Rev. Shari Prestemon

Rev. Shari Prestemon Associate General Minister / Co-Executive of Global Ministries for the United Church of Christ The Rev. She partnered extensively with Global H.O.P.E.

Shari Prestemon began her service as Acting Associate General Minister and Co-Executive of Global Ministries on January 16, 2024. She previously served as the Minnesota Conference UCC Conference Minister (2013-2023), as Executive Director at the UCC’s Back Bay Mission in Biloxi, Mississippi (2000-2013), and as pastor to local UCC congregations in Wheaton, Illinois and Stevens Point, Wisconsin. Sha

ri received her Bachelor’s Degree from Luther College in Decorah, Iowa and her Master of Divinity from Chicago Theological Seminary. She has served on multiple Boards of Directors in the wider UCC, including on the United Church of Christ Board, as Chair of the Board of Trustees of United Theological Seminary of the Twin Cities, Co-Chair of the Common Global Ministries Board of the UCC & Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), and Vice Chair of the Cornerstone Fund Board. She also served as Chair of the Council of Conference Ministers of the UCC, on the Steering Committee of the UCC Palestine-Israel Network, and as a member of the Executive Committee of the Minnesota Council of Churches. Shari’s faith journey has been profoundly shaped by direct experiences with the ministries she now supports in her current role with the National Ministries. She served as a Peace & Justice Intern for one year with the United Church of Christ in the Philippines in Dumaguete City on behalf of the (former) United Church Board for World Ministries. She has participated in and led multiple study trips to Palestine and Israel and has journeyed with Global Ministries delegations to Haiti, Columbia, Germany, Indonesia, and East Timor. when Hurricane Katrina devastated Back Bay Mission and the Gulf Coast region in 2005. Of her experiences Prestemon says, “I have personally witnessed the life-giving, life-changing power of our ministries in so many places and ways. What we do together as Church makes God’s love real in the world and has tremendous, inspiring impact. I feel incredibly blessed to be in a position where I can nurture and strengthen this amazing work.”

Special recognitions Prestemon has received include the Reinhold Niebuhr Award for Service by Eden Theological Seminary in St. Louis (2007), and the Distinguished Alumni of the Year Award from Chicago Theological Seminary (2008). She received an honorary Doctor of Divinity degree from Heidelberg University (Tiffin, Ohio) in May 2010 and a Distinguished Service Alumni Award from Luther College (Decorah, Iowa) in 2014.

On my last day in the Philippines, we visited the Dansalan College campus in Iligan City on the island of Mindanao. This...
05/30/2026

On my last day in the Philippines, we visited the Dansalan College campus in Iligan City on the island of Mindanao. This partner has an extraordinary witness as a Christian educational institution that has served a predominantly Muslim population. But it has faced enormous challenges since the 2017 Marawi Siege entirely destroyed its historic campus. We give thanks for the stubborn resilience of Dr. Linda Tawagon, its Principal, and pray for Dansalan’s continued recovery.

Our global partner, the United Church of Christ in the Philippines, has so much to teach us. Read here about their witne...
05/30/2026

Our global partner, the United Church of Christ in the Philippines, has so much to teach us. Read here about their witness and discipleship.

The witness of the United Church of Christ in the Philippines challenges us to consider what faithful discipleship truly requires. Read this moving reflection on courage, sacrifice, and the enduring hope that springs from lives dedicated to justice, peace, and the Gospel. https://ow.ly/YFwz50Z5mJR

THE 2017 MARAWI SIEGEYesterday, we arrived on the island of Mindanao in the south of the Philippines to meet with Dansal...
05/29/2026

THE 2017 MARAWI SIEGE
Yesterday, we arrived on the island of Mindanao in the south of the Philippines to meet with Dansalan College Foundation, one of our long-time Global Ministries partners here. After arriving we immediately traveled by car for about 3 hours to Marawi City, where the historic campus of Dansalan is. What happened in the 2017 “Marawi Siege”, and to Dansalan’s staff & students, is a horrifying tale but also a witness of courage and faith. I’ll write more about it later, but for now find some of the story in the captions of the pictures.

