Retired Clergy Survey Responses

Enjoy these wonderful stories of faith lived out in service to God by retired clergy.

Survey questions asked:
  1. In what city and state were you born?
  2. At what age did you receive the call to become a minister?
  3. College/University degree and seminary?
  4. Years served in ministry?
  5. Parishes served?
  6. Highlights in ministry?
  7. Biggest change you experienced while serving as a minister?
  8. What attracted you to attend CUMC?
  9. If someone from Erin Fleet's Student Ministry came to you, explained that they were planning to enter the ministry, what advice would you provide?
  10. When CUMC had to be closed during the pandemic, what did you miss the most about not being able to attend services?  

Mike Druck

  1. Columbia. PA. When the doctor approached my dad to comment on my birth, my dad stood up - and then sat down - because the doctor was holding his hands wider apart than what a normal baby's size should be. My dad's thoughts. "Did she birth TWINS?" I was 9 pounds 2 ounces. Mom was only 5 feet 2 inches tall. Poor mom!
  2.  At what age did you receive the call to become a minister?    20
  3.  HACC - AA Degree; Penn State - BA Religious Studies; Seminary - United, Dayton, Ohio
  4.  43
  5.  7
  6.  Here begins my novel.... Never mind.
  7.  Got married. Had two kids. Lots of other good stuff too.
  8.  Close to where we've lived. OK, seriously - Barb and I have been greatly blessed by worship, Sunday School - and the staff and people of CUMC who minister, participate in missions, and love Jesus.
  9.  "Prepare to experience seasons of: despair and ecstatic joy; grueling work and refreshing rest; sleepless nights and God-given dreams; boredom and excitement; tumbles into sin and the outrageous heights of Jesus' forgiving grace; helpless agony over some folks descent into utter sin, and celebration over another's Holy-Spirit-infused ascent to glory. Be authentic - as totally honest - and yet gentle - with yourself and others. Never give up on searching for God's truth."
  10.  We were doing our NOMAD Mission when COVID broke out but were glad to be able to participate via the online worship offering. There was no option but to adjust. 

Dick Felty

  1. Mechanicsburg, PA
  2.  17
  3.  Lebanon Valley College Bachelor of Arts; United Theological Seminary Master of Divinity
  4.  37
  5.  Mechanicsburg Delbrook Community United Methodist (Now Hope), Red Lion Zion, Tyrone Christ, Williamsport St. John's, Dallastown Bethlehem, Mechanicsburg Mt. Olivet
  6.  Comforting people in times of trouble and celebrating with people in times of joy; helping people to discover the gifts God had given them and inviting them to use those gifts to build up the body of Christ; using the spiritual gift of administration in the local churches I served and using that gift while I served on the Conference Board of Ordained Ministry, Conference Board of Trustees, Conference Property and Casualty Insurance Committee, and United Methodist Stewardship Foundation, being a delegate to Northeastern Jurisdictional Conference and helping to elect Bishop Felton May and Bishop Neil Irons, serving as a Youth Evangelist for the former Evangelical United Brethren Church to help youth and adult advisors develop strategies to reach out to unchurched youth and invite them to be disciples of Jesus Christ.  In 1969 I preached the Baccalaureate sermon for Cumberland Valley High School 10 years after I graduated from that school.
  7.  Radically increased demand for people's time from jobs, entertainment. People having to decide how important being regular in worship and the ministries of the church were.
  8.  Vital congregation reaching out to the community with the Good News of Jesus Christ.
  9.  Be a good student to prepare for 7 years of school beyond high school. Talk with one of the pastors to share what you believe God is calling you to do and get their counsel. Talk with older active members to share what God is calling you to do and get their counsel. Be an active member of the church to grow in your spiritual formation. 
  10.  Corporate worship and fellowship with the community of believers. 

