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Elaine studied theater at Lambuth College in Jackson, TN and earned an associate degree in nursing from Union University in Jackson. She’s been a licensed registered nurse since 1979, and is also a certified parish nurse. She worked for twenty-five years in acute care settings and with people recovering from addictions. She earned a BS from UT Martin in 1992, with a double major in English and philosophy. She has earned a Master of Arts in Religion and a Master of Divinity from Memphis Theological Seminary.
Elaine began her ministry in the United Methodist Church, serving as a local pastor for Methodist congregations from 1989-1994. Ordained in the United Church of Christ in 2000. Elaine has served UCC churches in Denver and Birmingham. She currently preaches and tells stories in churches and other venues around the country.
Her first book, Help Me Remember was published and recorded by Pilgrim Press in 2005. Her short fiction has won Honorable Mention in the 2008 Memphis Magazine Fiction Contest, and her non fiction has been published by Christian Century. To hear her read her original work, go to her website:
www.PorchSwingStories.com.
Elaine has been trained in nonviolent conflict
resolution through Marshall Rosenberg’s Center for
Nonviolent Communication
www.cnvc.org. She is licensed as a Rule 31
Mediator for family mediation, and is currently a
Regional Consultant for Women’s Ministries in the
West Central Region of the United Church of Christ.
www.ucc.org.
Elaine interviews nursing home residents, writes
their stories and frames them as “I
Am” stories to hang over their beds. It is a way
to let visitors and caregivers know more about the
person they are serving. She also interviews
children and works with them to write stories they
tell about their life experiences.
Elaine facilitates a story sharing and
creative writing class, (Prison Stories: Past,
Present and Future) at Shelby County Correctional
Center for Women. Twelve women read, discuss,
journal and create stories about their lives. The
class meets for 32 sessions. The final class session
is a dramatic presentation of the women's stories by
professional actors.
Elaine co-wrote the autobiographical play For
Goodness Sake with David Prete. It is a
one-woman performance. Voices of the South produced
the play in Memphis and it played for sold- out
houses in the fall of 2009. Other theaters across
the country have invited Elaine to tour the show. “For
Goodness Sake” is a story about racial, sexual
and religious oppression. It is a story of
redemption and transformation.
Learn About David Prete
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