The General Assembly of the United Church of Christ in the Philippines ended yesterday with a 3-1/2 hour closing worship...
05/28/2026

The General Assembly of the United Church of Christ in the Philippines ended yesterday with a 3-1/2 hour closing worship service (!), a beautiful dinner for everyone afterward, and some last hugs and well-wishes to our partners and friends. Now we move south to Mindanao (the largest island in the country) to visit with additional Global Ministries partners over the coming days. (More details offered in captions.)

Does discipleship require costly sacrifice? In the United Church of Christ in the Philippines, it often does. Read more ...
05/27/2026

Does discipleship require costly sacrifice? In the United Church of Christ in the Philippines, it often does. Read more about the bold witness of this global partner church in my blog.

What is the substance of discipleship for those who follow Jesus Christ? Over these last few days, while visiting our global partner, the United Church of

Global Ministries (our shared witness of the Christian Church/Disciples of Christ and United Church of Christ) is blesse...
05/26/2026

Global Ministries (our shared witness of the Christian Church/Disciples of Christ and United Church of Christ) is blessed with 250 partnerships in nearly 90 countries around the world. The United Church of Christ in the Philippines is one of those precious partners. This week I am gathered with the UCCP as they celebrate their 78th anniversary at their Quadrennial Assembly in Tacloban, Leyte, the Philippines. Yesterday was a day full of Bible Study and dialogue and ended with an amazing cultural performance. Enjoy some of these highlights!

I am grateful to attend the General Assembly of the United Church of Christ in the Philippines, one of our beloved Globa...
05/25/2026

I am grateful to attend the General Assembly of the United Church of Christ in the Philippines, one of our beloved Global Ministries partners. There is such joy in this Church, amid great challenge in the broader Philippine context. We give thanks for the bold witness and enduring faithfulness of this incredible church.

05/24/2026

"Each and every thing we do to extend compassion, to blaze a path toward justice, to stem hatred and make blessedly real our love of neighbor is a crucial building block of peacemaking in our time."

-Rev. Shari Prestemon
Associate General Minister, Love of Neighbor & Co-Executive of Global Ministries

👉🏾 Read the full Witness for Justice message: https://ow.ly/2jif50Z3f3K

https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=1303428675260211&id=100067792726586
05/19/2026

https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=1303428675260211&id=100067792726586

WCC general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Jerry Pillay expressed deep concern over the suffering caused by the escalating Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda, which the World Health Organization has declared a public health emergency of international concern, with hundreds of suspected infections and many deaths reported.

Read more: https://www.oikoumene.org/news/wcc-deeply-concerned-by-escalating-ebola-outbreak-in-democratic-republic-of-congo-uganda
Read the full statement: https://www.oikoumene.org/resources/documents/statement-on-the-escalating-ebola-outbreak-in-the-drc-and-uganda
📷Paul Jeffrey/Life on Earth

As people of faith commanded to love our neighbor, this is something we should care about and protest:“Trump’s most leth...
05/16/2026

As people of faith commanded to love our neighbor, this is something we should care about and protest:
“Trump’s most lethal policy will almost surely be his 71 percent cut in humanitarian aid from 2024 to 2025. A Boston University researcher estimated that the aid cuts cost more than 750,000 lives worldwide in their first year. A recently published study in The Lancet, the British medical journal, forecast that at present rates the defunding will cost 9.4 million lives by 2030, including 2.5 million children under the age of 5.”

Trump’s most lethal policy will almost surely be his 71 percent cut in humanitarian aid from 2024 to 2025.

Global Ministries was pleased to be one of the sponsors of this important advocacy event in Washington, D.C. this week o...
05/08/2026

Global Ministries was pleased to be one of the sponsors of this important advocacy event in Washington, D.C. this week organized by Christians for Middle East Peace (CMEP). People of faith from across the country, representing a multitude of denominations, came together to lift our collective voice and advocate for peace with justice in Palestine and Israel. Lots of amazing speakers and thought-provoking sessions fueled our commitment as we went up to Capitol Hill on the last day to meet with Congressional staff.

Address

Washington D.C., DC
20515

Website

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Rev. Shari Prestemon posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Shortcuts

Share

Category