Forma Leadership

Sarah Bentley Allred

Sarah Bentley Allred is the Senior Formation Associate for Lifelong Learning at Virginia Theological Seminary (VTS). Her portfolio includes serving as the Building Faith Editor and the Forma Convener.

Sarah grew up in a small church in the Episcopal Diocese of Southwestern Virginia where she participated in everything from the Christmas pageant to the children’s choir. During college, she began her formal ministry with young people as a counselor and then chaplain at Camp Kanuga.

Since college, Sarah has served in the area of children and youth ministries in three congregations and received an MDiv from Virginia Theological Seminary. In addition to her work with VTS, Sarah serves as a Godly Play Trainer, leads MasterClasses for Vibrant Faith, and serves on the Commission on Ministry in the Diocese of North Carolina.

When not working, she enjoys exploring the world with her husband, Richard, and their dog, Grace. She loves local coffee shops, board games, long naps, the beach, and writing. Learn more at sarahbentleyallred.com.

Pattie Ames

Pattie Ames (she/her) has served as a lay professional in the Episcopal Church for over 30 years. She began serving as the Canon for Christian Formation in the Diocese of Southwestern Virginia in July of 2019. Her role on the Bishop’s staff is to be a resource and support to all the churches and institutions in the diocese in the areas of Children’s Ministry, Campus and Young Adult Ministry, Adult Formation, Becoming Beloved Community and Safe Church. Pattie also served as the Director of Children’s Ministries at St Columba’s Episcopal Church in Washington DC for 21 years, St John’s Episcopal Church in Lynchburg, VA for 4 years and Old Donation Episcopal Church in VA Beach, VA for 3 years. Pattie has been a member of Forma since its inception and is part of the formation planning team for Province 3. She is also on the Board of Trustees for Westminster-Canterbury, a large Senior Living facility in Lynchburg, VA. Pattie loves walking her dog, Riley, going to baseball games, being outside and hanging out with her friends. Pattie lives in Lynchburg, VA.

Maggie Paul Baker

Maggie Paul Baker is a cradle Episcopalian who grew up at Church of the Holy Comforter Episcopal in Montgomery, AL. She spent her summers attending Camp McDowell as both camper and staff member. After high school she began undergraduate work at Berry College and finished at the University of Alabama with degrees in Religion and Geography. (Roll Tide!)

Upon graduation, she took a position as a Youth Ministry Intern at the Cathedral of St. Philip in Atlanta, GA and went on to become Director of Youth and Young Adult Ministry, which afforded her the opportunity to attend the Forma conference in 2017 in Orange County. She has attended every one since. In 2019, along with getting married to her husband Brad, she took a position at Christ Church, Charlotte as Assistant, now Director for Youth and Family Ministry. She has written curriculum for her parishes, served on diocesan and National Happening committees, written for Faith at Home, and consulted for Church Publishing. This Fall, Maggie begins her journey as a Postulant for Holy Orders attending the Virginia Theological Seminary. She has a passion for formation in all of its forms, and she hopes to help continue to make Forma a place for sharing, learning, and growing.

In her free time, Maggie likes to spend time with her husband and their pets, Maisie, River, and Lena. She is also a musician who loves to use her gifts and talents as a singer to nurture her own spiritual journey and inspire others on theirs. She will read pretty much anything written by Kate Bowler, loves attending musicals, and recently discovered aerial silks as a form of exercise.

“One of the things I pray for [...] is that people with power will get good sense, and that people with good sense will get power…” - Julia Sugarbaker, Designing Women

Wallace Benton

Meet Wallace Benton, who grew up at St. Matthew’s Episcopal Church outside of Atlanta, Georgia as a precocious, loud, and mischievous child. When he graduated high school, he continued his education at Georgia Institute of Technology (the one true college in the state of Georgia) and studied International Affairs with the expectation that international law was in his future. After graduating and a stint working for a law firm, Wallace found himself volunteering and then, employed, as the Youth Minister at St. Edward’s Episcopal Church in Lawrenceville, Georgia. Currently, Wallace serves as the Youth Director at St. David’s in Roswell.

You may recognize Wallace as a member of Forma’s Council of Advice. He is also highly involved with EYCDIOATL (Episcopal Youth Community of the Diocese of Atlanta). Listen to him as one of the hosts on their podcast about youth ministry.

