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Along with her active involvement in her church and the province, she would like to pursue lay eucharistic ministry. "What a joy to see and hear the joyful expressions of those we visit in nursing homes and hospitals when we share with them the Gospel and the sacraments of the Eucharist and sing hymns of praise. How rewarding."
Gwen retired August 1994 having worked as a cost accounting manager for a contractor/construction firm for 23 years . She has one daughter, two grandchildren, and one great grandchild.
Gwen writes, "My vision is to see Province II become a major force in the national church by proposing resolutions for justice and peace and ministry development through examples of things accomplished on the provincial level, by providing a closer link and sharing of ideas among the dioceses of Province II, and by getting information about the province, what it is and what it does, to the parishioners in the pews, many of whom have no knowledge about the provinces."
WALTER D. DENNIS, vice president, is suffragan bishop of New York. He has been at the forefront of the social justice movement. Before such issues as abortion, racism, and gay rights hit the political mainstream, the work Walter did in these areas influenced public policy and opinion.
In 1969 Walter proved influential in altering New York State's abortion laws to legalize abortionsÑthis nearly five years before Roe v. Wade. A champion of civil rights issues, in 1967 he organized a study conference at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine on gay and lesbian rights. In the 70s he was a staunch advocate for divorce law reform and for women's ordination. Today, he is an active opponent of the death penalty.
A major writer and contributor to both theological and legal journals, Walter has stimulated the religious community with his ideas since the 1950s. He taught American Constitutional History at Hampton University and was an adjunct professor at New York's General Theological Seminary.
He has served on the Commission of Black Ministries, the Standing Commission on Constitution and Canons for the Episcopal Church, the board of Planned Parenthood, and is presently on the Standing Commission on Structure for the Church.
A priest since 1958 and a bishop since 1979, Walter Dennis was born in Washington, D.C. and raised in Virginia.
MARY M. FLAD, lay representative to Provincial Council, lives in Poughkeepsie, New York and is a warden at Christ Church. She works as a consultant to several non-profit agencies, assisting them with organi zational development, project management, and grant writing.
She has designed and woven tapestries for a number of homes and public buildings. Mary is also engaged in ongoing research and writing on the subject of women's migration and travel. She is married and has four children, all in their twenties.
Mary writes, "In the early 1960s, I spent two years in the Peace Corps in northeast Thailand. During that period, I became acutely aware that God's presence is not bounded by familiar institutional structures. I would hope that part of the task of Province II will be to witness the fingerprint of the divine presence in a time of great upheaval and social transformation."
JOHN WOOD GOLDSACK, secretary, will keep us informed through the yearly synod journal and other mailings of the issues and details pertinent to the life and mission of the province.
A native of the Diocese of New Jersey, John was baptized and raised a parishioner at St. John's Church , Somerville. He received his under graduate education at Hartwick College, Oneonta, New York. While at Hartwick he became very active in the life of St. James Episcopal Church, Oneonta. After graduating from Hartwick, he attended Rutgers Law School, Camden, New Jersey, during which time he was active at Grace Church, Haddonfield.
After graduating from law school, he returned to Plainfield with his wife where they have raised their children, Kevin and Dorothy-Jane (third generation at Hartwick.) They are long-time parishioners of Holy Cross, North Plainfield where John has served as a member of the vestry and warden, and continues to serve as chorister, lector, and intercessor.
On the diocesan level, John serves as vice chancellor, as chair of Rules and Order and Dispatch of Business, and is on the Standing Committee on Constitu tion and Canons, a deputy to Province II, and a four-time deputy to General Convention.
He enjoys gardening, reading, and general puttering around their Raccoon Island summer home at Lake Hopatcong, New Jersey.
JOSEPH D. JEROME, clergy representative to Provincial Council, lives in Islip Terrace, New York, and works as interim rector of St. Gabriel's Episcopal Church, Hollis, New York. He was born in Haiti and speaks Haitian Creole, French, and understands Spanish. He is a third generation Episcopalian.
Joseph attended Long Island University, CW Post, and earned a B.S. in management. He graduated from Seabury-Western Theological Seminary, Evanston, Illinois, in May 1991. He was ordained deacon in 1991 and priest in 1992 by the bishop of the Diocese of Long Island, Orris G. Walker Jr. Joseph describes his ministry in the church as joyful, experiential, and challenging.
He has been and is involved in areas of pastoral care, youth ministry, and conflict management. In the past he has worked for Suffolk Child Devel opment Center, Long Island Affirmative Action, Episcopal Migrant Ministry, and Episcopal Refugee Resettlement. Presently, he serves on the board of managers of Camp DeWolfe , Diocesan Council, Diocesan AIDS Commission, Diocesan Youth Council, and People with AIDS Coalition of Long Island.
Joseph enjoys reading books on theology; he likes music, jazz, classical, rhythm and blues, and loves to sing. His favorite sports are basketball, tennis, joking, racquetball, and soccer. Joseph is an extrovert who loves people and has the precious gifts of smiles and laughter.
STEPHEN T. LANE, president, brings a great deal of knowledge and experience to this position. He has been a deputy for eight years; for five of these years he was also secretary of the province.
He is from Batavia, New York, and received an M.A. in English literature from the University of Rochester, New York. Steve graduated from Col gate-Rochester Divinity School/Bexley Hall/Crozer Theological Seminary in Rochester where he received the Faculty Scholar award for outstanding scholarship. He is rector of Zion Episcopal Church in Palmyra, New York.
