Women in Youth Ministry

ABOUT THIS EPISODE: Melissa is passionate about getting creative in youth ministry and inspiring youth and youth directors to do the same. In this episode she talks about a new initiative where students can "choose their own adventure" in student leadership courses that apply to them. As a bonus, we talk about how BOTH Melissa and Heather got kicked out of church as young people!

ABOUT MELISSA: Rev. Melissa Collier Gepford is the Intergenerational Discipleship Coordinator of the Great Plains Conference (all of Kansas and Nebraska), where she supports United Methodist Churches to establish healthy kids and youth ministries.  She teaches, consults, and writes curriculum, articles, and books distributed worldwide through the United Methodist denomination; a couple of her projects have been translated into Spanish and Korean. Her most recent endeavor has been creating Dandelion Marketplace, a digital platform for progressive faith formation resources. Melissa enjoys drinking good coffee, working out, and testing her semi-green thumb. She has been married to Bill for nearly a decade, and their four-year-old son Finnegan keeps them on their toes, which just reinforces Melissa’s coffee habit.

ABOUT THIS EPISODE: The next Women in Youth Ministry Conference is coming up, and our Conference Team asked that I publish the keynotes from last year so that you all could get a glimpse of what is in store. This last keynote of the series was the last session of the conference, and my friend Gina Abbas got to do it. Gina was a key source of encouragement for me when I got started in ministry, and I found her by Googling "women in youth ministry." In this keynote Gina encourages women to be who God created them to be!

ABOUT GINA: Gina writes, consults, coaches, and speaks on the topics of women in leadership, multisite, youth ministry, parenting, and career advancement for women facing barriers to success. When she isn't drinking coffee or trying to decode Taylor Swift lyrics for secret messages, she likes to hang out with her family—sometimes defeating them at Mario Kart. Gina is married to Tim, an online Social Studies teacher- resulting in lively dinner conversations centered around faith, democracy, and education. Gina lives in Zeeland, Michigan, with her husband and three kids.

ABOUT THIS EPISODE: The next Women in Youth Ministry Conference is coming up, and our Conference Team asked that I publish the keynotes from last year so that you all could get a glimpse of what is in store. As I relistened to Erica's keynote, I kept thinking about how this keynote embodies the theme of this year's conference: how do we find hope, even though the last few years have robbed us of our joy?

ABOUT ERICA: Erica Schimelpfenig has spent the past 20 years at YouthWorks in many different roles. In her current role as President, Erica gets to live out her passion of pointing teenagers toward God through service experiences that broaden perspectives and help develop lifelong passions.  Erica lives in Minneapolis, MN with her husband, Cody and their 3 kids.

ABOUT THIS EPISODE: The next Women in Youth Ministry Conference is coming up, and our Conference Team asked that I (Heather Kenison) publish the keynotes from last year so that you all could get a glimpse of what is in store. In this first keynote, I have the privilege of sharing my testimony, why I created Women in Youth Ministry, and the values that we hold as an organization that you will experience at the conference. The feedback I heard after this keynote was incredible -- women saying that they never went to a conference before that cared about their safety, valued diversity and displayed it, and created space for vulnerability. My hope is that this episode explains exactly what WYM is like as an organization.

ABOUT HEATHER: Heather serves at St. Luke’s UMC in Indianapolis as the Director of Student Ministries, leading a diverse team of staff and volunteers at one of the biggest UMC churches in the country. Heather is also the Founder & CEO of Women in Youth Ministry, an organization that celebrates the leadership of women. A certified leadership coach, Heather’s two biggest passions are youth ministry and youth pastors. In her free time, Heather is obsessed with makeup, competition reality television, “cozy” gaming, and personality tests. She is married to PJ and they live in Indianapolis with their three beloved pets.

You can follow Heather everywhere online @heatherlea17 and at https://heatherleakenison.blog/ where she occasionally puts out content.

ABOUT THIS EPISODE: Paige and Diane met while completing youth ministry masters' degrees, and have spent their entire relationship as youth pastors in two different churches! They share about how they have set boundaries while still being each other's best ministry volunteers, how to connect churches together so that they can both thrive, and being there for one another even if one is thriving and one is not.

