Clergy are welcomed to the Mercer School of Theology for a day of fellowship and learning.
Please register for the event using the form below.
Due to unforeseen circumstances, Thom Chu, Esq, will be unable to join us.
Guest Speaker
Ben Garren (he/him/his) started his life in North Carolina and grew up believing he would follow his father and grandfather in the field of Agricultural Science... even going so far as to get a BS in Chemistry. When he was one lab class away from finishing his degree, he found himself energized by a different set of questions, ones that focused not on the unknown but the unknowable. Thus, he started a series of adventures, over several continents and countries, that brought him to ordained ministry in the Episcopal Church.
Before engaging ministry full time, Ben worked in special education, homeless services, and community organizing. He learned grassroots politics working on the first Marriage Equality campaign in Maine. Alongside his Masters in Divinity from Bexley-Seabury he also has a Masters in Social Justice and Community Organizing from Prescott College. Ben lives in Tucson, AZ and serves as the Episcopal Chaplain to the University of Arizona and the Program Director for Beloved in the Desert, Episcopal Service Corps.
Agenda
(8:45 am) - Fellowship/Coffee and Tea offered in the refectory
9:45 am - Opening prayer in the Mercer Library
9:50 am - Welcome and opening remarks with Bishop Provenzano
10:00 am - The Rev. Ben Garren: Youth Work in the College Context
11:30 am - Noonday prayer in the Mercer Library
12:00 pm - Lunch
1:00 pm - The Rev. Ben Garren: Youth Work in the College Context (cont.)
2:00 pm - Break
2:15 pm - The Rev. Ben Garren: Youth Work in the College Context (cont.)
3:15 pm - Closing remarks