KEYNOTE SPEAKER on March 4, 2020
The Right Reverend Phoebe A. Roaf
The Right Rev. Phoebe, a lifelong Episcopalian, grew up in Pine Bluff, Arkansas, the oldest of four children. She earned a Bachelor's degree in U.S. History from Harvard College and a Master of Public Affairs from the Woodrow Wilson School at Princeton, then went off to earn a law degree from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock and clerked for two years for the U.S Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit in New Orleans. She then worked in commercial real estate as an associate at a New Orleans law firm before beginning the ordination process in the Diocese of Louisiana.
Roaf attended Virginia Theological Seminary and graduated with a Masters in Divinity in 2008; she currently serves the seminary as Vice-Chair of the Board of Trustees.
Prior to becoming Bishop of the Diocese of West Tennessee, Roaf served as Rector of St. Phillip's Richmond, the oldest African-American church in the Episcopal Diocese of Virginia. She was chosen as the Fourth Bishop of West Tennessee in November 2018, and ordained and consecrated as Bishop on May 4, 2019. She is both the first woman and the first African-American to lead the Diocese.
KEYNOTE SPEAKER on March 11, 2020
Reverend Dr. Gary Mason
Rev. Dr. Gary Mason is a Methodist minister and directs a conflict transformation organization based in Belfast, Northern Ireland, called "Rethinking Conflict." Prior to this he spent 27 years in parish ministry in Belfast and has played an integral role in the Northern Irish peace process. He played a key role in establishing the $30 million Skainos Project, a world class urban center developed in a post-conflict society as a model of coexistence and shared space. Skainos is acknowledged as the largest faith-based redevelopment project in Western Europe. In 2007, his contributions to the peace process were formally recognized by the Queen. Mason has lectured in political and academic forums throughout the world on lessons from the Irish peace process. He has been interviewed on CNN, BBC, ITV and various radio programs. He holds a PhD in Psychology from the University of Ulster and completed his theological studies at Queens University. Mason is a Senior Research Fellow at the Kennedy Institute for Conflict Intervention at Maynooth University in Ireland, an adjunct professor at the Candler School of Theology at Emory University, and a faculty advisor and partner to the Negotiation Strategies Institute at Harvard University.
Rev. Dr. Gary Mason is a Methodist minister and directs a conflict transformation organization based in Belfast, Northern Ireland, called "Rethinking Conflict." Prior to this he spent 27 years in parish ministry in Belfast and has played an integral role in the Northern Irish peace process. He played a key role in establishing the $30 million Skainos Project, a world class urban center developed in a post-conflict society as a model of coexistence and shared space. Skainos is acknowledged as the largest faith-based redevelopment project in Western Europe. In 2007, his contributions to the peace process were formally recognized by the Queen. Mason has lectured in political and academic forums throughout the world on lessons from the Irish peace process. He has been interviewed on CNN, BBC, ITV and various radio programs. He holds a PhD in Psychology from the University of Ulster and completed his theological studies at Queens University. Mason is a Senior Research Fellow at the Kennedy Institute for Conflict Intervention at Maynooth University in Ireland, an adjunct professor at the Candler School of Theology at Emory University, and a faculty advisor and partner to the Negotiation Strategies Institute at Harvard University.
KEYNOTE SPEAKER on March 18, 2020
Fran McKendree
Fran McKendree began his career playing at coffee houses. In 1968, he formed "McKendree Spring," a rock ensemble that legendary manager Bill Graham dubbed "one of the best unknown bands in the world." McKendree Spring toured the U.S., the U.K., and Canada, doing concerts with Billy Joel, Elton John, Tina Turner, and even Frank Zappa.
Walking around his neighborhood one day looking for inspiration, Fran discovered a small Episcopal church. The next Sunday he and his wife, Diana, visited and found a faithful and artistic gathering of seekers. It opened a new spiritual path which led him to heed the call to take some time for reflection. He and Diana moved to Cape Cod, where, setting aside his music, he began to work with youth, build houses, and make furniture. Emerging from this soul-searching period he began to work under the aegis of the Episcopal church. He has continued to explore and broaden his calling: with concerts, as worship leader, designer and coordinator of conferences, keynote presenter, and mentor.
In 2012 he and friend Ann Holtz formed Awakening Soul, an annual conference embodying "Sustenance, Sanctuary and Inspiration." Fran was awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters from the Virginia Theological Seminary in 2016.