Russell Hart

  1. I was born in 1944 into a pioneer farm family living in Northeastern North Dakota, near Pembina, a Metis settlement established in 1797. My family first emigrated from Ontario in the 1880’s to homestead in Southern Dakota Territory. In 1899 they relocated to Pembina where they still maintain the farm. 
  2.   My grandfather, convinced that I was “no farmer,” encouraged me to enroll at the University of North Dakota, which I did in 1962.    Although I cannot claim to have had a conscious “call” to ministry while there, as graduation approached, I was encouraged by the Director of the Wesley Foundation to enroll at Wesley Seminary in Washington D.C., if only to “check it out.” In my second year, I was assigned a six-point parish at Three Springs, PA which provided a crash-course in the practice of ministry, and the income I needed to provide for my new wife, Dorene.  The years between 1967 and 1970 were, thus far, the happiest in my life.  Ministry seemed to “fit.”  Two appointments followed:  Fairview UMC in Altoona, PA from 1970 to 1977, where we became adoptive parents of a seven year-old orphaned girl.  There I discovered a passion for teaching which led me in 1976 to enroll at United Theological Seminary, Dayton, Ohio to pursue another theological degree.
  3.  In 1977, I was assigned to Rockville UMC in Susquehanna Twp., Harrisburg, where Dorene taught at a local elementary school and I struggled to adjust to a former EUB congregation, not entirely happy about the recent merger with the “Methodists.”  In 1984, after experiencing a spontaneous healing from a seemingly fatal disease through the agency of an icon, I received a call to become an iconographer.
  4. In 1987, I received my final appointment as a parish minister to Zion, UMC, Red Lion, PA. where I had the time to re-evaluate my vocation and write three books, each focusing on the agency of the icon and how the faith-traditions of the Eastern Church might inform Protestantism generally and United Methodism in particular.
  5. In 1994, Bishop Felton May charged me with founding a spiritual formation community that would become the Center For Spiritual Formation.  The following year, I was appointed as its director.  First United Methodist Church, Carlisle provided office space and a supportive fellowship.  In 2012 the Center’s office moved to the former Grace UMC, Carlisle and affiliated with the new Carlisle UMC.
  6. The Center now conducts a totally on-line Spiritual Direction program with an international reach, newly affiliated with the Bishop Bruce Ough Innovation Center at United Seminary, as we continue to offer weekend retreats at our Orchard Hill retreat Center near Millerstown, PA.  I retired in 2017 but am still active in the work of the Center, and continue to lead retreats, and teach spiritual direction courses.
  7.  I would say simply, “Resist it as long as you can, and after you have surrendered to it—and you will, if it be genuine—regard the ministry, not as a career choice, but as a call to vocation, and all will be well.”
  8.  I must say that we missed a community we had learned to love over twenty-eight years. Although we appreciated the online services, virtual reality is just that—virtual! We are pleased be back at worship in our brand-new facility.  God is good.

Rev. Dr. Paul L. Herring

  1. I was born in Shamokin, PA (1932) as was my wife, Eleanor (1930)
  2. I received my call to the ministry at the age of 21 while serving in the US Army in Germany, however my Mother prepared me for ministry when I was a 6-year old boy on the farm by helping me to plan and conduct Family Worship Services consisting of hymns, Scripture and a Sermon using a Bible Story Book.
  3. I accomplished the following degrees: Bachelor of Arts at Lycoming College (1969), Master of Divinity at Wesley Seminary (1971) Doctor of Ministry (1989) at Boston University School of Theology
  4. I served 40+ years in Ministry under a Bishop, followed by 20+ years of Ministry in Retirement.
  5. I served the following Parishes in Central PA : Morris, Mapleton Depot -Mill Creek, Stevens Memorial, Harrisburg, Dillsburg - Wellsville, First, Towanda, Aldersgate, York, Allison, Carlisle and Supt of Williamsport District.
  6. Serving on the Bishop’s Cabinet for 6 years in Williamsport was a highlight of my ministry, but the most important highlight was the 50+ years my wife, Eleanor, served with me. (She died Jan 1, 2022 and I miss her very much!)
  7. What attracted me to attend CUMC was the excellent facility for all kinds of ministry and the excellent way in which the three former congregations blended into one effective ministry!
  8. My advice to a potential Ministerial Student, would be: 1. a commitment to Jesus Christ as your Lord and Master. 2. plan to minister to persons of all ages and stages in life. 3.  be available to work 24/7 and if you have or will have a life's partner select one who will match your commitment.
  9. When CUMC was closed during the Pandemic, I missed mostly the fellowship of church members.

