George has served as senior pastor and spiritual leader to the Haddonfield United Methodist Church congregation since 2001. His long history leading people in faith includes years of service at St. Mark UMC in Hamilton Square, NJ as well as other congregations in New Jersey and Kentucky. George is very active in the Haddonfield community, serving as a member of Rotary International and the Haddonfield Council of Churches. His theological philosophy of worshipping God by serving the community is a core value of the Haddonfield United Methodist Church family. George is married to the Rev. Kathy Morris, deacon of the church, and has four grown children and four grandchildren (and another on the way.)
In order to get to know George a bit better, we asked him a few questions…
What do you like to do when you’re not at church?
I enjoy time at the gym, trail hiking, urban walks, and politics.
What are your particular spiritual or Biblical interests?
I am keenly interested in the role of ancient Christian traditions, social justice, spiritual practices, and emotive worship in enabling people to realize a meaningful way of life.
Do you have a favorite passage of scripture?
Matthew 11:29-30 (words of Jesus as translated by Eugene Peterson in The Message)
“Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me – watch how I do it. Learned the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.”
What book(s) are you currently reading?
Tom Friedman’s, Hot, Flat, and Crowded
Nathaniel Philbrick’s, Mayflower: A Story of Courage, Community and War
Diana Butler Bass, Christianity for the Rest of Us
Bishop Reuben Job, Three Simple Rules
Is there anything, in particular, that brought you to HUMC or ministry that you would like to share?
My appointment to serve as Senior Pastor of HUMC came as a surprise to me and it has been a wonderfully surprising experience of ministry for more than seven years.
Rev. Jessica Brendler, Associate Pastor
A recent graduate of Drew Theological School, Jessica joins our staff as Associate Pastor in July of 2010. Jessica began her path to ordained ministry as the youth director at Washington UMC and as Associate Pastor at Trinity UMC and Monroe Community Church in Spotswood and Monroe Township, NJ. Prior to answering her call to ordained ministry, she followed her love for science through undergraduate and graduate degrees in biology and science education at Rutgers University and taught Environmental Science at Westfield High School. Even today, she finds joy and awe in trying to understand the complex workings of God's amazing creation!
In order to get to know Jessica a bit better,
we asked her a few questions…
What do you like to do when you’re not
at church?
I love to read and spend time with family.(I am the youngest of four siblings – all girls!)
What are your particular spiritual or
Biblical interests?
I am interested in holistic spirituality; incorporating our faith into every
aspect of life, so that church is not just something we do on Sundays, but
something we live everyday of the week.I am fascinated and challenged by the teachings of Jesus about loving
our enemies and overturning systems of oppression.
Do you have a favorite passage of
scripture?
Isaiah 40:28-31 (especially verse 31) “Have you not known? Have you not heard?
The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends
of the earth. He does not faint or grow weary; his understanding is
unsearchable. 29He
gives power to the faint, and strengthens the powerless. 30Even youths will faint and be
weary, and the young will fall exhausted; 31but those who wait for the Lord
shall renew their strength, they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they
shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint.”
What book(s) are you currently
reading?
Jason Brian Santos, A Community Called Taize: A Story of Prayer, Worship,
and Reconciliation
Thom Rainer & Eric Geiger, SimpleChurch: Returning
to God’s Process for Making Disciples
Lisa Genova, Still Alice
Is there anything, in particular, that brought
you to HUMC or ministry that you would like to share?
As a former teacher, I love to learn and to teach.I am convinced that pastoral ministry is a
big teaching adventure; whether from the pulpit, in a counseling conversation,
a bible study class, or an evening meeting, pastors are 24/7 teachers.Most of the fun of teaching comes from
learning together, asking questions, and seeking out new understandings.I love questions!As Carter G. Heyward said, “we search so hard for answers when
sometimes there is as much grace in a good question as in an answer.”
Wayne Richmond, Director of Music
Wayne is a native Californian with degrees from Westminster Choir College and the University of Southern California. He and his wife Harriet have served in several major churches including the Cathedral of the Rockies in Boise, Idaho, and the 5,000 member Memorial Drive Presbyterian Church in Houston. Together they direct and accompany the Chancel Choir and supervise all other musical activities. Wayne is the Director of the New Jersey Master Chorale. The Richmond's also direct a summer music program in New Mexico.
