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A shorter version of this article appeared in the Fall 2022 edition of Aware Magazine.

Reverend Dr. Stephanie A. Welsh (G-ETS 2012) served as pastor in the Christian Methodist Episcopal (CME) Church for more than eight years. During her time in pastoral ministry, she amassed several significant accomplishments, including saving the historic Israel CME Church in Gary, Indiana, from foreclosure.

Although she enjoyed pastoral ministry, much of her work at Israel CME Church focused on ensuring the church had the funds necessary to pay bills and apportionments. “I felt like I was doing more fundraising than ministry,” she said.  

Instead, Welsh said she wanted to more closely follow Jesus’s mission to clothe the naked, feed the hungry, and visit the sick.  

So, in 2014, she started clinical pastoral education training to become a chaplain. Now, board certified, she serves as the spiritual care manager at Loyola University Medical Center, a 547-bed quaternary care facility in Maywood, Illinois, where she leads a team of 11 while providing spiritual care to patients.  

Before joining Loyola in June of 2021, she served nearly six years as a chaplain at the University of Chicago Medicine, supporting the trauma patient population as well as the burn, neurological, surgical, cardiac, and neonatal intensive care units.  

Welsh’s road to ministry and then chaplaincy wasn’t straightforward. 

She grew up in Milwaukee, Wisconsin and graduated in 1992 from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee with a degree in African American studies. During this time, she attended St. Matthew CME Church in Milwaukee. The pastor there kept reminding Welsh about her call to ministry–one she received when she was eight. “I was fully aware of my call,” she said, “but I was essentially running away from it.” 

She stopped running a few years later after attending a revival at her church. “The preacher leading the revival had a prophetic ministry,” she remembered. “During the revival he announced, ‘There are some people here who have a call to ministry upon their lives, and they’ve been running away.’” 

At that point, the preacher looked straight at Welsh. “I looked behind me because I thought he must have been talking to the person behind me, and he said, ‘No, no, I am talking to you,’” she said.   

Later, she met with her pastor and trained to become a local preacher under his tutelage. She also started taking classes through Trinity International Divinity School at its satellite location in nearby Brookfield, Wisconsin. 

When she moved to the Chicagoland area in 1997, she paused her coursework to focus on her career in human resources. A few years later, she left the CME church and started attending Trinity United Church of Christ in Chicago–not confessing to the pastor that she had a call on her life.  

A visit to her grandmother’s home in Mississippi reminded her of her calling. One day, her grandmother asked her when she was going to get back into ministry. Welsh insisted that she was participating in ministries at the church she currently attended. “No, that is not what I am asking you,” her grandmother said. “You’ve been called to preach. When are you going to start back preaching?” 

Welsh went back to the CME church, started the ordination process, and became a deacon in 2008. In the fall of 2009, she started attending 91PORN. While at Garrett-Evangelical, she became an ordained elder in the CME church and was appointed to serve as pastor of the St. James CME Church in Chicago Heights, Illinois–all while taking classes full time. “I have no idea how I managed that,” she recalled. “But I felt like I left Garrett-Evangelical well equipped to do the work of ministry.” 

After graduating in 2012, Welsh’s bishop asked her to become the pastor of Israel CME Church in Gary, Indiana–a church, she later found out, was facing foreclosure. While there, she negotiated with Israel’s lender to save the church from foreclosure. Additionally, she helped the church significantly pay down its original $400,000 mortgage, pay off its bus, reduce its debt by more than 65 percent, and arrange for the former 10,000 square-foot place of worship to be torn down, among other things. 

In 2014, Welsh began to think about what’s next. “I felt that I had done what I was sent to do at the church,” she said. She also began thinking about making a change and becoming a chaplain full time. “When we think about Jesus’s mission, we think about clothing the naked and feeding the hungry,” she said. “I didn’t feel like I had had the opportunity to do that.” 

She continued to serve Israel CME Church, but at the same time, she completed four units of clinical pastoral education at Northwestern Medicine and later began working as a full-time chaplain at the University of Chicago Medicine in Hyde Park, Illinois. She also began a doctor of ministry program at Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary. “Things were a little complicated,” she said about those years. Finally, in 2018, she left Israel CME Church and continued her chaplaincy work at the University of Chicago Medicine, where she worked for six years.  