Howard A. Kerstetter

  1. I was born in State College, PA. in 1931 during the recession years.
  2.  I answered the call to ministry as a teenager at Central Oak Heights Summer Church Camp.
  3.  I attended Penn State University and graduated 1953, and was married in the same year to Evelyn, my loving wife of 50 years. I graduated from the newly named Wesley Theological Seminary in 1957.  I was ordained in The Central Pennsylvania Annual Conference of The Evangelical United Brethren Church in 1957, which subsequently became The United Methodist Church.
  4.  I served 6 parishes: Runville Charge( 3 years) Bellefonte, PA;  Emmanuel Church, (3 years) Dorsey, MD;  Trinity Church, (9 years) Baltimore City,  MD;  Grace Church, (17 years) in  Lemoyne, PA;  First Church, ( 9 Years) in  Carlisle, PA; and  Mt. Rock Church, ( 11years) in Newville, PA, for total of 52 years.
  5.  Biggest change:  The mergers that created The United Methodist Church, and later the birth of the computer and Internet.
  6.  My wife and I bought a house in Carlisle before retiring, and then  made Carlisle First Church my home church upon retiring. First church was one of three Churches to unite and thus become CUMC.   ( My wife died in 2003).
  7.  Today if I were recommending advice to one entering the ministry I would suggest they attend a Denominational Seminary and become familiar with the Backgound and History and Tradition of The United Methodist Church, starting with the founder, John Wesley.
  8.  During the Covid-19 pandemic, I missed so much attending in person the Worship and established Programs of the Church. 

Iva O’Brien

  1. I was born in a very historic place, Ticonderoga, New York.  
  2.  About 15.
  3.  Indiana Wesleyan University and Gettysburg Lutheran Seminary.  
  4.  Officially 27, but actually 31.  I served as associate pastor of Messiah Church Shippensburg, then when I was ordained deacon, it became an appointment.  
  5.  Messiah, Shippensburg; York Haven and Pleasant Grove in York County; Blue Mt. Charge in Newville (Mt. Hope, St.Mary's, West Hill)  Retired 2010 then served Hickorytown and Letort, and also Good Shepherd.
  6.  Wrote and taught Lay speaking classes, directed Junior High Church Camp for 9 years, York Haven- directed outreach ministry to children and youth for an afterschool program, served on the Northeastern High School Improvement Team, held group counseling for abuse survivors at Christian Counseling services, planned and led bus trips for Messiah. Everywhere I served, Youth Groups more than doubled. It was my goal to serve my best and make each person know they were loved by me and by the Lord. 
  7.  I had to develop a tough skin because church people can be demanding and some act like they don't know Jesus. I had to learn to respond rather than react in critical situations. 
  8.  We started out at Allison because Tom Maurer is an old friend, but we chose a church close to our home.  We love the music program and the variety of opportunities offered for Christian Growth.
  9.  I would tell them I loved my calling, but it isn't easy.  It was difficult at times.  I believe there are few other professions where you get involved in peoples' personal lives as in the ministry.  I have prayed with a 90 some lady who said she was ready to go home, (die) and 10 minutes later held a baby boy who was 2 hours old!  It is satisfying to know you helped save somebody's marriage, get a teen back on a healthy path and be a strength to people who went through the toughest times of their lives. In life or death, I have the good news of Jesus to bring hope.  What could be better than that?
  10.  I missed being together and group worship.   To me getting up and going to worship is in itself a public witness of faith and I was unable to do that.  I especially missed the music. 

Sam O’Brien

  1. I was born In Butler, Pa. 
  2.  I felt a calling to ministry at age 19 while attending college.
  3.  I attended Marion College in Marion, Indiana.  It is now known as Indiana Wesleyan University. I went to Anderson School of Theology in Anderson, Indiana for 2 years and transferred to Wesley Seminary in Washington DC .
  4.  My time as a pastor is a little bit different as I did not make it a career. I served a little over 9 years in the pastoral ministry serving 2 parishes in Redkey, Indiana and Mt. Holly Springs, Pa.  While in Mt. Holly Springs I felt God leading me in another direction, and I went to work in financial services for the next 30 years. I kept my ministerial credentials and am considered Retired Honorable Location by the ministerial status of the United Methodist Church.
  5.  We were attracted to CUMC due to its convenient location upon Iva's pastoral retirement. We are not Church hoppers. We love CUMC where Iva teaches the Kindred Spirits class. I am active in the Thursday Men's group.  And we both love singing in the choir. 
  6.  I believe if a young person approached me today about entering the ministry, I would refer them to Iva or one of the other retired pastors who served  in the UMC as a long term career. 
  7.  I must confess that during the pandemic I missed singing in the choir the most. 

