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Donna is currently enrolled in a PhD program at Drew University in New Jersey in Christian Social Ethics. She has a particular interest in exploring how power is manifested in religion and how those manifestations have privileged certain groups of Christians over others. Prior to moving to New Jersey, Donna was a member of Holy Cross Evangelical Lutheran Church in Livonia, Michigan for over 40 years and was the Southeast Michigan Synod’s Director of Justice and Advocacy concerns between 2009 and 2011 and was active on the Synod’s anti-racism task force during that same period. She attended the University of Michigan, Wayne State University Law School and the Ecumenical Theological Seminary. |
Rev. Dr. Russell Meyer |
From pretty early on, I became aware of bias, social prejudice, and the privileges some get that others never receive. Growing up in northern Nebraska made it hard to see the racist roots of prejudice and privilege, but I certainly remember confronting my Dad over his “Archie Bunker” comments. The concept of white privilege really did not begin to sink until I committed to anti-racist work. Privilege is like water to fish, those who swim in it don’t really recognize it as privilege. You have to mentally and emotionally “get out of the water” in order to see privilege itself. |
Ms. Cathy Crimi |
I first truly became aware of my white privilege when I was attended the anti-racism facilitator training. Growing up as a child of an immigrant, and struggling through young adult years (and still) for women’s rights, it was easy to believe many of the distortions our society would have us believe. |
Ms. Beverly Dirkin |
At the first 2.5 day Training by Crossroads that I attended, I learned about white privilege and became aware of how much I benefited as a white person in this country from it. I joined the Anti-racism Team for my Synod in 2000 and took the 2.5 day, 4 day and Team Training as a part of the Anti-racism Team. |
Rev. Mark Cerniglia |
I took anti-prejudice training with an ecumenical group in Montgomery, AL in 1999, before I became pastor of Lutheran Church of Our Saviour in Greenville SC. |
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I have been aware of white privilege since graduate school while working in LA Catholic Worker Health Clinic and seeing the disproportionate number of homeless people of color also being inhumanely treated on the streets. In 2013, I witnessed a young Hispanic woman, being verbally and physically harassed for 10 minutes after she walked across a street in North Long Beach. When I approached to ask law enforcement what she had done to be body searched, there were tears in her eyes. After being told she had jaywalked, I encouraged her, she was allowed to leave the corner and walk away. After attending a Anti-Racism Training at Hope Lutheran in the spring 2015, I went on to co-facilitate two anti-racism workshops in rural Northern California and join an Operation Ceasefire walk in Richmond, California. The harassment, incarceration and killing of people of color is a travesty. I look forward to supporting development of Operation Ceasefire in our community and doing advocacy work with EDLARJ informing our efforts locally and in the Sierra Pacific Synod of the ELCA. Having been a Lutheran since 1976, I celebrate Bishop Eaton’s initiatives for holding nationwide anti-racism conversations and encouraging congregations to engage in this critically important work at this time in our nation. |
Rev. Sandy Jones |
I grew up in Southern California and learned early that even though I was in the minority in my school, as far as numbers, I definitely had privilege that many of my classmates lacked. |
Amy Wiegert |
Pastor Amy Wiegert did most of her growing up in Loveland, Colorado. Amy did class work at Iliff School of Theology in Denver and received a Master of Divinity degree from Lutheran School of Theology in Chicago in 2002. She has served congregations in Iowa and Illinois. She has been published in several magazines including The Christian Century and is currently focused on growing kids, learning and teaching anti-racism, and writing a book. |
Andrew Tengwall |
Rev. Andrew Tengwall has served as pastor of Lutheran Church of the Savior in Kalamazoo, Michigan since 2009. His wife, Rev. Sarah Friesen-Carper, serves as Assistant to the Bishop for Congregational and Leadership Excellence in the North/West Lower Michigan Synod ELCA. Their children are Micah, in kindergarten, and Stellan, who just celebrated his first birthday. Andrew served as Vice President of EDLARJ (then EALA) from 2010 to 2015. He recently served as a transitional leader of the NWLM Synod Anti-Racism Team, and currently serves on the planning group for Bridge Builders, the award-winning youth anti-racism leadership program of Living Water Ministries, an ELCA / TEC outdoor ministry in Michigan. Andrew received his M.Div from Yale Divinity School through the Institute of Sacred Music, his B.A. from Gustavus Adolphus College, and fulfilled his Lutheran Year requirement at LSTC. His hobbies include announcing Roller Derby since 2008 around the U.S. and for the 2016 Swedish National Championships, making Spotify playlists of the Psalms for each lectionary Sunday, and scheming to bring forth the Reign of God in unexpected ways. |
