I grew up in Summerland, B.C. and am a small town girl at heart (i.e. I like 4x4ing), but have lived in Vancouver for the past 5 years. That being said, this January marked the first time I have spent an entire year living consistently in one city since I graduated high school. Other places I’ve called home are Ucluelet, B.C. where I did a Co-op term with Parks Canada and (mostly) surfed for four months, Edinburgh where I interned at the Scottish Parliament, and Ottawa where I worked for Environment Canada and casually stalked Justin Trudeau.

I’m just finishing up the last semester of my undergrad at UBC, majoring in Canadian Studies. Yes that’s a real thing. And no I don’t want to hear your beaver/maple syrup/hockey/moose joke. I do enjoy discussing Canadian politics and history however. One of the threads that has run through my interdisciplinary Bachelor’s degree is the theme of environmental politics and Indigenous studies. All of my co-op terms have involved these topics in some capacity and I am passionate about where these two areas intersect. I care deeply about God’s call for creation care, reconciliation, and humbly seeking to be in right relationship with our neighbours.

You may see my parents around St. Peter’s on the occasional Sunday. Feel free to thank them for any redeemable qualities I have. My mother is the smartest person I know – she taught me to be compassionate, fierce, and honest. My father is the most loving, gentle and probably goofiest person I know. He taught me to have integrity and be courageous. I have two older sisters and my youngest child syndrome is most acute when I’m around either of them. One of them many of you may know as violinist and board member Nellie Salter. The other, Jessie, is just as real and just as lovely, but you’ve probably never met her because she lives in Austin, Texas with her husband and dog. I should tell you upfront that I have an unhealthy obsession with dogs. I’ve heard that a gif speaks a thousand words so I’ll just leave this here.

My sisters and I help our parents stay relevant through a series of semi-regular pop culture lessons. Recent highlights include Hotline Bling, Justin and Selena’s drama, and what exactly ‘lit fam’ means. When we’re not trying to keep our parents ‘hip’ and ‘groovy’, we’re often on some outdoor adventure. Mostly this means scrambling after our dad up a mountain while trying not to look down, squeezing through some obscenely narrow hole in a rock or paddling feverishly through rapids in the canoe he built.

Although I grew up in a Baptist church, I’ve always been a closet Anglican. I love standing and saying the liturgy together because when all our voices come together to form one, it reminds me how much we need the gift of community live out our faith. I started coming to St. Peter’s about four years ago and was drawn to this community by it’s biblically grounded teaching and willingness to address tough topics with grace and humility. Also the graphic design was on point.

One of the things I love about St. Peter’s Fireside is that it is full of real people with real struggles and triumphs that are shared with each other and with the Holy Spirit. The blog is one place where I see that happening and I am looking forward to being a part of it and hope that by God’s grace he will use my words to further His Kingdom.