ABOUT PAIGE & DIANE: Paige and Diane are community (and self) described #YouthPastorCoupleGoals. Paige and Diane both have undergraduate degrees in Youth Ministry/Religion (from separate colleges), and Masters of Arts in Youth Ministry degrees from the same seminary/program (Memphis Theological Seminary/CYMT). They have been together for over 5 years, and have just recently gotten married at a summer camp themed wedding because as previously mentioned #YouthPastorCoupleGoals. Paige and Diane have the unique opportunity to be in very similar ministry positions at 2 different churches in suburbs of DC. They consider both churches their home church, and all of the young people they work with are their kids.

You can follow them online at Insta & Twitter: @pdhbach @di_maloney

ABOUT THIS EPISODE: Gabby spoke this spring at the Inaugural Women in Youth Ministry Conference about  reaching Gen Z and Gen Alpha, from the eyes of a Gen Z youth pastor. Since the conference, Gabby started the project called "Dear God, I'm sad" to remove the stigma regarding mental health in Christianity. If we want Christianity to remain relevant, especially to the rising generations, we have to have these conversations.

ABOUT GABBY: My name is Gabby Wilkinson and I am currently a seminary student at Emory University's Candler School of Theology where I am getting my Master of Divinity and studying the intersectionality of mental illness and Christianity through the lens of church trauma. I have been working in ministry since 2014 and am currently serving in the Youth Ministry at Dunwoody UMC and in the Wesley Foundation at Georgia Tech. I recently started a brand called "Dear God, I'm Sad" that has a mission to craft a healthier and more holistic relationship between mental illness and Christianity through reflection, investigation, and exploration!

You can follow Gabby on Instagram: _gabswilks_ and deargod_imsad

ABOUT THIS EPISODE: Creating gender-inclusive spaces is a passion that I (Heather) share with this week's guest, Rev. Nora Elliott. Nora shares about how to create spaces for transgender and non-binary students in terms of "levels" -- applicable actions no matter your church context. 

ABOUT NORA: Rev. Nora Elliott, ordained 5 years ago with the United Church of Christ, currently serving a PCUSA congregation in MN. Nora uses she/they pronouns and her call started as a youth and family pastor, but has grown to include comprehensive sexual health and wellness education for the church and wider world at large. She's an avid gamer who uses Dungeons & Dragons to engage youth in the necessary work of social and critical thinking skill development. She's on tiktok providing good news on a semi-regular basis, as well as Facebook sharing theological memes for the digital age.

You can follow her at Facebook.com/revnora

ABOUT THIS EPISODE: It's been 6 months -- what's happened since the Women in Youth Ministry Conference? The first guest of this season is a new friend I made at the Conference, Sam Greene. Sam is a youth pastor and the host of the Stuttering Christian Podcast. Sam shares about her experiences as a person who stutters and a youth pastor, as well as some tips for youth pastors on how to be a safe place for students who stutter.

ABOUT SAMANTHA: Howdy! My name is Samantha Green! I serve full time at First United Methodist Church of Waxahachie. I’m probably the biggest fan of Elvis Presley and Harry Styles. Being a person that stutters and working in youth ministry is a testimony within itself.

ABOUT THIS EPISODE: There's no better way to wrap up this podcast than interviewing Dr. Amanda Innovation Drury (we added the middle name). Mandy is passionate about innovation, and on this episode shares about the different innovative projects. Mandy helped Heather's church with an innovation project, and Heather shares about what they produced!

ABOUT MANDY: Dr. Amanda Drury is an ordained minister in the Wesleyan Church and teaches practical theology courses at Indiana Wesleyan University where she is also the director of The Imaginarium, a Lilly Endowment initiative on congregational innovation with youth. She has extensive experience in grant writing, speaking, consulting, game making, and youth ministry. Amanda has authored several books including Saying is Believing: The Necessity of Testimony in Adolescent Spiritual Formation and Testimony and Trauma.

ABOUT THIS EPISODE: When Jean posted about her mystery trip for middle schoolers in our Facebook Community, I asked no more questions; I invited her on the podcast so I could ask them! Listen to how Jean's church creatively engages with families to create a trip that's a complete mystery to everyone -- even the volunteer leaders -- until they get there.