In order to get to know Wayne a bit better, we asked him a few questions…
What do you like to do when you’re not at church?
I love to read.
What are you particular spiritual/Biblical interests?
I am most interested in studying why some churches are appealing to adults in their 20s and 30s.
Do you have a favorite passage of scripture?
My beloved friends, let us continue to love each other since love comes from God. Everyone who loves is born of God and experiences a relationship with God. The person who refuses to love doesn't know the first thing about God, because God is love—so you can't know him if you don't love. This is how God showed his love for us: God sent his only Son into the world so we might live through him. This is the kind of love we are talking about—not that we once upon a time loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to clear away our sins and the damage they've done to our relationship with God.
My dear, dear friends, if God loved us like this, we certainly ought to love each other. No one has seen God, ever. But if we love one another, God dwells deeply within us, and his love becomes complete in us—perfect love! I John 4:7-12
What book(s) are you currently reading?
I’m currently reading Why Men Hate Going to Church by David Murrow and The Ripening Sun by Patricia Atkinson.
Leslie Robinson, Coordinator of Children's Ministries
A graduate of Slippery Rock State College with a degree in Elementary and Special Education, Leslie has been Coordinator of Children's Ministries for 15 years. “Mrs. Robinson” started the church’s "Mother's Morning Out" program for pre-school children 17 years ago. The program started as a once-a-week break for mothers in the community and has grown to five days a week with lunch served each day. Leslie is an active member of United Methodist Women and can always been seen at various church activities. She is married to Fred and has three twentys-something children who grew up at HUMC.
In order to get to know Leslie a bit better, we asked her a few questions…
What do you like to do when you’re not at church?
I love to scrapbook, read, go out to lunch and spend time with my children.
What originally brought you to Haddonfield United Methodist Church?
We started attending HUMC because we needed a choir big enough for my husband Fred’s voice. We fell in love with everything the church has to offer.
What do you like best about HUMC?
I love coming to work EVERY DAY (well, I don’t come every single day, but I love my job!) I love the people I work with and feel blessed to have such a wonderful place to spend my time.
Rev. Kathy Bohren Morris, Deacon
Kathy is the wife of Senior Pastor George Morris and is an ordained Deacon in the United Methodist Church. She is also a member of the greater New Jersey Annual Conference. Kathy serves God and our community as the Director of Patient and Family Services at the American Cancer Society in addition to her duties as a member of the HUMC staff. An expert is grief counseling, Kathy won the "Spiritual Coordinator of the Year" award while serving as chaplain at Memorial Hospital of Salem County and authored a book entitled Grief: A Journey To Wholeness. She leads grief support groups for children and adults, Bible studies, and other small groups experiences at our church and for the Haddonfield community. Kathy offers a "Longest Night Service" every year on Dec. 21 for those who have experienced loss. In addition to her church life, Kathy enjoys hiking, travel, crafts and spending time with her husband and their four children.
Michael D'Italia, Director of YOUth Ministries
Michael has served the Haddonfield United Methodist YOUth Fellowship in various capacities since 2001. He is a graduate of Eastern University, where he earned a B.A. in Youth Ministry in 2005. In his free time, Mike enjoys reading about and discussing anthropology, politics, philosophy, sociology, and religion (among other topics), riding his bike, watching bad horror movies, his "brand new" Play Station 2, playing his best friend's guitar, growing the occasional beard, and smothering his cat "Baby Pig" with ridiculous amounts of affection.
Harriet Richmond, Associate Director of Music
Harriet is an alumnus of Westminster Choir College and works with her husband Wayne in administering the extensive HUMC music ministry. Harriet directs the Harriet Stewart Choir of 3rd to 6th graders and accompanies the Chancel Choir and the New Jersey Master Chorale. Harriet also coordinates the children's choir program.
Carole Mercer, Director of Lay Ministries & Facilities
Myrtle Stillwell, Director of Friendly Seniors
Myrtle is the Director of the Friendly Seniors who meet throughout the year from Fall to Spring. Besides being Director since 1989, Myrtle is on the Board of Directors and President of the Neighborhood Center, a Conference Officer for United Methodist Women, and a member of the GNJ Cooperative School of Christian Mission serving as the Focus Group Leader. Myrtle has been a member of HUMC since 1985, after her husband, the Rev. B. Melvin Stillwell retired from the Southern New Jersey Conference.