Wallace felt a call to serve others while serving as a high school team member at the middle school retreat weekend, New Beginnings. It was one of the few opportunities where he got to choose to serve, instead of being told to serve others or the Church. New Beginnings served to be a jumping off place for his relationship with God and the Church, and it also kept him connected to the church during his college years.

Wallace offers one piece of advice for new Christian formation people: “Connect as much as possible. I would not have had success in youth ministry without remembering the people who supported, challenged, and taught me along the way. Even if there aren’t people in your area or diocese you can talk to about your ministry, reach out to other local formation people from other denominations for advice about what works and what doesn’t. Forma has been a phenomenal outlet for me to learn and observe formation people from around the country who have been doing ministry longer than I have been alive.”

Wallace Benton enjoys spending time with his wife and rival youth minister, Sally; playing hide-and-go-seek with his dog, Bishop; hiking; and reading. He believes that relationships are the most important aspect of his ministry with youth and their families and puts diocesan ministry as a cornerstone of his own ministry.

Christine Fentress-Gannon

Chris (she/her/hers) is a native New Yorker, born and raised, who transplanted to Michigan almost twenty years ago, serving churches and centers in and around the Birmingham, MI area. Ordained to the Priesthood during the pandemic she continues to serve as the Associate for Formation and Outreach at St. James Episcopal Church, where she has been for eleven years.

A favorite when playing “2 Truths and a Lie” with any group of new people, Chris often shares that she is a graduate of the New York City Police Academy in 1987. While walking beats in Times Square and Chinatown she earned two commendations. And that would be one of the ‘truths,’ although she admits that it seems like a lifetime ago!

She grew up Roman Catholic and was extremely active in the church but quickly realized that as a lesbian her gifts and talents were not fully welcome. Finding more opportunities to serve in the Presbyterian Church (USA) she worked with youth and young adults and began the ordination process. Chris attained her Master of Divinity degree from Princeton Theological Seminary in 2002. She found her way ‘back home’ into the Episcopal Church through St. James in 2010 in the Diocese of Michigan.

The pandemic has reignited for Chris the importance of the church’s need of a focus on its digital ministry and presence, exploring the ways in which we can creatively and effectively use technology to continue the work of Christ and the church in the world.

Chris has spent her entire career working in non-profits as a reference/computer assistant in a public library, in child guidance and teen center work, and with day camp and after school programs. Sharing the words of Kenda Creasy Dean, one of Chris’ seminary professors, Chris wholeheartedly believes that “the church’s job is to till the soil, prepare the heart, ready the mind, still the soul, and stay awake so we notice where God is on the move, and follow.”

Chris and her wife, Sara, have three young adult children and two rescue dogs. When not hosting backyard BBQs or creating charcuterie boards for ‘book club,’ they enjoy vacations at the beach with friends and family. Let’s go Mets!

​Emily Gowdy Canady

Emily Gowdy Canady (she/her) has served as a lay professional in the Episcopal Church for more than 20 years. She began serving as the Missioner for Lifelong Christian Formation in the Diocese of East Carolina in October of 2020. Prior to that role in East Carolina, Emily served as the Program Officer for Youth, College Campus and Young Adult Ministries for 10 years. From 1999 to 2009 she served as the Director of Youth Ministries at St. Columba's Episcopal Church in Washington, D.C. While earning her Masters in Clinical Mental Health Counseling, Emily served as the Sr. High Youth Minister at Holy Trinity Episcopal Church in Auburn, Alabama from 1997-1999. In 2017 Emily earned her Certificate in Lifelong Christian Formation through Virginia Theological Seminary and Forma and began writing for Grow Christians in 2019. She currently serves on the Trinity Center Board of Managers. In her very spare time, Emily enjoys exercising, crafting of all kinds, and cooking. She lives with her husband, a 7th grade son, and a 4th grade daughter in New Bern, NC.

Patrick Kangrga

Meet Patrick Christopher Kangrga (he/him/his), whose start in ministry was through the Episcopal Service Corps (ESC) in the dioceses of Maryland and Massachusetts. For two years he had the opportunity to “try on” youth ministry and found it to be “the most challenging and craziest thing I ever did. I absolutely loved it.” Born and raised in Arkansas, he has lived and worked in ministry in Maryland, Massachusetts, New York, New Jersey, California, and Mississippi. He currently resides in Jackson, MS where he ministers with 6^th-12^th graders as Director of Youth Ministries at St. James’ Episcopal Church. Most of his free time is spent with his partner, Laura, their dog, Sunday, and recent rescue cat, Jackson.