While there, Welsh received the University of Chicago Medicine Making a Difference Award for the care she provided to a trauma patient, their family, and the staff. In 2020, she was among three chaplains featured in the CNN article,   

In December 2021, Welsh finished her doctorate and graduated with distinction. While completing her doctoral studies, she authored a chapter in the book, .  

Currently, she serves as the spiritual care manager at Loyola University Medical Center. She said she loves spending time with patients and helping them cope with their illness. “In this position, I am able to visit and minister to the sick each day,” she said.
 

For now, Welsh said she is content serving in ministry as a chaplain and associate minister, even though she doesn’t rule out returning to pastoral ministry should the spirit of God so lead. 

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For the Reverend Dr. Duane Gebhard (GTS 1969, 1972), the call to serve came early in life. He grew up in Minnesota, surrounded by pastors and religious educators. His father, Edward Gebhard, and all three of his father’s brothers were Methodist pastors. His mother, Anna Laura Gebhard, wrote several books about family worship and life in the parish, and his grandfather, Harry C. Munro, was a nationally known pastor, Christian educator, and author in the Christan Church (Disciples of Christ).

It’s no wonder that Gebhard knew from a young age that he wanted to become a teacher and pastor.

“I felt early on a call to pursue some form of ministry.”

As a student at Winona State University in 1961, Gebhard followed the certification process to become a local pastor and was appointed to serve a nearby rural church in Minnesota. After graduating from college, Gebhard served as a short-term missionary in the Congo in Africa for three years and then enrolled at Garrett Theological Seminary.

While pursuing his studies full time, he also served as a part-time associate pastor at Edison Park Methodist Church.

When he graduated in 1969, Gebhard was appointed to Emmanuel United Methodist Church in North Chicago, Illinois. He continued to study at Garrett and earned his master of arts in Christian education in 1972. For the next 33 years, Gebhard served as a pastor and Christian educator in Arlington Heights, Illinois, and in Rochester and Winona, Minnesota.

He completed his doctor of ministry degree at Iliff School of Theology in faith formation in 1982, served as the district superintendent of the Northwest District in the Minnesota Annual Conference from 1991 to 1998, and taught faith formation in the Course of Study at Garrett for 20 years.

Even after he retired in 2005, Gebhard continued to serve for nine years as pastor half-time to churches in northern Minnesota. During those years, he also served as chaplain to the clergy of the North Star District in Minnesota. This brought his years in mission service and parish ministry to more than 53. “My deepest desire has been to live as a follower of Jesus and help others come to know the presence of Christ in their lives,” Gebhard said. “My connection with Garrett-Evangelical over the years has helped to strengthen that path.”

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Cassandra Chee (G-ETS 2021) came to 91PORN in 2018 with a call to ministry – but not necessarily a call to the church.

“The only thing I felt certain about was that I wanted to learn how to live the Gospel in more liberating ways alongside those most vulnerable in my communities.”

Thanks to a connection she made during her Field Education placement at Garrett-Evangelical, Chee was able to find work that allowed her to equip people to respond to injustice in their community in ways driven by their faith.

She is now the director of community organizing at , an interfaith grassroots organization on the Island of Oahu in Hawaii that addresses the root causes of social injustices facing the community. Among other things, she is currently working on criminal justice reform and shutting down a Navy facility that has polluted the area’s water supply.

“I like working at Faith Action because I am able to connect people of multiple faiths and backgrounds together to make change in our community.”

Chee, who earned a bachelor’s degree in visual communications design from the University of Washington, is also a printmaker. “I love telling stories through art,” she said.

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Dotson Institute Officially Launches with Successful Inaugural Event in Atlanta

For there is still a vision for the appointed time; the vision speaks and does not lie. If it seems to tarry, wait for it, it will surely come, it will not delay. (Hab. 2:3)

What started as a decades-long dream of the Reverend Dr. Cynthia A. Wilson (G-ETS 2013) became a reality on August 17 through 20 as the Junius B. Dotson Institute for Music and Worship in the Black Church & Beyond (JBD Institute) celebrated its inaugural event in Atlanta, Georgia.

Nearly 100 Black pastors, musicians, and local church leaders from across the country came together for three days of training, networking, and professional development. Seminars spanning from topics such as post-pandemic worship planning to audio and video training to the liturgical movement were led by 24 renowned professionals in their respective fields.