Fran McKendree began his career playing at coffee houses. In 1968, he formed "McKendree Spring," a rock ensemble that legendary manager Bill Graham dubbed "one of the best unknown bands in the world." McKendree Spring toured the U.S., the U.K., and Canada, doing concerts with Billy Joel, Elton John, Tina Turner, and even Frank Zappa.
Walking around his neighborhood one day looking for inspiration, Fran discovered a small Episcopal church. The next Sunday he and his wife, Diana, visited and found a faithful and artistic gathering of seekers. It opened a new spiritual path which led him to heed the call to take some time for reflection. He and Diana moved to Cape Cod, where, setting aside his music, he began to work with youth, build houses, and make furniture. Emerging from this soul-searching period he began to work under the aegis of the Episcopal church. He has continued to explore and broaden his calling: with concerts, as worship leader, designer and coordinator of conferences, keynote presenter, and mentor.
In 2012 he and friend Ann Holtz formed Awakening Soul, an annual conference embodying "Sustenance, Sanctuary and Inspiration." Fran was awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters from the Virginia Theological Seminary in 2016.
KEYNOTE SPEAKER on March 25, 2020
The Reverend Dr. Lauren Winner
The Rev. Dr. Lauren Winner writes and lectures widely on Christian practice, the history of Christianity in America, and Jewish-Christian relations. Former book editor for Beliefnet, she has appeared on PBS's Religion & Ethics Newsweekly and has served as a commentator on NPR's All Things Considered. She has written for The New York Times Book Review, The Washington Post Book World, Publishers Weekly, and Christianity Today. Her books include Girl Meets God; Mudhouse Sabbath; A Cheerful and Comfortable Faith; Still: Notes on a Mid-Faith Crisis; and Wearing God, a book on overlooked biblical tropes for God.
Winner earned the B.A. from Columbia University, M. Phil. from Clare College, Cambridge, M. Div. from Duke Divinity School, and Ph. D. from Columbia University. Her research has been supported by numerous institutions, including Monticello, the Museum of Early Southern Decorative Arts, the Center for the Study of Religion at Princeton University, and the Institute of Sacred Music at Yale University. She was ordained a priest in the Episcopal Dioceses of Virginia in December 2011, and serves as vicar of St. Paul's Episcopal Church in Louisburg, NC.
The Rev. Dr. Lauren Winner writes and lectures widely on Christian practice, the history of Christianity in America, and Jewish-Christian relations. Former book editor for Beliefnet, she has appeared on PBS's Religion & Ethics Newsweekly and has served as a commentator on NPR's All Things Considered. She has written for The New York Times Book Review, The Washington Post Book World, Publishers Weekly, and Christianity Today. Her books include Girl Meets God; Mudhouse Sabbath; A Cheerful and Comfortable Faith; Still: Notes on a Mid-Faith Crisis; and Wearing God, a book on overlooked biblical tropes for God.
Winner earned the B.A. from Columbia University, M. Phil. from Clare College, Cambridge, M. Div. from Duke Divinity School, and Ph. D. from Columbia University. Her research has been supported by numerous institutions, including Monticello, the Museum of Early Southern Decorative Arts, the Center for the Study of Religion at Princeton University, and the Institute of Sacred Music at Yale University. She was ordained a priest in the Episcopal Dioceses of Virginia in December 2011, and serves as vicar of St. Paul's Episcopal Church in Louisburg, NC.
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KEYNOTE SPEAKER on April 1, 2020The Right Reverend Brian Cole
The Rt. Rev. Brian Lee Cole was ordained and consecrated fifth bishop of the Diocese of East Tennessee on December 2, 2017. Bishop Cole has under his pastoral and administrative care 51 parishes and worshiping communities in East Tennessee and Northern Georgia. In 1992, he earned a Master of Divinity at the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, with additional studies in Anglican Church History at The University of the South School of Theology, Sewanee, in 2001. Ordained a priest in 2002, Cole served as vicar at Church of the Advocate, a worshiping community for homeless in downtown Asheville, North Carolina. From 2005 to 2012, Cole was sub-dean at The Cathedral of All Souls in Asheville. He served as rector at The Church of the Good Shepherd in Lexington, Kentucky, from 2012 until his election as bishop, in addition to serving the Church as a deputy to General Convention and a member of the Executive Council. He is an associate of the Order of the Holy Cross. |
