43
SHARING A LIFE & A CALLING
By LINDA M. LINONIS
girard
As a married couple, Vicky and Ken Kelley share their lives.
As the Revs. Vicky and Ken Kelley, they share a calling to the ministry.
The clergy couple are pastoring a few miles from one another in Trumbull County. She is pastor at Girard First United Methodist Church, 22 N. Market St., and he is pastor of Church Hill United Methodist Church, 189 Churchill-Hubbard Road, Liberty. They began their new assignments during the summer.
Both are graduates of Ashland Theological Seminary with master of divinity degrees. He graduated in 1992 and she in 1996. They met while in a Bible college, Ohio Christian University. They were friends for a few years before becoming romantically involved. They were married in 1989 and recently celebrated their 25th wedding anniversary.
Pastor Ken described himself as a “late bloomer” in ministry. He came from a church-going family, and his father and grandfather were pastors. He worked in the secular realm before answering his call to ministry.
“I grew up in the church,” Pastor Vicky said. “I felt since I was 13 I would be in the ministry.” She said she believed her path would be in foreign missionary duty. She said she felt her talent and knowledge was in “growing churches” and that could be done here in the U.S. or abroad.
“We share a practical, down-to-earth approach,” Pastor Vicky said. “We focus on relevant messages.”
Pastor Ken said he critiques sermon messages with these questions — “What do I want them to know? Why do I want them to know it? What do I want them to do? Why do I want them to do it?”
He said people live incredibly busy lives, so it’s vital to address issues straight on and succinctly.
Neither wears clergy garb or robes for services. Both like to “get out among the people,” so preaching from the pulpit isn’t their habit. “We want to relate to people and be approachable,” Pastor Ken said.
The clergy couple said they try to inject humor into their sermons and have people laugh. They said that lightheartedness puts people at ease.
For example, the couple hosted an open house in August at the parsonage provided by Girard. Pastor Vicky said both congregations were invited. To encourage people to mingle, the Kelleys had all sorts of hats on a table and asked people to wear one and then have their photo taken with someone from the other congregation.
And recently, they had a pulpit exchange. “We told stories on one another,” Pastor Ken said. “Poking fun at one another lets people know us in a fun way,” Pastor Vicky said. “We tease about cooking,” she said, noting he “likes to cook” while she cooks so “we don’t starve.”
Sharing a calling has worked out for the Kelleys. “We bounce ideas off of one another,” Pastor Vicky said. “We do think differently. He’s good about coming up with stories to illustrate a point.” The couple said sometimes they use similar sermon ideas but tailor them to their respective congregations.
A downside is that the couple only can attend church services together when they’re on vacation. But when they’re at their respective churches on Sunday mornings, they know they give each other moral support. As far as competition, the congregations may be engaging in a bowling match.
“This is a very busy, wonderfully busy life,” Pastor Vicky said of the demands of being a pastor.
So, their shared day off, Friday, is important to them. “We’re intentional about spending the day together,” Pastor Ken said.
The couple had pastored at different churches in central Ohio, but their current assignments are the closest they’ve been. “We’re different demographically,” he said.
Pastor Ken is trained in the Healthy Church Initiative, which is being implemented at Church Hill. The church also has an initiative to reach families through its “high-impact kids’ ministry.” The church also provides provisions weekly for food-insecure students at Blott Elementary School.
At Girard, Pastor Vicky said the focus is on discipleship. The youth club has a healthy attendance.