Patrick didn’t grow up going to church and didn’t really participate in a faith community until his young adult years. However, an early memory that sticks with him is from late in elementary school or middle school when he attended a neighborhood friend’s church around Christmas time when everyone sang “Go Tell It On the Mountain” around a piano.

During his second year with ESC in 2014, his host site supported the cost of his attending his first Forma conference. Since then, Forma “has given me a network of colleagues who I look to for inspiration and trust and whom I respect immensely – not to mention a group of people whose friendship and partnership I find invaluable.” Patrick has been an integral part of Forma in recent years as part of the conference planning team and was appointed to the Council in January 2020. His words of wisdom to anyone in the formation field: “You are not alone. You don’t have to do it alone. Reach out and connect to people. Reach out and connect with lay people and colleagues in your congregation. Reach out and connect with other ministers of all kinds and orders in your city and diocese or region. And reach out to the wider network of ministers available to you through the whole of your denomination. For me, Forma has been the best place to do that and the start to being able to find connections and networks other ways as well.”

At the moment Patrick is listening to a lot of Christmas music, including Mariah Carey’s “Joy to the World,” and one or possibly a dozen too many Hallmark movies. When the world is not in the midst of a pandemic, Patrick loves to travel domestically and internationally. Asked what his claim to fame might be, he shared that he learned to scuba dive in the Great Barrier Reef. But then came this caveat: “Honestly, I don’t know that I want a ‘claim to fame.’ Don’t get me wrong, I want to live a unique and adventurous life. I am ambitious in my work and ministry. If people remember anything about me after my time on this world, I hope that it is that I was a loving and faithful person, I constantly strived to be better, and I failed miserably at it – but I got up each day and tried again and prayed to God for help. I hope I would be seen as one who was a fierce advocate for youth and other people, as well as a half-decent manifestation of God’s love. I really think that would suffice. But it’s also really hard work. The hardest work I know. “

Malcolm McLaurin

The Rev. Malcolm McLaurin is the curate at The Church of the Holy Cross in Redmond, WA. He spent 20+ years as a lay minister in the Episcopal Church in Arkansas, California, and Washington prior to discerning a call to the priesthood and attending seminary at The University of the South School of Theology ('21). His background is in children’s, youth, and young adult ministry but he feels strongly called to the formation of all ages. Malcolm is the father of two wonderful boys, Eli and Myles, whom he enjoys parenting with his incredibly patient wife, Hannah. In his free time, he can be found reading, writing poetry, taking pictures, or practicing Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.

Marvin McLennon

Meet Marvin McLennon (he/him/his), a “cradle” Episcopalian born and raised in Little Rock, AR where he grew up attending St. Mark’s Episcopal Church. After high school, he went to Hendrix College, a liberal arts school in Conway, AR where he studied communications with an emphasis in broadcast journalism. After graduating in 2013, he joined the Episcopal Service Corps in Baton Rouge, LA. Moving back to Little Rock in 2016, Marvin began working at Christ Episcopal Church where he is today, serving as the Director of Children’s and Youth Ministries. The favorite parts of his ministry are the surprising deep conversations that occur in youth group. Seeing the gears turn in young people’s heads and watching them connect the dots months later is very rewarding.

In his free time, you’ll find Marvin playing “Dungeons and Dragons” and other board games along with spending time with friends. He plays guitar and also nerds out over video games and comics. While he enjoys reading, he has a bad habit of starting one book and then another, and then another without finishing any of them. While currently watching season 2 of The Umbrella Academy, he claims his (unfinished?) reading stack includes How to Ruin Everything (a collection of essays by musician and poet George Watsky), The Art of Gathering by Prya Parker, and Lovecraft Country by Matt Ruff.

Marvin has been a member of Forma since 2016. He shares, “Forma has been an invaluable

resource that has given me so many wonderful ideas and has helped me form so many wonderful friendships that I am grateful for. I come back from every Forma meeting feeling rejuvenated, reminding me that I am a part of a large, wonderful Episcopal family.” He encourages others who are new to their formation ministries to spend their first year building relationships with your youth, children, and their families.

