Originally published in the May-June Evangelist.
On May 6, St. John’s will celebrate New Member Sunday and welcome a number of new families into our faith community. Read on to get to know some of them a little better and say hello next time you see them!
Richard and Paula Day
Richard and Paula have been attending St John’s since November of 2017 and are currently finishing up the Basics Class. They picked St John’s after checking out other churches. They are here because of the music, liturgy, and outreach.
They are relative newlyweds, having been married for just about a year and a half now. Richard was living in Madison and Paula in Eden Prairie when they met via the internet. They clicked and picked a middle-ground location in the Mac-Groveland neighborhood of St. Paul to settle together in.
Richard is a widower and has a married daughter with two teenage children. Paula has two sons from her previous marriage. Richard is retired from medicine, an internist; Paula still works as a media buyer and planner.
Richard knows several languages and Paula several more. Richard plays the organ (they have one in their house!) and enjoys musical performances, while Paula enjoys reading, music, politics, and travel (and her work).
Megan August-Hau and Andrew Kampa
Megan & Andrew are planning to marry in February 2019. After graduating from Cretin DH, Andrew went to UW-Stout, but decided to move back to St. Paul and found his calling attending Dunwoody College for HVACR Systems Servicing. He is now an HVACR Service Technician.
Megan grew up in St. Paul and spent her early years at St. John’s, leaving to continue her education at U of MN – Morris. She then returned to St. Paul, completing her degree in Social Science at Metro State University. Megan is now a Logistics Program Manager.
Megan and Andrew enjoy spending time outdoors, camping, and relaxing at the lake . When asked if they have a “favorite” part of the liturgy, Andrew mentioned the Homily; Megan enjoys the passing of the Peace.
Mike, Jamie, Louie, and Charlie Bents
Mike and Jamie Bents have a very busy household. Besides two energetic boys— six-year-old Louie and two-year-old Charlie, they both have careers and lots of hobbies.
Mike is a software engineer with Target, having received his MS from St. Thomas. Jamie is a transportation planner, working in Environmental Studies out of Chicago, and is able to work from home.
When not working or tending their boys, you will find Jamie in her potter’s studio or with her plants and gardens. She is also very involved in social action campaigns. Mike likes hockey (playing and watching) and is interested in baseball stats.
Their quest for finding a mutual church home has been an interesting one, as their backgrounds are very different. Jamie comes from a Reformed Jewish background in Iowa, while Mike was raised as a WELS Lutheran. While living in Chicago, they gravitated to the Methodist Church, but began looking at the Episcopal Church. After moving to this part of St. Paul, they found St. John’s and feel as though they have found a real fit.