ABOUT JEAN: Jean Lapitan is the Director of Middle School Ministry at Trinity Presbyterian Church in Atlanta, GA. When she’s not working at the church, she enjoys watching Friends, playing with her cats, and talking to her mom on the phone.

ABOUT THIS EPISODE: Jess has been at her church for 11 years - incredible! Jess had the typical student ministry, until a student with autism joined her group. This totally changed the way she did ministry in really cool and unexpected ways. By responding to these students' needs, now Jess's church has an intentional community of college students and young adults with disabilities who live together.

ABOUT JESS: I am a youth pastor who love adventures but I often find myself falling into them rather than choosing them. My latest adventure is living in community with college students and young adults with disabilities as roommates. My heart lives at the intersection of Student Ministry and Disability Ministry and watching the two groups of people I love the most collide in the best possible ways makes my heart happy.

You can follow @jessberryhill on Insta and the Terre Haute Friendship House Facebook Page @THFriendshipHouse

ABOUT THIS EPISODE: I invited my friend Matumaini Taylor on to talk about her program "Teens who Brunch," and she shares about her youth council, engaging students digitally, and more!

ABOUT MATUMAINI: Pastor Matumaini Taylor, M.Div. is the Director of High School Ministry at Faithful Central Bible Church in Inglewood, CA. She has 20 years of youth development and ministry experience and loves encouraging teenagers. You can follow her on Insta at @matubelieves, her church at @thesourcefcbc, or her foundation at @onlybelievefoundation

ABOUT THIS EPISODE: As we continue our discussion on Innovation, we are blessed to have an OG in ministry, Dr. Kenda Creasy Dean. Kenda talks a bit about the future of student ministry and women's role in driving the change we need to see.

ABOUT KENDA: I'm a UMC pastor and the Mary D. Synnott Professor of Youth, Church and Culture at Princeton Theological Seminary, and the Co-Founder of Ministry Incubators. My most recent books are Delighted: What Teenagers Are Teaching Churches about Joy (Eerdmans, 2020). and Knee-Deep in Flotsam: Why Churches Innovate and How to Start (Market Square, 2021). My husband Kevin and I just got caught up on Ted Lasso...and my kids are grown and flown and are my favorite people to hang out with! 

ABOUT THIS EPISODE: Some people love them, some people hate them -- and it might just be the most controversial topic a youth pastor Facebook group sees. Ana and a group of youth pastors in New England decided to reimagine the way they did overnighters and contextualize them to their churches.

ABOUT ANA: Ana Maciel has been serving as the director of Youth Ministry and Communication at Trinity Community Church in Norwood, MA since 2013. She has a passion partnering in ministry with her Youth Pastor Colleagues in New England and cannot live without coffee and a good pastry. You can follow her on Instagram at @aflavuh

ABOUT THIS EPISODE: At first, TikTok just seemed like a funny place for weird dance moves, pranks, and pet videos. But then Bethany posted a video affirming the LGTBQ+ community and went viral. Now, Bethany has over 300,000 followers and is embracing ministry in a whole new way.

ABOUT BETHANY: Rev. Bethany is a PCUSA Pastor currently serving at Everybody’s Church in Birmingham Michigan. During the wild west frontier that was ministry in a pandemic she started posting 15second videos on TikTok. A year later she has nearly 300,000 followers and has launched a digital ministry where they can heal from religious trauma and reconnect with God.

ABOUT THIS EPISODE: This season we are focused on innovation. For Samantha and her key volunteer Maddie, they were excited to start something new and shiny in their program. But all of that halted when one of their students told them that the students feel like the adults in the church don't listen to them. They ripped up what they knew about ministry and started at the base again: building relationship with students in a more meaningful way. 

