Clergy
The Rev. Anne Weatherholt
Interim Rector
On Sunday, October 31, I will begin my time with you as your part-time Interim Rector. I am honored to be called to walk alongside you as you make the transition from Mother Sarah Lamming’s leadership toward calling a new Rector but know there is no rush! We will take all the time we need as we continue together in community.
Now a little about me! I grew up in the College town of Berea, Kentucky, where I enjoyed music, folk dancing, theater, and family activities, all informed by the Appalachian culture. Berea is a tuition-free college, and I spent my freshman year there before transferring to St. Olaf College in Northfield, Minnesota, where I majored in history and was the president of the Student Congregation at the College Chapel. After college, I was exploring a call to historical preservation, but found myself continually drawn by God to service in the Church. I entered Virginia Theological Seminary in 1974 intending to pursue a two-year degree and teach, but after a year-long internship at the Cathedral in Jackson, Mississippi, I transferred into the Master of Divinity program. During my last two years at VTS I served as the assistant to the Protestant Chaplain at Georgetown University. When I entered VTS, women could aspire to become Deacons. When I graduated, the path to ordination to the Priesthood was open. I was ordained Deacon in the Diocese of Lexington and served one year as Chaplain at the University of Kentucky. I returned to Maryland in 1979 as the Chaplain at Hood College in Frederick. I was ordained to the Priesthood in February 1980, the second woman Priest in the Diocese, and married my husband, the Rev. Allan Weatherholt in December 1980. In 1983, I took a call as the Assistant at All Saints, Frederick. My two sons were young when I took my last call in 1993, to St. Mark’s, Lappans, just south of Hagerstown, where I served 26 years as Rector until my retirement in 2019. In 2020, I was called as part-time Interim Rector at Trinity, Martinsburg, West Virginia, and served there 16 months, helping them with Pastoral Care and assisting in the transition to a hybrid worship model using limited in-person worship accompanied by Facebook, YouTube, Zoom, and a short-range broadcast to the parking lot.
Last June, Allan+ retired from 41 years at St. Thomas’ in Hancock, Maryland, and we moved to Westminster, where Allan+ took a call as the Interim Rector at Ascension. We are now living near our two sons and grandchildren! Our older son, Daniel, is the organist at St. Peter’s, Poolesville and married to the Rev. Elizabeth Sipos-Weatherholt, the Rector of St. John’s, Kingsville, Maryland. Our younger son, Stephen, and his wife Jaclyn, live in Eldersburg with two young children and are teachers at Century High School.
I have always traveled to the Parishes I serve, so commuting to St. Mary-Magdalene is no problem for me. I plan to be at the Church office one day a week, using my time to make visits and calls. Your zoom services on Sunday will continue, even as we begin to explore ways to safely regather in your beautiful sanctuary. As I stated earlier, I do not plan to make changes anytime soon, but am looking forward to taking my time to get to know you, for you to get to know me, and for all of us to listen to the leading of the Holy Spirit. These are strange times not just for the world and our communities, but for the entire Church, so you are not alone in wondering what will happen in the future. But know that Jesus has already saved us and the Church! Our call is to prayer, service, and faithfulness each day, as we give “most hearty thanks for the innumerable benefits” given to us as the people of God.
I look forward to walking with you, and supporting you as you grow more and more into the future God has for you.