Charlene Hill
The Reverend Charlene Hill began her senior pastorate at Good News Community Church in September 2007 and was installed in March 2008. Charlene began her professional career as a social worker. She got her B.S. from Longwood College in Farmville, Va and a M.A. from the University of Chicago, School of Social Service Administration. Reared in strong religious tradition that included caring for others, social work was like getting paid to do something that all Christian should do anyway. Her social work background includes case management work with women at risk for infant mortality, providing counseling to at risk youth, overseeing a foster relative care program, and directing a clinical program. Somewhere along the road Charlene realized she had a real gift for listening to people and journeying with them to better places so she began her own private practice. Charlene cannot recall when she felt a distinguished call to ministry. It would be easier to say from birth but first she had to overcome conservative theological teachings that closed the doors on female ministers. However, at some point the questions in her head, the passion in her heart, and the childhood love for God pushed the door of possibilities open. So it was a long time coming and she still finds herself on a journey to step into all the God has called her to be. She is a distinctive voice that grounds her ministry in an ethics of love, grace and justice. She also believes in spiritual and mental empowerment. As part of her preparation for ministry, Charlene attended McCormick Theological Seminary obtaining a Master of Divinity with a focus in theology. She was intrigued with the relevance of ancient text for present day lives. What is the good news for the people I serve? What is the good news to help those who are really struggling? What is the good news for people of faith? She didn't want easy cookie cutter answers that didn't honor the complexity of humanity. It is this commitment to God's people that guides her leadership and teachings. Good news that is honest, challenging, and hopeful for the people of God today. Well instead of sharing more, we invite you to come out and not just meet our pastor but a whole community of faith.
Tom
Greetings! I’m Thomas Harris, currently a third year student at Garrett Evangelical Theological Seminary, where I am pursuing a Master’s of Divinity while pursuing ordination in the United Methodist Church . I have come to Good News UCC to learn from Pastor Hill and the church more of the practical aspects of ministry that are not covered as well in the academic confines of the classroom. I feel truly blessed to have the opportunity to work with Pastor Hill and this church community as I continue to pursue God’s call.Getting here has been a rather long journey. I grew up in the Appalachian side of Maryland , went to college at Oberlin in Ohio , spent a year in Americorps in nearby Cleveland , OH , and have since moved to Chicago in support of my wife’s vocation as an editor of textbooks. My wife, Rachel, and I have been married for three years as of June, 2009. We met near the end of my college career and began dating while we worked for the same branch of Americorps. We currently live in Rogers Park and are raising a wonderful daughter, Kathryn, who turned 1 in July, 2009.Spiritually, mine is not a call of sudden cloudbursts and “Ah ha!” moments, but a steady growth that’s continued since my childhood. I was raised in the Presbyterian Church growing up, and have always had a general sense of God’s presence (and sometimes activity) in my life. On some level I’ve always believed in a life of service to God, and from that it was just a matter of finding a time in my life when I had the freedom to seriously pursue that call. As I’ve shifted from rural to urban settings (which aren’t as different as you’d think), I’ve fallen in love with the city and, seeing the needs therein, have decided to pursue a vocation in urban ministry, which among other things is one of the reasons I’ve come to serve at Good News UCC in North of Howard. It is going to be a good year!--Tom
Randy Johnson
My name is randy Johnson, also known as “Brother Randy”, I currently server the faith community of Good News Community Church UCC as pianist in the music ministry. I’ve served in capacity since the year 2000. As part of the music ministry I help to supervise and develop the church music program at GNCC> I support the recruitment of choir members, selection and teaching of repertoire for choir and congregational participation, and leader of praise and worship. I enjoy composing and arranging music for worship. I have an Associate Degree in Liberal Arts, along with certificates in Liturgical Studies and Worship Studies. I attend various workshops on church music, worship and spirituality. I hold membership in musical organizations that support and promote church music and worship.
Kim Bobo
Kim Bobo is the founder and executive director of Interfaith Worker Justice, the leading national organization that mobilizes religious support for low-wage workers and rebuilds partnerships with the labor movement. Since its founding in 1996, the organization has built a network of more than 50 religion-labor groups and 20 workers centers around the country, originated the "Labor in the Pulpits" program in which a hundred cities participate, started the Seminary Summer program - a joint program with the AFL-CIO and Change to Win unions placing seminary and rabbinical students with unions for summer internships, and created dozens of congregational resources on economic justice. Interfaith Worker Justice is leading a national campaign to challenge wage theft and seeking new ways to collaborate with government agencies to better enforce labor laws. Prior to Interfaith Worker Justice, Ms. Bobo was a trainer for the Midwest Academy, and Director of Organizing for Bread for the World. She writes the dispatches from the workplace for Religion Dispatches, a new online religious forum. She is co-author of Organizing for Social Change, the best selling organizing manual in the country and author of Lives Matter: A Handbook for Christian Organizing. Ms. Bobo's new book, Wage Theft in America, will be released in November. It is the first and only book to document the wage theft crisis in the nation and proposes practical solutions for addressing it. Ms. Bobo is the Choir Director at Good News Community Church, a multi-cultural congregation in the Rogers Park neighborhood of Chicago. Ms. Bobo is married to Stephen Coats who directs the U.S. Labor Education in the Americas Project. They have twin teenage sons Eric and Benjamin who are freshmen in Chicago Public High Schools.