ABOUT SAMANTHA HASSELL: Rev. Samantha Hassell has served the Cumberland Presbyterian Church as a Christian educator and youth pastor for over 20 years.  She is a graduate of Bethel College (B.A.) and holds a Master of Arts in Youth Ministry from Memphis Theological Seminary.  Samantha served as a Lead Innovator in the Center for Youth Ministry Training’s Innovation Lab and she and a team from the Sturgis Cumberland Presbyterian Church learned together what innovation looks like in youth ministry and beyond. Samantha has been a contributing writer for Faith Out Loud, Feasting on the Word, Growing in Grace and Gratitude and was the writer of the 2016 Presbyterian Youth Triennium Small Group Manual. She and her husband, Rev. Victor Hassell, have three children.

Along with Samantha is Maddie Roberts.  Maddie grew up in the Sturgis Cumberland Presbyterian Church and served on its Innovation Team.  Maddie remained active on the team even after relocating from KY to MI – that’s what value she saw in this process for her home church!

ABOUT THIS EPISODE: This season we are focused on innovation. Caroline is a self-described "baby youth leader." At 25, Caroline is on a team of youth pastors at the church she's attended her entire life. The staff have all been there a long time, so you can imagine that driving innovation at a church with a bunch of tenured humans who are used to doing things the same way for a long time can be difficult. Even if you're not at a big church, we think this episode has something for you -- Caroline talks about what innovation looks like when you are the youngest person on your staff, when you have sacred cows all around you, and how innovation looks different than adaptability.  We talk the creation of Small Groups ministry in churches and launching a volunteer culture. 

ABOUT THIS EPISODE: This season we are focused on innovation. Kat went through an amazing innovation process at her church and created "FailSafe Studios." Hear about why how Kat answered her student's needs in a way that she never expected.

ABOUT KAT BAIR: Kat Bair is the Director of Youth Ministries at First United Methodist Church of Fort Worth, Texas, and, in 2019, earned a MA in Youth Ministry from Austin Seminary through the Center for Youth Ministry Training. She lives with her nerd-chic video game developer husband, Andrew, and is an avid writer, West Wing superfan, and Nashville native.

ABOUT THIS EPISODE: This season we want to focus the podcast on innovation -- a hot topic in the youth ministry community right now. Between some grants that have been available to youth pastors and a pandemic that forced people to get innovative, all of us have been faced with obstacles and been forced to turn them into opportunities. Who better to kick off this season than with Elle Campbell, who heads up Stuff You Can Use and Grow Curriculum? Elle's gift is innovation, and shares her wisdom with us today.

ABOUT ELLE CAMPBELL: Elle is the co-founder and Chief Content Officer of Stuff You Can Use and Grow Curriculum. She has been doing youth ministry since she was a teenager and is passionate about ministry that empowers both teenagers and adult volunteers to lead and serve in significant ways. When she’s not doing ministry stuff, Elle is probably reading a book or making something — food, a scarf, a new business, a puzzle, or a LEGO set maybe?

ABOUT THIS EPISODE: For our last episode of the season, we are excited to have Pastor Kelsey Beebe of the Lady Preacher Podcast! Kelsey talks about what it looks like to embody our faith.

ABOUT THIS EPISODE: We've all heard about keychain leadership - giving teens the keys to the church - but Mari shares about HOW her church in California is doing this to totally reinterpret church and the way it looks.

ABOUT MARI TRAPP: Mari serves at the Youth Minister at Sunny Hills Church of Christ in Southern California and teaches Youth Ministry at Hope International University as an adjunct professor. She loves to encourage and show students that they are amazing creations of God and ready to be used to change the world today. Mari has been married to the love of her life, Stephen, for two years and they have a wonderful daughter together.

ABOUT THIS EPISODE: This week our guest is Anne Wilson. We discuss Marvel rankings, as well as what it looks like to be a Kingdom-Minded Leader, rather than a Success-Minded Leader.

ABOUT ANNE WILSON: Anne is a leader, youth pastor, writer, and Bible teacher with a passion to see this generation know and follow Jesus. She currently serves as the lead youth pastor at Traders Point Christian Church in Indianapolis, IN, and has served as at churches in North Carolina, Ohio, and Indiana, both in church communications and youth ministry. She holds a degree in biblical studies and general ministry from Cincinnati Christian University. Anne and her husband, Kyle, have two kids.

