Suzan Hawkinson

Suzan Hawkinson

About our Pastor, The Rev. Dr. Suzan Hawkinson— For me, growing up has been a journey that included life in all sorts of churches, in all sorts of small towns and cities. I’ve called home the people and places in Kansas, Washington, Wyoming, Colorado, Utah, Minnesota, Texas…and now Pennsylvania! In every place I have discovered that God is, God loves and God calls. My love for worship and theology has been shaped by Baptists, Episcopalians, Free Methodists, even the Latter Day Saints and Christian Scientists…but I was baptized and confirmed Christian in the Presbyterian Church. The invitation to thought, the dedication to justice and mercy, and the generosity of spirit that mark this particular practice of being Christian has been the one to hold my loyalty and inspire my loyalty.

The call to serve as a pastor was being formed early in me, though it was not until after college, when I served as a Youth Director in a tiny church in Minnesota, that I recognized it. As I led and grew with the youth, prayed and worked with their parents, and grew to love life in a Christian community I realized that God was equipping me for the work of ministry and calling forth my willingness to lead.

My preparation and continuing education over the years has included a Masters of Divinity from Princeton Theological Seminary, a Doctor of Ministry in Spirituality from Columbia Theological Seminary, and certification in Marriage and Family Therapy from The Menninger. I love the work of ministry. The joy that it is to walk alongside people who are longing and struggling to grow as faithful beings, being able to spend my days with children, youth, and adults in all kinds of settings, working and playing together in the provisional demonstration of God’s kingdom that is the Church, is just the best life I can imagine.

My family and I; husband Joe and children in their twenties, Jessica and Ben, have made our life together in three congregations: this one here in Wallingford, one in Texas and another in Kansas. The Presbyterian Church (USA) has always been a place we’ve felt we could call home.

These past 7 years as Pastor of Wallingford Presbyterian Church have been a life-stretching, spirit-strengthening journey. I cherish the stories and experiences that people here have allowed me to be a part of as we make our way together in faith; people and pastor. I feel God at work in this place and among us. Being a pastor comes with so many amazing roles—the privilege it is to lead and celebrate worship, the challenge it is to teach, the responsibility it is to vision and guide. My favorite, and the one that calls my heart in this ministry every day is the opportunity to love in prayer and grace the children, youth and adults who care and dare to share their stories with me. It is in their joys and their heartaches, their achievements and their failures that I find the presence of God most profoundly. It is in their life and faith sharing that I find my highest calling.

I am grateful for the past of ministry, for its present, and for the hope that I have over all that God will do next, here at Wallingford Presbyterian Church and in this world God so dearly loves. I can be reached through e-mail suzan@wallingfordpres.org or phone (610-566-1644 ext 16), and I’d love to talk with you.