Some of Marvin’s earliest memories of church include sitting with his family during worship, playing in the pews with his friends, and hearing the choir sing while watching the organ director’s hand frantically conducting just above the back wall of the altar. He regularly attended youth group as soon as he was old enough, was a member of the youth council in the Diocese of Arkansas while in high school, and during his college summers worked as a counselor at Camp Mitchell. You can understand why Marvin might say the Episcopal Church has always been a part of his life.

One of Marvin’s favorite Bible stories is from 1 Kings 19. After strong winds and an earthquake, Elijah hears God in the silence. It reminds him to strive to slow down and try to be truly present in quiet moments. One way that helps him is an app (1 Second Every Day ) he discovered in 2019 that encourages you to record one second a day. He has been doing it ever since. Continuing this practice in 2020 has helped him look back at all the special occurrences that do happen every day.

If you ever get a chance to meet Marvin in person, ask him about the cookbook he published with three college buddies - The College Guide to Smoothies. Turns out he is a wiz at combining unusual items from a campus cafeteria and turning them into pretty good smoothies.

Missy Morain

Ms. Missy Morain has been a lay professional in the Episcopal Church for 20 years, currently serving as the Director for Program Ministry at The Parish of St. Matthew, in Pacific Palisades, CA, part of the Diocese of Los Angeles, where her work grows out of her passion for life-long Christian formation. At St. Matt's she engages in ministry with parish school students, the parish summer day camp, attempting to corral 300+ members of the parish BSA program, engaging in digital innovation, and coordinating life-long formation programming. She also currently produces the 6 camera, live stream worship services each week. Missy has led Forma’s advocacy efforts at General Convention and beyond for more than a decade, focusing on Christian formation and lay/clergy employment issues, and she is delighted to return to the Forma board for another term. Missy lives in Los Angeles, where she loves riding her bike to work, keeping her local independent bookstore in business, and being a fairy godmother.

Emily Schnabl

Emily Schnabl (she/her/hers) grew up in the Episcopal Church, roaming around her parish church in Chicago while her mother practiced the organ. She was active in her local congregations, and campus ministry while earning her undergrad at the University of Illinois and her MA in Anthropology/Museum Studies at the University of Arizona in Tucson. After graduate school, she served as a church office manager, which somehow did not discourage her from going to seminary. She graduated from Seabury-Western in 1999, has served as Assistant Rector at St. George’s, Belleville, IL, Rector of St. Christopher’s, Midwest City, OK, and is currently Rector of St. Martha’s Episcopal Church in Papillion, NE. She has served on the Commission on Ministry of four dioceses, taught in the bi-vocational/deacon formation program for two dioceses, has served as chaplain to a diocesan ECW board twice, and was active in disaster recovery following the central Oklahoma tornadoes of 2013. She was spiritual director for the Diocese of Oklahoma Racial Reconciliation Youth Pilgrimage of 2019 and chaplain for the RSCM Tulsa Course for many years.

As a longtime Rector, she can turn on a dime from talking about the ins and outs of church roof insurance claims to nuances of the rubrics of the Book of Common Prayer, but one of her deep passions is Christian formation and including all ages in the life and worship of the church.

Emily is married to the Rev. David Stock, who is the rector of St. David’s, Lincoln, NE. Emily enjoys knitting, reading (particularly mysteries and history), hiking, and travel, and posting pictures of their two cats, Coal and Bristow, to social media.

Melina Smith

Melina Luna Smith is the founder of StoryMakers NYC.

I enjoy mixing together ministry, creativity, and imagination with the hope of creating Gospel content for niños.

Over the last 10 years, I have dabbled in interiors, and floral design, with the constant backdrop of children’s ministry at Calvary St. George’s Church. Over the years, I have loved gathering and working with artists with the intention of retelling the stories of the Bible. I have thought over the years, why hasn’t design, beauty, and imagination been maximized when sharing the greatest stories ever told.

Together with a team of writers, artists, and jacks-of-all-trades, we are humbly approaching the Bible with the intent to create content to foster connection and more fun. Our team believes that when we play, imagine, and create together, learning takes deep roots.