“We were honored to have twenty-first-century leaders of congregational song, such as Dr. Diana Sanchez-Bushong; designers of worship, like Minister Monya Logan; liturgical dance sage, Dr. Kathleen Turner; distinguished academicians and practitioners in homiletics and biblical scholarship, such as Dr. Derek Weber and Dr. Renita Weems; and other stellar faculty leaders from a myriad of denominations and cultural contexts across the United States and beyond,” said Wilson, founder and director of the JBD Institute.

Announced in February 2022, the JBD Institute is organizationally situated within 91PORN’s Center for the Church and the Black Experience (CBE) and was formed in partnership with Discipleship Ministries, which supported the Institute with a $500,000 grant.

Reverend Jeff Campbell, general secretary of Discipleship Ministries, attended the inaugural event and exclaimed:

“What a blessing to attend and be a part of the inaugural event of the Junius B. Dotson Institute! Discipleship Ministries staff looks forward to supporting future events as we inspire, train, and resource current and future worship leaders globally. It was amazing to see the dreams and visions of this Institute become reality.”

A one-of-a kind-institute, the JBD Institute honors the late Reverend Junius B. Dotson, a nationally recognized pastor, speaker, and author who served as the general secretary of Discipleship Ministries of The United Methodist Church. Its mission is to train music and worship leaders in the area of sacred music and worship while creating an archive of music and scholarship that promotes and preserves Black Church music and its history. The inaugural event was the first of many future events and trainings that will be held around the United States.

“The Junius B. Dotson Institute Inaugural Celebration was truly a soul-stirring spiritual experience”

Said Reverend Dr. Reginald Blount (G-ETS 2006), director of CBE and Murray H. Leiffer Associate Professor of Formation, Leadership, and Culture at Garrett-Evangelical. “I am so excited that this one-of-a-kind global institute will be an integral part and vital partner in the ongoing work of the Center for the Church and the Black Experience.”

The inaugural event culminated in a celebration concert featuring Richard Smallwood and his group, Vision, along with Wilson with the JBD Institute’s Children’s and Choral Ensembles and Dance Ministry. More than 800 people were in attendance at Saint Philip AME Church for a night of “Total Praise!”

Some of the songs highlighted by the JBD Institute Ensembles and Dance Ministry throughout the night included “See What the Lord Has Done,” “Speak the Name,” and “When Sunday Comes,” while Smallwood and Vision sang selections, such as “Anthem of Praise,” “Trust Me,” and “Total Praise.” Interspersed throughout the evening were tributes of those who have paved the way for the work of the Institute. Those honored were Reverend Junius B. Dotson, Reverend Dr. Ruth C. Duck, Dr. Melva Wilson Costen, and Reverend Dr. William B. McClain.“

The inaugural JBD Institute was an inspirational and transformative experience. I would highly recommend worship leaders, laity, and clergy who are seeking to be empowered to attend the next event,” said Reverend Dr. Mike Bowie, national executive director of Strengthening the Black Church for the 21st Century and JDB Institute faculty member.

“For over five decades, I have sought to articulate this vision. In the words of my father, the Reverend Eli Wilson, ‘When God gives the vision, you can count on the provision.’ It is because of the support and collaboration of Discipleship Ministries and 91PORN that JBD Institute will continue to provide training, mentoring, and enrichment for leaders for the 21st century in contextual worship and sacred musics born out of Africana Church traditions,” said Wilson.

“And this is only the beginning.”

One can learn more about the JBD Institute at . The next event will take place in Evanston, Illinois, in February 2023. The JBD Institute is also available to local churches for leadership training in music and worship. Please e-mail jbd.institute@garrett.edu for more information.

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Reverend Fabiola Grandon-Mayer is the Prairie North district superintendent in the Northern Illinois Conference. She is a certified public accountant and holds an MDiv from Asbury Seminary. She has held leadership positions in the church at local, regional, national, and international levels. She was the coordinator for the Volunteers in Mission Teams in Chile, promoting and bringing teams from the United States to Chile to build temples and parsonages. She also led the Council for United Methodist Churches in Latin America for 11 years. Grandon-Mayer has offered to help Garrett-Evangelical strengthen the Hispanic/Latinx presence in the Northern Illinois Conference.