Pete Posey

  1.  My name is Harold E. ”Pete” Posey. I was born in Red Lion, Pennsylvania on a Sunday morning about 11:00 o’clock on May 21, 1933. That makes me 89 years old this month. I grew up on a farm in southern York County, commonly referred to there as “The Lower End” ( …of the county.)
  2.  A call to the ministry of the church became increasingly clear to me in my senior year of high school, 1950-51.
  3.  I graduated from the township high school then from Western Maryland College, Westminster, Maryland in 1955 with a Bachelor of Arts Degree, from The Theological Seminary in 1958 with a Masters’ in Divinity; from San Francisco Theological Seminary, with a Doctor of Ministry Degree, San Anselmo, California in 1977; from Wichita State University, Wichita, Kansas with a Masters’ Degree in Education, Counseling in 1984. I became a Fellow in the American Association of Pastoral Counselors and a Fellow in the American Association of Marriage and Family Therapy. I was ordained a Deacon in the Methodist Church in 1956, an Elder (in the then new Allison U.M. Church Sanctuary) in 1958.
  4.  I retired from the Central Pennsylvania Conference in 1998 after 44 years of ministry. (1954 -1998)
  5.  As a student at Western Maryland College and while attending The Theological Seminary at Drew University, I served as a Student Pastor at Barnitz Methodist Church, near Mt. Holly Springs, Pennsylvania and I served parishes near Tom’s River in New Jersey. After I graduated from Seminary and was ordained, I served parishes in York and Harrisburg; then worked in a special assignment as an Urban Minister, under direction of the Urban Department of the Board of Missions of the United Methodist Church in Harrisburg; then in Wichita, Kansas. I served local parishes in Wichita and El Dorado, Kansas from 1974 to 1989. I returned to Tyrone, Pennsylvania in 1989 where I served as pastor of Wesley United Methodist Church. I served as Senior Pastor of St. Paul United Methodist Church in Chambersburg in 1992 until I retired in 1998. Following my retirement, I served as an Interim Pastor in Churches in the Central Penn Conference of the United Church of Christ in Hagerstown, then near Greencastle, Pa, and at State Line, Pennsylvania. During this time, I also served as a substitute for the Rev. Dr. Robert Zanker, (who was ill) in St. Marks United Methodist Church in Harrisburg (for seven months.) I served in active ministry of the Church from 1956 to 2008, a period of 52 years.
  6.  Highlights of my ministry was the work I did as a Marriage and Family and Pastoral Psycho-Spiritual Therapist; also, my special ministry as an Urban Minister in Harrisburg, and in Wichita, Kansas. It was a dramatic time in the Church during the rising revolutions of African Americans, Women, Youth, Native Americans, Latin and Spanish Americans.  Another highlight of my ministry was working as a trained and certified ACTIVE PARENTING educator.  These were very gratifying ministries for me! 
  7.  During the years of my ministry, from 1956 to 2008, the Church struggled to remain faithful to its heritage and relevant to the social changes that caused upheaval in the life of our nation, our world.
  8.  In 2004 after I had retired several times, Joan and I built a home in the Barnitz Woods at the base of Mt. Holly, a part of the South Mountain range near the town of Mt. Holly Springs, where we presently are living, on Sandbank Road, on Acorn Acres, “in a forest of God’s good earth.” We attended Allison Church then chose to be a part of the exciting transition to Carlisle United Methodist Church because of its exciting outreach program, its great music and its fine pastoral leadership and its wonderful people. CUMC has become like an extended family for us, great brothers and sisters, fathers and mothers.
  9.  I would encourage them to “stay faithful’, “search for truth wherever you can find it” especially in the Bible where God’s truth (Word, abides for you), plan to work hard, do not give up and stay loose. It is a long journey, a “road less traveled” but leads to a fulfilling and ABUNDANT life!
  10.  When the pandemic restricted our attendance, we missed it all, but we missed our friends the most! It is, for us, a “Beloved Community!” (Dr. M.L. King)

