April 13thIntroduction. Check.
With just over a month under my belt as the new Alberta correspondent for the Canadian Mennonite, I would like to introduce myself. Many won't recognize my married name, but I promise you, I am the epitome of a Mennonite. Deep roots dated back to the Chortitza colony in Russia? Check. Dedicated and baptized in a Mennonite Church (with pastor father)? Check. Belly full of zwieback, vereniki and schmaunt fat after every potluck? Check. Attend Mennonite camp and become a counselor? Check. Attend a Mennonite university? Check. Rebuild houses after hurricane Katrina with Mennonite Disaster Service? Check. Visit the MCC offices at the United Nations in New York? Check. Shop at the MCC thrift shop for all my needs? Check. Go on a MCC learning tour to Colombia? Check. Wear my peace pin on Remembrance Day?Check. Buy pie at every MCC relief sale ever? Check.
After a degree in International Development from CMU, I was able to travel abroad and didn't stop for a while. Winnipeg, Saskatoon, Halifax, Uganda and then finally Calgary. In my wandering I met my husband and we have three children Eli (10), Uriah (7) and Keziah (4). Together, we all enjoy outside adventures, learning languages and playing chess (which I always lose at). We have family in Uganda whom we love to visit and have plans to build a house on the hills overlooking the savanna. Along with all of our cows of course!
I have enjoyed 10 years of work/volunteering in the non-profit sector as well as 12 years as a freelance journalist and photographer for several newspapers. I also own a photography business, shooting weddings and families. I am currently working towards my CFRE (Certified Fund Raising Executive) as I attend BCITs fund development program.
I am an avid reader, and while I enjoy a feel good book, my desire for knowledge on important issues takes center stage. Currently on my nightstand are books on white privilege and rethinking development.
I look forward to writing your stories. They may be awkward, honest or something you have never told. But, we all need to hear them. It is what makes us stronger as a community. Don't hesitate to reach out!
Contact Jessica at ab@canadianmennonite.org