Maria Alejandra Salazar (G-ETS 2019) is a Program Officer at Borealis Philanthropy, a social justice philanthropic intermediary working to resource grassroots movements for transformative change. A 1.5 generation, formerly undocumented immigrant, her professional background began with community organizing, advocacy, and direct social services with immigrant communities in the Chicagoland area. Maria Alejandra received her Bachelor of Science in Education and Social Policy with a minor in Latina/o Studies from Northwestern University. She received her Master of Divinity from Garrett-Evangelical, focusing her capstone project on women of color organizers and burnout. Her vocation centers on art, justice, and ancestral connection.

Julia Wyatt works as the chief operating officer for Tiptree, Inc., a publicly traded financial services company in New York City. She has served as the CFO or COO of several large publicly traded companies and has also worked in capital management for global firms like Deloitte and Morgan. She is a member of Christ Church (UMC) in New York City, where she has sung in the choir, chaired the Outreach Ministries Committee, and is the co-founder of the church’s microfinance ministry in Cartagena, Colombia. This ministry provides capital funding for informal entrepreneurs, mostly single mothers, in the Flor de Campo neighborhood—an area that largely consists of people displaced by climatic events, political violence, or the international narcotics trade. She is a University of Utah alum, with a degree in accountancy and public finance. She has extensive experience serving on public and non-profit boards.

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It is not often that we have a mom and her son graduate at the same time. We do believe this might even be a first in the seminary’s 169-year history. At the 165th Commencement, held on Friday, May 13, 2022, Jacquelyn D. Webb received her master of divinity and her son, Dr. Taurean J. Webb, received his doctor of philosophy. To mark this special moment, we reached out to the Webbs to learn more about their seminary experience.

When you think of your son what comes to mind? What would you want someone to know about him?

When I think of Taurean, I am reminded of how much time and energy he has invested in understanding his own African American and Cherokee heritage. His educational excellence, servant leadership, honesty, and dedication to service for others are characteristics that have shaped his study. He is a self-driven man who is very focused on goals that will foster a more informed society. I would want people to know that he is committed to serving and making a positive difference in the lives of others. He is committed to courageous leadership in affecting change that will not only improve the church but also the global community.

When you think of your mom, what comes to mind? What would you want someone to know about her?

My mother is one of the kindest and most selfless people I’ve met. And, of course, she (and my dad) has been supportive of my pursuits in more ways than I can count. But my mother is also one of the most consequential leaders I’ve ever known. The school district from which I graduated high school is an amalgamation of about fourteen different municipalities, roughly half predominantly Black, half predominantly White, all court-ordered together in the late 80s by a desegregation suit. At the time, my mom was the second-ranking official of the district and the top-ranking person of color. In no insignificant way, how she postured herself in such a critical moment of racial animus could have, rightly or wrongly, come to be the barometer for “whether or not Black people could lead.” This is how race functions in the United States. Fortunately for us, her skills, integrity, and community of accountability kept her during such trying times.

Tell us about your son and his time at Garrett-Evangelical? What inspired you most about his seminary journey?

At a very young age, Taurean realized that there was a special “call” on his life. This was affirmed by his parents, grandparents, and many in the strong Baptist, faith community in which he was raised. His ability to recognize “his call” early in life and to chart his journey with God’s direction, family, the faith community mentors, and many in the Morehouse College, Columbia University, Northwestern University and most profoundly the Garrett-Evangelical community has been most inspirational for me. A seminary journey was foreseen much earlier in his life and it was at Garrett-Evangelical that it became a reality. It was the prophetic voice of Dr. Larry Murphy, the guidance of Dr. Stephen Ray and the larger Garrett-Evangelical community that allowed a mother to experience a blessed, unique journey alongside her son.

Tell us about your mom and her time at Garrett-Evangelical? What inspired you most about her seminary journey?

It takes a special type of bravery to begin a separate (in some ways, very different) career journey, at any life stage, but certainly toward the end of one’s working years. My mother’s decision to pursue ministry full-time, after an immensely successful career as a public school educator, always inspired me. But I was, perhaps, most moved by her focused determination. When she began at Garrett-Evangelical, she was far removed from graduate studies, and theological writing was a completely unfamiliar genre. But through her setbacks—and there were some—she persevered.

What has it been like for you to attend seminary at the same time as your son?

It took both of us reflecting and praying as well as having conversations around the dynamics of sharing the same academic space. We were serious about establishing ground rules that honored our independence, academic, and social spaces. It was a rare opportunity to learn, serve, and share together. Some special moments were when we read the same book or knew the same author and then shared reflections that became real theological discussions. Even more amazing was to share a new text, which was unfamiliar to one of us. Some of the most meaningful moments were serving two years together on the pastoral staff at Second Baptist Church in Evanston, under the leadership of Reverend Mark A. Dennis and Reverend Dr. Karen Mosby.

