I grew up in Madison, Wisconsin and went to college in Ohio.   As an adult, I lived in Los Angeles, where I was a teacher with Teach for America, and New York City, where I went to law school.   After moving to Raleigh in 2003, I worked as an employment lawyer with a focus on sexual misconduct.   I retired from active practice in 2018 in order to spend more time at home with my children.   My husband Steve and I have a beautiful blended family of six kids – two are in college, three are in high school, and our youngest is in middle school.  One of three high schoolers is our host daughter from Afghanistan who joined us in 2022.  Being a full-time parent is the most challenging job I have ever held, and I feel grateful (usually, haha) to have a diverse crew of insightful young people in my life.   

As a college student, I broke with the conservative evangelical faith of my upbringing and took a long break from religion.  In my 30s, I found my way to a liberal Episcopal church.    It was a loving community with progressive ideals, but I did not like having to tune out so much of the liturgical content.   I wanted to be able to say the words of the hymns and prayers and actually believe them.     After visiting UUFR on and off for the better part of a decade, I began attending in earnest in 2019.  Since that time, the fellowship has become an important part of my life.   I feel delighted to have a spiritual home where I connect with so many caring, engaged people.  I love that we are part of something that began before us and will hopefully continue long after us.   Many hands have blessed these walls.   

I have served on the boards of Equality NC, a statewide LGBT rights organization, and The Monti, a Triangle non-profit which creates community through live storytelling events.   I currently serve on the  board of Ascend, an international organization which works in the Middle East to empower young women through athletics and leadership training.   At UUFR, I enjoy serving as a Worship associate and on the Care Team.   I also am involved with Social Hour and like thinking about how we can promote connections and make everyone feel welcome.    I feel deeply humbled to have been elected to UUFR’s board and honored to serve alongside the other board members.   My door is always open to questions, concerns, and suggestions!