Episode 57: Deaconcast - serving where one is led
We have three amazing deacons on the podcast today.
The Rev. Patricia (Pat) Jackson
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The Rev. Bonnie Matthews
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The Rev. Felix Rivera
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Pat is a retired clinical researcher within the pharmaceutical industry. She is a “child of the soil - Jamaican soil, that is.” She came to Connecticut over 30 years ago from Jamaica by way of Canada, England, and New York. She was ordained a deacon in September 2007 and currently serves at Church of the Holy Trinity in Middletown. Pat’s diaconal passion centers around reaching out to the poor, lonely, sick, forgotten, housebound, and marginalized both inside and outside the Church community. This passion has led her to be an advocate for our retired deacon community whom she faithfully serves both in their lives and at the time of their deaths. Pat is a proud mother of two grown children and a nana to six grand babies.
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Bonnie was ordained in 2012. She is the chair of the Deacons' Council and was elected to Mission Council during the 2018 Convention.
Her diaconal interests include working with and for the homeless in such projects as The Boot Party (which we will learn more about later on). With the season of Racial Healing, Justice, and Reconciliation, she is working with the Racial Healing Network. In her paid vocation she has been a Certified Surgical technologist at Hartford Hospital for 45 years. Bonnie is a grandmother of 3 boys and enjoys structured downtime such as reading and counted cross stitch. |
Felix is a retired electrical engineer. Felix is one of our most recent deacons, as he was ordained in June.
He is interested in teaching English as a second language and leadership development in the Latino community. Felix and his wife have two sons and three grandchildren - ages 7 to 21. In his free time, Felix and his wife, Carmen, like to do trips to NYC where he is from, and Chicago to visit their granddaughter. They also enjoy the arts in music and the visual arts. |
Welcome Felix, Bonnie, and Pat!
Alli starts the conversation asking everyone to share their call to ordination and in particular to the diaconate. Felix shares his story, which took several years and many different people asking him if he ever considered ordination and becoming a deacon until he finally chose to explore that option. Then once he decided to enter into the discernment process, he realized that in fact ordination and the process leading up to ordination is not done alone — but with a community to support you.
Ten to fifteen year ago Bonnie felt her call to ordained ministry, but kept putting off that nudge from God. At that time she was working for the hospital and her job was eliminated, which she took to mean God was saying “you have time now” to follow this call. Bonnie was the last person to go through the diaconate discernment process before ECCT closed the process to restructure the process. So, Bonnie worked closely with the Diocese of Massachusetts alongside ECCT.
Pat’s story isn’t that different. She begun as a Lay Eucharistic Minister and really enjoyed the companionship she offered to those she visited. Then, her work also had a downsizing, and she had the time to dedicate to following this new call to explore ordination. She took a job in Pennsylvania and was communing back and forth, which was tough so she came up with a mantra — "God if you lead me to it you’ll see me through it.”
Alli asks everyone what the diaconate means to them. For Felix, the call to ministry to the sick, the needy, the friendless was very much spiritually fulfilling for him. Throughout his academic study for ordination and his work at the hospital as a chaplain, Felix realized that this work was what he was called to do. "The diaconate is so important … to go out and just be with the people,” Felix said. Presence is important, and it is the role of a deacon to be present — a theme which all three deacons emphasized.
Clinical Pastoral Education (CPE), working as a chaplain in a hospital for a time, also was a powerful experience for Pat. "Servanthood, serving where one is led — usually led by God,” Pat said is the most important part of her role as a deacon. Sitting with the dying, holding the hands of families, walking by and talking to the homeless, these are all blessings Pat expressed within her role as a deacon.
Bonnie said that during the course of the last seven years to become comfortable with and being with people. At Christ Church Cathedral, where she serves, conversations around “being with / being for” and “working with / working for” have been explored. Bonnie said that she feels we are all called to work with and for people, but deacons take it one step further, using their voices in their roles telling people to go be with and be with those in this world who are hurting.
The next question Alli asked was about each persons individual ministry. Felix talks about his work with the Latino community and English as a second language (ESL). Pat shares her story about how she became involved in working with the retired deacon community — something very personal to her. Bonnie tells us about the Boot Party, an event out of Christ Church Cathedral and the ministry Church Street Eats, along with other nearby organizations.
We close the episode with the deacons sending us out to love and serve the Lord.
Alli starts the conversation asking everyone to share their call to ordination and in particular to the diaconate. Felix shares his story, which took several years and many different people asking him if he ever considered ordination and becoming a deacon until he finally chose to explore that option. Then once he decided to enter into the discernment process, he realized that in fact ordination and the process leading up to ordination is not done alone — but with a community to support you.
Ten to fifteen year ago Bonnie felt her call to ordained ministry, but kept putting off that nudge from God. At that time she was working for the hospital and her job was eliminated, which she took to mean God was saying “you have time now” to follow this call. Bonnie was the last person to go through the diaconate discernment process before ECCT closed the process to restructure the process. So, Bonnie worked closely with the Diocese of Massachusetts alongside ECCT.
Pat’s story isn’t that different. She begun as a Lay Eucharistic Minister and really enjoyed the companionship she offered to those she visited. Then, her work also had a downsizing, and she had the time to dedicate to following this new call to explore ordination. She took a job in Pennsylvania and was communing back and forth, which was tough so she came up with a mantra — "God if you lead me to it you’ll see me through it.”
Alli asks everyone what the diaconate means to them. For Felix, the call to ministry to the sick, the needy, the friendless was very much spiritually fulfilling for him. Throughout his academic study for ordination and his work at the hospital as a chaplain, Felix realized that this work was what he was called to do. "The diaconate is so important … to go out and just be with the people,” Felix said. Presence is important, and it is the role of a deacon to be present — a theme which all three deacons emphasized.
Clinical Pastoral Education (CPE), working as a chaplain in a hospital for a time, also was a powerful experience for Pat. "Servanthood, serving where one is led — usually led by God,” Pat said is the most important part of her role as a deacon. Sitting with the dying, holding the hands of families, walking by and talking to the homeless, these are all blessings Pat expressed within her role as a deacon.
Bonnie said that during the course of the last seven years to become comfortable with and being with people. At Christ Church Cathedral, where she serves, conversations around “being with / being for” and “working with / working for” have been explored. Bonnie said that she feels we are all called to work with and for people, but deacons take it one step further, using their voices in their roles telling people to go be with and be with those in this world who are hurting.
The next question Alli asked was about each persons individual ministry. Felix talks about his work with the Latino community and English as a second language (ESL). Pat shares her story about how she became involved in working with the retired deacon community — something very personal to her. Bonnie tells us about the Boot Party, an event out of Christ Church Cathedral and the ministry Church Street Eats, along with other nearby organizations.
We close the episode with the deacons sending us out to love and serve the Lord.
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In Christ and Coffee,
Karin & Alli
In Christ and Coffee,
Karin & Alli