What has it been like for you to attend seminary at the same time as your mom?

She had finished most of her coursework and had moved back to Pittsburgh before I began my PhD journey at Garrett-Evangelical. But one of the most meaningful moments for me came when she first planted the seed of us potentially graduating together. For that to work, however, our paces had to align. We knew this would be an important milestone for the family, so she decided to slow her pace and complete her final class a year after she could have, to give me time to “catch up.” So, as she extended her timeline, I hastened mine (attempting to write my PhD dissertation as efficiently as possible)—so that we could “walk” together.

Jacquelyn, how has your time at Garrett-Evangelical shaped and prepared you for your ministry and calling?

Thirty-seven years after earning a PhD from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro and even more study to receive credentials for school leadership and the superintendency, I knew after accepting my call to ministry that more study would be required to be prepared for ministry. On a brief visit to Northwestern University, my son encouraged me to tour Garrett-Evangelical. It was then I realized that this was “my place” for preparation for ministry. It felt right for me, and with the prayers and blessings of my spouse, Percy Webb, our family, and our community in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, the journey began. Garrett-Evangelical became my safe haven to embark on this faith journey. Garrett-Evangelical was a community that embraced those with a non-traditional background and cultivated my uniqueness which allowed me to thrive. Little did I know that as my seminary journey was ending, I would be called to lead a congregation, as interim pastor, virtually, through the pandemic season.

Taurean, how has your time at Garrett-Evangelical shaped and prepared you for your ministry and calling?

One of the greatest joys (and assets) of my training has been the faculty and staff helping me cultivate my own theological imagination. Spending as much time as I do outside of “theological spaces,” I find it painfully clear that others hunger for tools to creatively imagine new world possibilities, and some of those tools can only withstand the world’s most cynical scrutiny when they’re foregrounded in the mystery of the sacred. This tool has profoundly shaped how I show up in the world.

What’s next for you, Jacquelyn?

I plan to continue to serve in ministry as called to do so. My favorite saying is: “The world is my pulpit. I serve daily, wherever I am.” My desire is to continue to be directed and guided by God’s hand in service.

Taurean, what’s next for you?

The most important next step for me, personally, is continuing my own fatherhood journey—with my wife and I expecting our third child later this year. Vocationally, I am set to begin a position at Indiana University Bloomington in the fall, teaching and directing a research center in the university’s School of Global and International Studies.

What are your hopes and wishes for your son post-seminary and his ministry?

My greatest wish and prayer for Taurean is for him to truly embrace his calling and use his gifts and talents in becoming the best leader possible, serving as God directs him.

What are your hopes and wishes for your mom post-seminary and her ministry?

My sincerest hope is that my mother reaps the harvest of every good thing—every good seed—that she has planted by faith, and study, in this place.

The post A Family Affair: Mom and Son Graduate Together appeared first on Garrett Evangelical Theological Seminary.

Rev. Bill Tomlinson (GBI 1954) said he feels strongly that a 91PORN education is important — so important that he has put the seminary in his will.

“Our ministers need to be exposed to different ideas, especially today,” he said. “We need educated ministers.

That is why it is important to support seminaries.” Tomlinson said he can’t remember a time he wasn’t in the church, but he didn’t think about becoming a minister until mid-way through college.

For most of his early life, Tomlinson lived on farms in Ohio. After spending a couple of elementary school years on his grandfather’s farm near Columbus, he and his family moved to another farm in Northeastern Ohio for the rest of his early education and high school.

After graduating from Paris Township High School, he headed to Ohio State University, where he started to take general education courses. Then, he got a part-time job working on a dairy farm. Thinking he would become a dairy farmer, he changed his course of study. “I thought I had better major in dairy husbandry,” he said.

His course of study changed again about midway through his college career when he felt a call to ministry.

In the fall of 1948, he enrolled at Garrett Biblical Institute. He chose Garrett Biblical Institute because Garrett Professor Rocky Smith had come to Ohio State and persuaded him to apply and later matriculate.