Follow her on social media @annemwilson

ABOUT THIS EPISODE: Confirmation is the best part of youth ministry at many mainline churches. But how do we make it more meaningful for our students and leaders? Shannon shares with us her "three C's!"

ABOUT THIS EPISODE: Last week we talked about keeping our children and youth safe in the church, and we are continuing that conversation by talking about how we can be trauma-informed as leaders. You never know who is walking around with trauma, and Sara Nichole gives us several practical ways to care for our people.

ABOUT SARA NICHOLE: Sara has been serving as a Children’s and Youth Ministry Director in Newark, Delaware for the last 2 years. Formally, Sara was a social services leader where she led programs serving those facing trauma. Sara loves coffee, empanadas and watching crime documentaries to relax at night. Sara can chat all day about the importance of healing from trauma.

ABOUT THIS EPISODE: This week our guest is Ansley Higgenbotham. We talk about a topic that is one of my greatest soapboxes: SAFETY! We hear about the knucklehead things that youth pastors do all the time, so let's talk about how to set up some boundaries and create a policy that protects your children, youth, and vulnerable adults as well as your staff and volunteers.

ABOUT ANSLEY HIGGINBOTHAM: Ansley is a youth ministry veteran and lifelong United Methodist who now lives on her husband's family farm with her kids and cattle. She has a certificate in Youth and Theology from Princeton Theological Seminary. She works with DYM, consults youth pastors, does speaking gigs, writes curriculum, and is currently getting her coaching certification with the Youth Cartel. 

ABOUT SAFE SANCTUARIES: 

ABOUT THIS EPISODE: Heather brings in Mama Caro to encourage youth workers to finish this year strong. Mama Caro imparts some wisdom as we plan a new school year, and encourages us to embrace safety this summer.

ABOUT STEPHANIE CARO: Stephanie Caro has been involved in ministry to children, youth, and adults in the local church (both large and small) since…a long time ago. Her humorous, straightforward style keeps her busy presenting and coaching at conferences, training events, camps, mission trips, retreats, churches, etc. She is now Senior Consultant for Ministry Architects, which allows her to help churches assess, vision, and formulate their ministry game plans. 

Her books, Thriving Youth Ministry in Smaller Churches and 99 Thoughts for the Smaller Church Youth Worker, were published by Group/Simply Youth Ministry. Her book, Smaller Church Youth Ministry: No Staff, No Money, No Problem, was published by United Methodist Publishing House. Her next book, Ten Solutions for Smaller Churches, comes out soon. Stephanie is a contributing author to several ministry resources like YouthWorker Journal and Group Magazine. Check out Stephanie's blogs at youthministry.com, youthspecialties.com, Princeton Theological Seminary, and others. Stephanie and her husband, Steve, live in Katy, TX. Their 7 children are all grown!

ABOUT THIS EPISODE: This week's episode is a gift. Erica Schimelpfenig is the Executive Director of YouthWorks. Like youth ministry, the missions field has a reputation for being led by primarily white men. What is it like to lead as a black woman in a primarily white space -- especially in Minneapolis, the home of the murder of George Floyd and the very public trial of his murderer? 

ABOUT ERICA SCHIMELPFENIG: Erica has spent the past 20 years at YouthWorks in many different roles. In her current role as President, Erica gets to live out her passion of pointing teenagers toward God through service experiences that broaden perspectives and help develop lifelong passions.  Erica lives in Minneapolis, MN with her husband, Cody and their 3 kids.

ABOUT THIS EPISODE: When we talk about sexual purity with our students, what we are REALLY doing is promising that our kids will get married one day. So how do we talk about sex instead? A much-anticipated podcast episode from our Facebook group, Rebekah gives us some new ideas.

ABOUT REBEKAH: Rebekah Strobel is an ordained reverend who worked in youth ministry for over 10 years! She currently serves a non-profit focused on working with residents in affordable housing, where her favorite part of the job is still hanging out with kids every week. Her recent move to the Seattle area has been full of adventures; she and her husband spend their weekends hiking, biking, and exploring the variety of local foods.