Gary Shockley

  1. I was born in Lewes Delaware and perceived a call to ministry at age 15. At age 18, I was appointed to an inner city church in Harrisburg as a student pastor where I served during my four years of college. I am a graduate of Messiah College (BA), Ashland Seminary (MDiv) and Duquesne University in Pittsburgh (PhD in Formative Spirituality and Counseling).
  2.  At the end of 2021, after 46 years of service, I retired from full-time ministry. Over the decades I had the pleasure of serving churches with an average attendance of 8 and my last and largest church appointment with 2200. I was blessed to start two new United Methodist Churches in Western PA and Central Florida and as the Executive Director of Path 1 New Church Starts (GBOD) for our denomination helped to start over 700 new communities of faith in the US.
  3.  My wife Kim and I were looking for a vital, dynamic and inclusive UMC in the area. We loved the story of how CUMC came to be. After multiple visits we felt CUMC could be a home for us and a place for us to offer our gifts for ministry.
  4.  I would encourage people who are drawn to full-time ministry to meet as many people in current ministry settings as possible (pastoral, clinical, educational, church staff, parachurch, and etc.) to hear their call stories and listen to what it’s been like for them to be in ministry as they navigate the ongoing changes and challenges they face.
  5.  When we were worshipping online or in the parking lot we deeply appreciated the immense amount of work the pastors and staff had to do to make those venues possible. Like many others, we really missed to face to face connections with folks. It’s a joy to be together again.

Jonathan Terry

  1. The author was unable to reach Jonathan by phone or email.

Jim VanZandt

  1. Philadelphia Pennsylvania
  2.  26
  3.  BS Natural resources and Environmental Education; Michigan State University M.Div; Lancaster Theological Seminary
  4.  34
  5.  4: North Bend Parish (7 years) western Clinton County PA; Covenant UMC (10 years) Lock Haven PA; Bethany UMC (9 years) Red Lion PA; Grace UMC (1 year) Carlisle PA); and Carlisle UMC (7 years) Carlisle PA
  6.  The “highlights” were not the accomplishments. They were the experiences – and too many to list here. From being able to enter into the lives of people in their most grievous times and celebratory times. To the colleagues and congregations I was able to walk with and learn from. To the size and variety of worship  experiences that stretched me. All of it was a highlight. One that comes to mind that blessed not only me, but my family, was the two-month pulpit exchange through the world Methodist Council that placed us at Park Lane Methodist Church in the Wembley area of west London in England to serve as their pastor. My what a summer! And professionally – to be able to be a part of the birth, organization , construction and implementation of Carlisle United Methodist Church was truly a privilege!
  7.  The biggest changes were not external. They were internal. I always viewed my role as pastor as my “yes” to the calling of God in my life to serve Him/Jesus/Holy Spirit. I viewed it as not any different from God’s call to all of us to be in service. Pastoral ministry was just the call I received. I said yes and took a deep breath! I could never have anticipated the changes in my faith and walk of discipleship that I would experience along the journey. It is so much richer, fuller and more satisfying than when I started. I read the last page of the Bible and I see God wins. Need I know anything else?
  8.  The people. The people my wife Amy and I came to know are the people we wanted to continue to “do life” with in retirement. We have felt blessed from the first day we came into their presence. Where else would we go?
  9.  Make sure you not only feel called by God/Jesus/Holy Spirit to serve in this way, but you feel so strongly that you believe you couldn’t do anything else. Pastoral Ministry is a calling that God appoints and anoints. Always remember that. Open your hands and receive what God has for you!
  10.  The people. There is something powerful that happens when the people of God gather in person for worship. Jesus said that wherever two or three are gathered in his name, he would be with them. I take that literally (but certainly do not discount that Jesus can do that through technology, too, should He choose).

Mike Weigel

  1. Columbia, PA
  2.  47
  3.  BS in Education Bloomsburg State College;  MS in Education Temple University; Wesley Theological Seminary
  4.  9 years
  5.  Mount Rock UMC, Carlisle and Christ UMC, Shippensburg
  6.  Walking with others in trying times
  7.  Patience and a greater acceptance of others
  8.  Family connection
  9.  Listen for God’s prompting; pray, pray, pray; and share with trusted friends and pastors (seek counsel)
  10.  Corporate worship – being together as the body of Christ and present with other believers is awesome!