March 15, 2020
Below is the announcement made last Sunday in church. We’ll be providing updates in the weeks ahead. Please don’t hesitate to contact me with questions you may have.
Rich Garon
Senior Warden
The Rev. Travis S. Hines
Autobiography
I am the Rev. Travis Hines, a follower of Jesus, husband to Leslie, dad to Jesse (19), Georgia (16), Lucy (13), and Julia (11), a pastor and priest. And Marnie’s personal pooper-scooper. (Yes, she’s a dog.) Born in Texas and raised in a faithful Christian family shaped by the Vineyard movement, I originally pursued a calling as a high school English teacher. Within a couple of years, however, the Lord made it clear he had called me to be a pastor. In that same time period, I received the grace of Jesus in a unique way through the Rite of Reconciliation and experienced the presence of God in a Compline service. These experiences convinced me it was vital to learn more about liturgy, sacrament, and the Anglican way of following Jesus. Drawn by the community at Trinity School for Ministry, my wife, newborn son and I moved to Ambridge, PA in August of 2001, where eventually I became the seminary’s Director for Distance Learning.
In 2008 I was ordained to the diaconate by then Bishop Robert Duncan, and a few months later joined him and the Diocese of Pittsburgh in leaving The Episcopal Church. In 2010 our family moved to Uganda, where Bishop George Katwesigye ordained me to the priesthood on behalf of Archbishop Duncan. While in Uganda, I worked alongside nationals to prepare East Africans for ministry through teaching New Testament studies and mentoring students. This intense cross-cultural experience significantly re-formed our family, and awakened us to the challenging and life-giving necessity of participating in a Christ-centered community deeply dependent on the Holy Spirit and committed to loving each other sacrificially. After returning to the United States, we rested for a year and a half in Ft. Collins, CO, where I worked alongside my two brothers in their cheese shop and bistro. In 2015 the Lord led us to the family of St. Bartholomew’s Episcopal Church, where I served as their associate rector. Within a year, the rector accepted a call to another church, and I assumed the responsibility of leading the vestry, staff and community through nearly 18 months of transition. Since the arrival of our current rector in November 2017, I have been focused on developing structures for small groups and adult formation, serving as chaplain for our preschool, and guiding the leadership of the South Sudanese congregation that is a part of St. B’s.
In reflecting on how the Lord has led our family over the years, we have learned that he calls us through community, where we are invited to participate in what he is already at work doing there. We chose Trinity primarily for the community that would shape us. We were called as missionaries to live, love and learn with the particular community of BBUC in Kabale, Uganda. We were called to join the St. B’s community in cultivating faithfulness to Jesus. And now, joyfully, we are called to participate with Immanuel Anglican Church in living out the mission of “God with us for the sake of others.” We look forward to being with you soon!