals, each other, the environment and our world. We need to ensure we are shelter and haven for those who are currently being marginalized and unaccepted in this time of political unrest and chaos. I am committed to Spiritus finding the right permanent location that allows our church community and ministries to grow and thrive while serving our community and our new neighborhood in the way that is best and most helpful for them. We must grow our programs and ministries keeping fiscal responsibility in mind.  At the same time, we can also expand our reach further to attract new parishioners locally but those also live in places where they feel like an "other" and wish to seek a supportive community. And most of all, I want you to feel comfortable bringing your thoughts and questions to me as a member of the Visionary Board.  I am your emissary.

I deeply care about our church community and am committed to supporting the important work of the Visioning Board. I want to help strengthen and grow our ministries, ensuring that our church remains a vibrant and welcoming place for all.

I have been a dedicated member of Corpus Christi and Spiritus Christi since 1995 and completed my RCIA in the spring of 1998 under the guidance of Mike Boucher at Corpus Christi. Many in our community know me as a tenor in the Spiritus Christi Mass Choir—a role that has been one of my greatest blessings. It was through this choir that I met my partner, John, in 1997, and we were married by Father Jim in 2005. Our shared faith has been at the heart of our relationship, and we both love and are deeply committed to this community. My long-standing involvement in our church has given me a deep understanding of our mission, values, and the importance of fostering a strong and inclusive faith community.

My vision is to see our church continue to grow in the spirit of Christ-centered values, with a strong commitment to serving the poor and marginalized. I hope to honor Fr. Jim’s, and Pastor Myra's work and vision by helping to strengthen and expand our church community, both in Rochester and beyond.

I have been coming to Corpus/Spiritus for 42 years. I was able to bring up my children here and got married for the second time (to Michael OReilly) by Fr. Jim. I grew up in a family of 6 children in Rochester and my father emigrated to New York City with his family from Palermo, Sicily in 1903. My parents, being good Catholics, raised six children and I am #5--#6, who is my brother Joe, also attends Spiritus and I love seeing him here each week. Besides Catholic inner city grammar school and high school, I went on to Monroe Community College and SUNY at Buffalo to become an
occupational therapist, a career that I enjoyed for 34 years, working with people of all ages with developmental disabilities.  Among life’s greatest blessings are my two grown children, Aydin and Tulin, and my teenage grandchildren, Levi and Aiden.

The same reason why I started coming to this church community. Forty-two years ago at Corpus I was a young single parent and I wanted myself and my two children to be churched. I was looking for a vibrant church: one that spoke to me, one that had me and my children in the stories, as well as people I knew. These are the kind of homilies I yearned for and found at Corpus with Fr. Jim (boy do I miss him dearly). I was looking for a church that kept its stories real and they are real, no matter who is doing the homily. Rev. Myra and Rev. Celie continue to carry our legacy and keep it alive. This is a church that is ALIVE and I would like to keep it alive and real for all of us, even when our stories are messy, such as in our world, country and city today. Not only are the homilies and ministries relevant; they have action items to them. I can go home and ponder, “what can I do about that?” It can be a very small something, monetary or physical action. The environmental action items are very doable.  The other action items are about taking care of each other and basic kindness, compassion and love. I am so blessed that I can hear them every week at my church.

My experience as a mother, grandmother, occupational therapist and retired volunteer have groomed me for the visioning board. I have been fully immersed in Spiritus’s history and I know how to adapt to change. (I struggle sometimes, but I keep trying within my abilities.) I show up for the ministry happenings and have a good handle on what is going on. I humbly step forward and will gladly applaud the folks who are chosen by you for the Visioning Board!

I envision a church that grows with the times and takes care of our needs as outlined in the Beatitudes: Prison ministry, addiction recovery, mental health, clothing and housing for our refugees. Our ministry to children will grow as they do and address the growing needs of children who are raised more on technology than their parents were. Our anti racism (SPARC) work needs to grow with the times and helps to keep our history alive when our very government at this time would like to erase it as if the disgrace of racism never happened. Our welcoming stance for our LGBTQ+ continues and is so blessed by the generosity and hard work that we enjoy because of their presence. I envision a church that has its own space but continues to welcome all and continues forward until that day arrives.