ABOUT THIS EPISODE: This episode of the podcast packs a punch: We discuss the sexual misconduct of male leaders in Christian Ministry, and how women can avoid those mistakes by partnering with one another. We do discuss sexual trauma, so if you are sensitive to that subject you may want to skip this episode and we'll see you next week!

ABOUT THIS EPISODE: Have you ever been a guest on your own podcast? This week Heather is interviewed by April Diaz on the transformation of coaching groups, including the announcement of coaching groups beginning in May! Heather will be leading a group designed for women in ministry, although there are many other groups available to choose from. Heather shares about her most vulnerable struggle -- Imposter Syndrome -- and how coaching helped her through one of the most difficult seasons of her life.

ABOUT THIS EPISODE: We are BACK with Season THREE of the podcast! This season Heather invited 12 AMAZING guests, and we are excited to kick it off with Gwendolyn DeRosa. Gwen shares "all means all," how to include our LGBTQ+ youth, even if you do not come from an affirming point of view. 

ABOUT GWEN: Gwendolyn DeRosa (she/her/hers) loves teaching, storytelling, and being creative. Gwen graduated with a degree in Creative Writing and a minor in Youth Ministry from Oral Roberts University. After returning to Ohio in 2010, Gwen earned her Masters in TESOL (Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages) from Ohio Dominican University. Gwen, and her wife, Felicia, have been members of King Ave UMC since February 2015. Gwen and Felicia have a snack-loving sugar glider named Madeleine.

In her staff role at King Avenue United Methodist Church, Gwen is responsible for planning and organizing children’s classes during worship services, Sunday School classes for age 4 through high school, Confirmation, and supporting activities, events, and retreats for children and youth. She also writes and presents the Children’s Message every Sunday. You can find her stories on King Avenue’s YouTube Channel.

It's the last episode of our season "Women Teach the Bible." It's been awesome hearing from each of these 12 women a story in the Bible that they hold close, and how they've interpreted it. This week Bethany brings a fresh look at the Samaritan Woman. 

ABOUT BETHANY: Bethany is the Middle School Youth Director at Eastminster Presbyterian Church in Columbia South Carolina. She loves board games, escape rooms, Stardew Valley, and petting dogs. This summer she’s marrying her partner of 6 years and is so excited to begin life with him. You can find her on all social media platforms @bethanyjoydixon.

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We've got two episodes left of this series before we start our new season! Shuree speaks SO much truth into us about Proverbs 31 -- but it's not the same ol' rusty sermon you've heard before. 

ABOUT SHUREE: Shuree is an urban activist and performing vocal artist with a demonstrated history of working in the music industry and in urban communities.  Ms. Rivera is best known for her more than a decade of work as an influencer and social change agent in urban communities.  She has led grassroots, inner-city community action initiatives in Chicago, Detroit, Minneapolis and now throughout the city of Los Angeles.  She is driven each day by a passion to do work in communities of color that has lasting impact and that inspires others to be their best.

Shuree is professionally trained and experienced in music and video production, creative design, songwriting, content development, music publishing, theater, dance and public speaking.  She graduated from Nyack College, New York, with a Bachelor of Business Administration (B.B.A.) in Music Business.

This week's guest is Kat Bair! Kat and I met through another friend in ministry, as I was on the hunt for other women in the UMC who lead multi-staff youth ministry teams. I've been told by MULTIPLE people this year how talented Kat is, and I'm so excited to have her on this week. For our last episode of 2020, Kat is teaching us about Mary, the mother of Jesus. Merry Christmas, and see you in 2021!

ABOUT KAT: Kat Bair is the Director of Youth Ministries at First United Methodist Church of Fort Worth, Texas and, in 2019, earned a MA in Youth Ministry from Austin Seminary through the Center for Youth Ministry Training. She lives with her nerd-chic video game developer husband, Andrew, and is an avid writer, West Wing superfan, and podcast enthusiast, delighted to be fulfilling her personal dream of being on one herself.

We're back after two weeks off! This week's guest is Karli. Karli joins us to talk about her quest for her future husband, I mean, the story of Ruth. But the story isn't what you think it is! When do you need to step out like Ruth? And when do you need to embrace being an Orpah?