Some of his service in the Diocese of Rochester includes chair of Com mission on Ministry and chair of the Standing Committee. He is currently chair of the Committee on Racism and a deputy to General Convention
He is married and has three children. His hobbies are reading, computer technology, camping, hiking, sailing, swimming, and gardening.
ALFRED D. PRICE, lay representative to the Executive Council, will officially begin his work on the council when Peter Ng's term of office ends after the 1997 General Convention.
As a member of Church of the Ascension, Buffalo, New York, his service includes vestry member and warden, chair of the Finance Committee, licensed lay reader, and chalice bearer. This fall he expects to begin a new ministry by assisting the chaplain at services at the Episcopal Church Home.
With a degree of Master of Architecture and Urban Planning from Princeton, Al serves as chair of the Diocesan Architectural Commission and has been a volunteer professional consultant to nearly one-third of the congregations in the Diocese of Western New York. He has been a member of the Standing Committee, and is a three-time lay deputy to General Convention. He is a member of the Episcopal Urban Caucus.
At present Al is an Associate Professor in the School of Architecture and Planning at State University of New York, Buffalo. His primary research and practice interests are in housing for low-income populations and development finance. He is also an active civic volunteer. In his spare time, he plays golf. He is married and has four children.
As the Province II lay representative on Executive Council, Al is looking forward to the challenge. "As I heed the mood of the last two General Con ventions, the province is becoming the level of the church where much of our future mission and ministry will be empowered. We should be open to new ways of strengthening our denomination's commitment to the work of the Gospel."
MICHAEL F. REHILL, appointed by the province president and confirmed by synod for a second term as chancellor, is the chancellor of the Diocese of Newark, a practicing attorney in Woodcliff Lake, New Jersey, and a municipal court judge.
A 1968 graduate of Wesleyn University in Middletown, Connecticut, he received his J. D. magna cum laude from New York Law School in 1972. He is member of the Bar of the State of New York, as well as the United States Supreme Court.
A "cradle Episcopalian" who still attends the church where he was baptized as an infant, he has served in almost every capacity within his parish, including 17 years as a member of the vestry or a warden, and within the Diocese of Newark including Diocesan Council and Standing Committee. He has been a deputy to General Convention since 1985 and is a trustee of the diocese.
He is joyfully married to the former Kyong Cha Kim. He has four children and one grandchild. He and his wife are building a home in Ireland, in his ancestral village of Belturbet, County Cavan. They travel to Ireland as often as possible.
ORRIS G. WALKER, JR., episcopal representative to Provincial Council, has been diocesan Bishop of Long Island, a multicultural, multiracial community, since 1991. Among his many diocesan functions, he is chairman of the board of managers of the Episcopal Health Services, the sixth largest health care system in the state of New York. In addition he is chairman of the board of the Interfaith Medical Center in Brooklyn and president of Episcopal Charities.
He also serves as a trustee of the Church Pension Fund, and is a member of the Standing Liturgical Commission and the Standing Commission on Ecumenical Relations. In addition he chairs the task force for the Recruitment, Training and Deployment of Black Clergy for the national church's Commission on Black Ministries. Other past and present areas of service and ministry are too numerous to mention here.
A native of Baltimore, Maryland, Orris received his undergraduate degree in political science and philosophy from the University of Maryland. He received degrees from General Theological Seminary, New York, the University of Windsor, and Drew University, where he received his doctorate. In 1993 he received an M.B.A. in church administration from the Graduate Theological Foundation. Before coming to Long Island he served churches in Maryland, Missouri, and Michigan.
Orris has traveled extensively in Africa, the Middle East, and the Caribbean. He is married and has two children. He enjoys reading, jazz, gardening, and travel.
Virginia has a bachelor of music degree from Westminster Choir College, Princeton, New Jersey. She attended Princeton Theological Seminary; General Theological Seminary, New York; New York Theological Seminary; and Theological School of Drew University where she received her doctorate. She received a diploma in pastoral care and counseling from Trinity Counseling Service, Princeton.
Some of her previous service includes deputy to General Convention, Diocesan Council, commissions on ministry, stewardship, evangelism, missions, and higher education.
Virginia is married, has two children, and one granddaughter. She enjoys gardening, hiking, birding, knitting, and high, afternoon tea!
"My vision for Province II is to strengthen our partnership with the national church in areas of communication, youth, justice and peace; to revisit our provincial structure and make recommendations to the Structure Commission; to work closely with the evangelism officer; and to be a model province in forming a new relationship with our Lutheran brothers and sisters through the Concordat."
PETER NG, lay representative to the Executive Council until after the 1997 General Convention, is originally from Hong Kong but has lived in the New York City area for the past 27 years. He graduated from New York University with a B.A. in business administration.
Peter serves as the program director of the Jubilee Center of the Church of Our Savior, New York. The programs under Jubilee ministries include Jubilee youth choral, Mission Graphics, and computer service ministry. Mission Graphics publishes and mails The Grapevine .
On the diocesan level Peter is on Diocesan Council and is the diocesan representative to the Global Episcopal Mission Network. His involvement on the national church level includes president of the Episcopal Asiameria Council, member of the Standing Commission on the Church in Metropolitan Areas, and a member of the Audit Committee.
He is married, has two children, and is a restaurateur. Peter enjoys jogging and reading and he loves to cook.
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