I am very pleased and honored to be nominated again for the position of Junior Warden, "People's Warden." I have been a member of St. Philip's since May of 2008, finding our church to be a welcome and loving home for me. I was raised in Texas and attended church for much of my youth and early adult life in the Methodist tradition. Only in my middle adult life did I connect with God and reconcile my own religious spirituality. I grew up in the Dallas area, attended the University of Texas at Austin, earning a Bachelor's degree in Advertising. I have working in the advertising industry and media sales all of my adult life, employed in sales management roles at multiple newspapers before moving to Tucson in early 2008. I currently am publisher at Tucson Lifestyle magazine and also sell residential real estate for Long Realty. I have volunteered my time at St. Philip's, initially as an usher and then a member of the Vestry, and served as Junior Warden last year. I have served on various committees, including chair of the search committee to call the Rev. Vicki Hesse. I look forward to continuing to contribute to our church family and the growth of St. Philip's.
A lifelong Episcopalian born to a military family, I am a 10-year military veteran myself. I received my BS in Accounting from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, and MBA in Management from Golden Gate University. I had a deeply satisfying career in healthcare finance and clinical practice management, moving my family to Tucson in 1993. When Kino Hospital was sold, I moved to Pima County Justice Court, then retired early to care for my terminally ill husband. I have two grown children, and two granddaughters. I have volunteered in the church finance office, on St. Matthews Guild, and am currently the Altar Guild Treasurer. While on Vestry, I look forward to contributing my management expertise and knowledge of financial systems for the benefit of the church. In return, I hope to gain a greater understanding of church governance and develop deeper relationships on my journey.
I was born and raised in Upland, CA. I attended UC Davis, where I earned my bachelor's degree in Biology and my elementary teaching credential. Shortly after graduation, my husband, Scott, and I moved to Philadelphia so that he could attend medical school. There I became a medical writer and worked for a major pharmaceutical company. We moved to Tucson in 2005 when Scott was placed at UMC for his residency in emergency medicine; he is now an attending physician in the ER at UMC. I worked in publishing for a local non-profit before becoming a full-time stay-at-home mom in 2006. We began attending St. Philip's in 2005 and I was confirmed in 2006. Both of our children (Kate, age 7 and Ethan, age 4) were baptized at St. Philip's. I have served as a leader of the 20s/30s/40s group, as a lay reader, and as a member of various committees. I was the co-chair of the planning committee for this year's Advent Festival of Lights service. Additionally, for the last 6 months I have served as a replacement Vestry member to fill a vacated spot. My brief experience on the Vestry has given me a kind of "preview" of how the Vestry operates. This has allowed me to commit to my own full Vestry term with knowledge of what being on the Vestry involves. I look forward to contributing my time and talent to the Vestry, especially in the areas of education and children's ministries.
I first came to St. Philip's during church-shopping season of 2006 with my husband, Larry Alexander, and our children, Thomas and Abby, then 7 and 5. Although Larry and I were raised in different faith traditions (he Lutheran, I Roman Catholic), we were received into the Episcopal Church at St. Andrew's Church in Yardley, PA, where we were active in its social justice ministries, music and children's programs. We sought a similar church in Tucson -- an inclusive, welcoming community committed to social justice, with a thriving children's program and an appreciation of good music (particularly important to us as professional musicians) -- and we found it at St. Philip's. Over the last seven years, we have all grown and flourished, musically and spiritually, at St. Philip's. Larry and I are both staff singers, and I have been active in Friends of Music, the Parish Retreat Committee, as children's choir supper coordinator, and as a J2A and Rite 13 parent. Thomas, now 15, is an RSCM officer and Canterbury Apprentice; Abby, almost 13, is an acolyte and St. Nicholas chorister; both are also members of Schola Cantorum and Chalice Players. St. Philip's is not just our spiritual home -- sometimes it feels like we really do live here! As one who is continually welcomed, encouraged, and empowered by the St. Philip's community, I am honored to be nominated to the Vestry, and will do my utmost to support St. Philip's mission to do God's work in the world.
Linda Dewey, Raymond Dewey, Debbie Johnson, Jim Prescott-Smith, and Jane Prescott-Smith have been nominated to serve as delegates to Diocesan Convention 2014 in October.