ABOUT KARLI: Karli Loving resides in Lawton, Oklahoma, where she is the Youth and Children’s Minister at Zoe Christian Center. She is also a first grade teacher. Karli loves Jesus, matcha, and watching Sister Act 2.

This week the amazing Matumaini joins us to talk about the Parable of the 10 Virgins, and how to be prepared with extra oil in your life.

ABOUT MATUMAINI: Pastor Matumaini Taylor, M.Div. is the Director of High School Ministry at Faithful Central Bible Church in Inglewood, CA. She has 20 years of youth development and ministry experience and loves encouraging teenagers.

Chelsea joins us again this week as we dive into the story of Jochabed and relying on God, even in exhile.

This week we have our first return-guest: Rita Prior! Rita shares with us the story of Deborah, particularly the etymology and meaning around Deborah's name. We talk about how to do justice work like a honey bee.

This week we take a break from Women Teach the Bible to talk with CYMT about their special initiative, "The Innovation Lab." Started before the pandemic, this initiative has only exploded with a wealth of knowledge and resources for the everyday youth worker trying to make it through this pandemic.

Have you seen that meme floating around about "If you can't handle me at my Judges 4-5, you don't deserve me at my Proverbs 31?" Today Elle Dowd dives into that passage with Heather, and what it says about our leadership and femininity.

When Heather thought about this series, the FIRST person she thought of was Loni. Loni is a natural story-teller, thinking of stories in new and creative ways. Loni talks Adam & Eve and what it means for us today.

ABOUT LONI: Loni Fancher is the Director of Youth at First UMC Arlington, Texas and will never stop being weirded out that God’s led her back to serve in her hometown. She spent most of her time at seminary studying faith and contemporary culture because she wants to help people see God at work in the world. Now, Loni spends her time with teenagers and refuses to grow up. Her passion is helping students fall in love with Jesus and make their faith their own. She lives with her two adorable dogs, Desdemona and Mercutio, & has a YouTube channel where she reads novels she thinks everyone should’ve read by now. No matter what anyone says, she was into collecting mustaches before mustaches were cool.

Follow her on social media: @pr3130gir

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Heather sits down with Mikiala for this FIRST EPISODE in our new series "Women Teach the Bible." Mikiala shares the story of Tamar, and some of the, uh, unconventional lessons for our own leadership this season. Also, you'll never guess what commonality Heather and Mikiala share. IT'S WILD.

ABOUT MIKIALA: Mikiala grew up in South Florida. She started volunteering in student ministry while still a student herself and hasn’t stopped serving students since. Mikiala works in ministry because of her desire for people to truly know Christ. For six years she has served at First United Methodist Church of Stuart and currently has the role of Director of Discipleship and Student Ministries. She lives with her little Yorkie, KiKi Okoye Tennie. 

Heather sits down with David Miller, VP of Coaching at Slingshot Group and author of Improv Leadership: How to Lead Well in Every Moment, which just released June 9th. They talk about how to know you're at the right church, whether in the interview process or in a position. Heather shares some of the raw details of her own journey to discerning her call in a hard season.

ABOUT DAVID: David A. Miller is the Vice President of Coaching at Slingshot Group where he helped develop the IMPROVleadership coaching strategy and serves as lead trainer. He has served as a pastor, speaker, teacher, and coach in diverse contexts, from thriving, multi-site churches to parachurch ministries. David helped develop the IMPROVleadership™ coaching strategy and trains leaders around the country in these culture-changing tools. In addition to leading staff teams of pastors and administrators, he coaches leaders across the U.S., speaks at retreats and conferences, and is a contributing author of various publications, blogs, and books, including the upcoming book, Improv Leadership: How to Lead Well in Every Moment.

Happy Pride Month! Linzi & Meggie are newlyweds who live in Nashville, both youth directors at two local churches. Heather talks with them about their experiences as queer persons in ministry, a gospel for those on the margins, and how to best minister to the queer students in your ministry...because they're there.

In case you didn't know, Women in Youth MInistry seeks to be an organization that lifts ALL female voices, LGBTQ+ community included. You may not agree with our theology, and that's okay; but we vow to stay true to who we are. You may choose to skip this episode, but we encourage you to listen -- you might learn something new.