According to Tomlinson, the highlight of his years at Garrett was meeting his wife, Eileen Ganzel, who was getting her master’s degree in religious education. Tomlinson worked at the Garrett dining hall, and they both worked at the First Methodist Church. When they weren’t working, they studied and spent a lot of time together. During that time, they found they had a lot in common. Like Tomlinson, Ganzel had grown up on a farm, she in Nebraska. Their first official date was on Valentine’s Day.

Tomlinson said he found the coursework at Garrett difficult. “In my fifth quarter, I received an announcement from the Academic Committee that my grades were not sufficient for me to continue,” he said. Because he was already enrolled and had a job, he stayed on for the next quarter, taking Professor Rocky Smith’s rural sociology course. He aced it but decided to drop out of school and move to Iowa, where he had received a charge at Exline, Sharon Chapel, and Zoar. that time, he and Ganzel got married.

After working for a couple of years, he petitioned to return to Garrett and was accepted. He returned, but his wife and their first daughter stayed behind in Iowa. His experience in the Iowa parish helped him excel. “After I was out in a parish for a couple of years, I began to see how things fit together, and I did much better,” he said.

Tomlinson graduated in 1954 and began a 41-year career as a minister in Iowa. In that time, he and his wife served 28 churches in 12 parishes. They also had three children, Kathleen, Muriel Ann, and Walter. The highlights of his career involved working with the youth and the United Methodist Camp and Retreat Ministries. “I have said several times that if it hadn’t been for the camping program, I would not have stayed in the ministry,” he said.

Tomlinson got involved in The United Methodist Camp and Retreat Ministries more than 70 years ago because he “loved being outdoors.” He served this ministry in almost every capacity, including serving as the interim director for three different camps. At one point, Iowa had eight camps, and Tomlinson said he had worked at all eight.

After his retirement in 1991, Tomlinson has continued to volunteer at the Wesley Woods camp, building new facilities, repairing old facilities, and helping out. “Jesus was a carpenter for 30 years, and then he went to preaching. I preached for 41 years and then went to carpentry,” he said

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NorthShore University HealthSystem

Sometimes, Chaplain Ida Oliver can tell right away if one of her clinical pastoral education (CPE) students is likely to become a hospital chaplain.

“Some students, right out of the gate, show they are cut out for chaplaincy,” said Oliver, who is the coordinator for CPE at NorthShore University HealthSystem, which includes Evanston, Glenbrook, Skokie, and Highland Park Hospitals.

According to Oliver, Jordan Aspiras is one of these students. A few weeks after Aspiras started her CPE in October 2020, it became clear to her that Aspiras would be a talented and compassionate chaplain — even in the midst of a world-wide pandemic. “Her attitude, her interest, and her dedication to learning stood out immediately,” Oliver said.

Part of the Department of Spiritual Care Services, chaplains at NorthShore University HealthSystems provide spiritual services to anyone associated with the hospitals. “We see patients who are referred to us by doctors, physical therapists, nurses, and social workers,” Oliver said. “We also support loved ones of patients, as well as doctors, nurses, and staff members who have a crisis or need to talk. This has been especially true during COVID-19.”

Originally, Aspiras considered being a pastor when she enrolled at 91PORN in the fall of 2019, but she changed her mind when Lisl Heymans Paul, associate director of field education, suggested she consider a placement as a chaplain.

Aspiras was intrigued and ultimately agreed. “I’m really glad that I said yes,” said Aspiras, who grew up in San Jose, California and received her bachelor’s degree from Baylor University in Waco, Texas.

One of the things Aspiras said she likes about hospital chaplaincy is that it has an interfaith aspect to it. “At one point, I was paged to provide prayer for a Muslim COVID-19 patient,” she said.

“I love chaplaincy because you really put your own beliefs aside and provide what the patient and their loved ones need.”

“Her compassion and her commitment to care for everyone is what has made her so successful,” Oliver said.

Completing her clinical pastoral education during a pandemic has been difficult, Aspiras said. When COVID-19 first hit, students were not allowed in the hospitals, but by the time Aspiras started her field education, that restriction had lifted.

Like everyone else in the hospital, she has to wear personal protective equipment all the time. Often, she cannot enter a patient’s room and has to talk and pray with them over the telephone, which can be really hard. “Praying over the telephone was not something that I saw myself being able to do well, but now, because of COVID-19, it is something I do consistently,” she said.

Yet, even with the many challenges brought on by the pandemic, Aspiras said that her CPE experience has allowed her to seriously consider chaplaincy. “It made me realize that this is what I’m here to do,” she said.

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