C.J. Clark |
C.J. Clark is husband to Amanda and father to Logan. He also serves as Executive Director of Living Water Ministries in New Era, MI, an ELCA and Episcopal organization that provides youth ministry and summer camp experiences primarily in Michigan for all of God’s children with a focus on faith formation, service, leadership and community. He is a graduate of Valparaiso University in Valparaiso, IN where he received a BA in Art with a minor in Physics and enjoys both the creative and analytical. Currently, C.J. also serves as a board member for Rescue, Release, Restore (Chicago, IL), the multi-synodical candidacy committee in the lower peninsula of Michigan (ELCA), and as president of church council at Trinity Lutheran Church in New Era, MI. |
(Danielle) Elle Dowd |
Elle Dowd is a seminarian at the Lutheran School of Theology in Chicago (LSTC) and a candidate for Word and Sacrament endorsed through the Pacifica Synod. She is a bisexual activist, an executive team leader of Thesis 96 – the LGBTQIA+ student group at LSTC, and a member of Proclaim – a professional group for rostered leaders and seminarians in the ELCA. Elle is a founding member of the movement to #decolonizeLutheranism where she currently serves as the Social Media Coordinator and also organizes with Seminarians for Justice and the progressive political collective, The People’s Lobby. Much of Elle’s public ministry revolves around writing about her interests in body theology, sex positivity and body acceptance, feminist and queer theology, liberation and postcolonial theology. Prior to attending seminary Elle worked at a combined Lutheran-Episcopal church family in California (2010-2013) where she served as a Christian Educator at their alternative junior high, wrote curriculum for the youth and children’s ministries, helped out in the church office, and planted a church service in the bar of a local Mexican restaurant. Elle split her time between California and Sierra Leone, West Africa, where she served on the leadership team of Jonathan’s Childcare Center, the orphanage where she met her two adopted children (Alice and Jessica, both age 11). From 2013-2016 Elle served as the Youth Missioner in the bishop’s office for the Episcopal Diocese of Missouri where she was active in racial justice work and served as a street protest chaplain and activist during the Ferguson Uprising in St. Louis. When she is not working in churches, participating in activism and organizing, or writing, Elle enjoys touring brunch spots with her friends in search of the best Bloody Mary. |
Jason Chesnut |
The Rev. Jason Chesnut, ordained in the ELCA, created and developed The Slate Project, an innovative Christian worshiping community that gathers both online and face-to-face in Baltimore, Maryland. He is a videographer, mission developer, and certified biblical storyteller who also founded ANKOSfilms, a company dedicated to (a) (n)ew (k)ind (o)f (s)torytelling. A native of San Marcos, Texas, Jason graduated from Texas Lutheran University and the Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago. He loves riding motorcycles and watching movies when he…umm…has time? |
Kathy Long |
I am a lay person and cradle Lutheran. I learned about white privilege and racism 25 years ago which opened my eyes to the America I live in. I struggle to force myself to see the struggles my brothers and sisters of color face every single day. I was the founding president of the EDLARJ in 2008 but left after my first four year term due to a change in employment. |
Kelly France |
I am seeking a position on the EDLARJ board because I am committed to the cause of anti-racism work and feel that it should inform how we as the church understand our participation in the mission of God. It is my belief that the work white people need to undertake in our denomination needs to emphasize relationship building though action and using the privilege we have to give platform to our sisters and brothers of color. I particularly have a passion to do this work in small town and rural areas. |
Shari Seifert |
I am a lay person and a life-long Lutheran currently living in Minneapolis (Originally from Texas). I work as a Realtor where I am thrilled to have an extremely diverse clientele – the tag line on my business card is “Change Agent” because being a Realtor and a social justice activist are both integral to who I am. I wrestle with navigating capitalism and being in the business of selling stolen Indian land and have begun making a small per-transaction donation to a local Indigenous led organization as a small start on reparations. Locally, I am part of Multi-faith Anti-Racism Change and Healing (MARCH) where I have come to know amazing Jewish, Unitarian, and UCC leaders as well as leaders of the local Black Lives Matter Minneapolis. I am fortunate to be in accountable relationships with POCI (people of color and indigenous) folks that have transformed me. I am also active in the Race Equity Committee of my local congregation Calvary Lutheran Church and am a devoted supporter and participant in #declonizeLutheranism. I have participated in the congregational racial justice liaison meetings within my synod. |
EDLARJ Board Members
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