This week's guest is Tandy Adams! Tandy and I chat our journeys moving from working within the SBC to finding our way to the UMC...in Indiana! We are legit like 2 miles away from each other, ha! We also reflect on the beautiful things the SBC gave us. You know your girls love us some scripture.

ABOUT TANDY: Tandy has been in vocational ministry for 31 years, most of those as a youth pastor. She attended Howard Payne University in Brownwood, TX and Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Ft. Worth, TX. A lifelong Texan, she moved to Indianapolis, IN two years ago as the Director of Family Ministries at Castleton UMC.  Tandy has been married 28 years and has children, Taylor (22) and Jonah (19). She enjoys playing her guitar, jalapenos, and is a die hard Chicago Cubs fan.

SOCIAL MEDIA: Facebook, IG @tandyadams70, Twitter @tandyadams

This week Heather invites Chelsea Peddecord onto the podcast! Chelsea runs our social media for WYM (so those memes that are posted every Monday? That's her!) amongst so many other things. This week we chat the Enneagram -- Chelsea is a 3 and Heather is an 8. We explore some of the misconceptions and hurt that comes with being strong women, the differences between the numbers 3 & 8, and most importantly -- living out who God says you are.

ABOUT CHELSEA: Chelsea Peddecord is a Texas native, serving at Highland Park United Methodist Church as a Youth Pastor. After graduating from Oklahoma State with her Bachelor of Arts in Sociology with an emphasis on Social Services, she finished her Masters of Theological Studies in May 2019 at SMU Perkins with a focus on Congregational Care and Old Testament Studies. Please ask her anything about Broadway, the Dallas Mavs, the Dallas cowboys, or her pets Wesley and Bullet. Oh! She will be commissioned as a Provisional Deacon in The United Methodist Church in June 2020! Woohoo!

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This week we chat with the godfather of middle school ministry, Marko. I invited Marko on because I have been long-impressed by his relationships with women and his passion for publishing books and hosting cohorts for women in youth ministry. This episode we talk about SO MUCH, including speaking out when you're convicted about something. His journey of affirming women in leadership is something you want to listen to.

When the video of the brutal killing of Ahmaud Arbery was released to the public last week, people across America jumped into action. We invited Rita Prior to help us process this murder and its implications for youth ministry,

ABOUT RITA: Rita Prior currently serves at Church of the Harvest (COTH) in Evansville, Indiana, as Director of Student Ministry. Rita has traveled both nationally and internationally teaching and preaching the saving, life-changing word of God. Prophetic ministry, the process of deliverance, and the complete healing—body, mind, and soul—are the areas where her ministerial passion is undeniable. Her delivery is honest, transparent, and relatable. Rita has preached, taught, and facilitated seminars on subjects such as leadership, life skills, internet safety, social media, the cycle of abuse, sexual abuse, communication, and even how to eat healthy on a budget. She is called upon as a peacemaker in the areas of racial reconciliation, domestic partnership, and human rights. She is the founder of Risk Living, an extension of her ministry, where she provides hope to those looking to heal their body by living a holistic lifestyle.

This week, Heather talks with Gabrielle about her experiences as a woman in the church, and her journey from being objectified as a teenager to finding wholeness in discovering a theology of the body. The stories are surprising, y'all.

This week Heather talks with Marie about what it looks like to be a single woman in ministry. We share some horror stories of dating, and even call out some of our icky brothers...you know who you are.

What happens when your calling changes? Mindie talks about all the different ways her was call was transformed... and not just because she wanted to be a "real pastor!" This episode is a true treat, as Mindie is a good friend of Heather's!

In this week's episode, Heather talks with Dan Navarra, a youth pastor who cares about other youth pastors. This week we'll talk about the reality of the gender wage pay gap in youth ministry, as well as how to advocate for a pay raise in ministry!

Today's episode features April Diaz. I admire April for her leadership in living a life of wholeness. Today she talks about her two passions: elevating the voices of women and student ministry, through a new project that explores Rites of Passage.

Today's episode features Heather Quiroz, the author of the book "First Century Youth Ministry."