Welcome to Duke Memorial
Certain Payments in Uncertain Times
Are you concerned about the impact Wall Street is having on your investments?
Are you seeking a way to secure funds today and receive a guaranteed program of income payments for life?
Are you excited about the idea of leaving a legacy gift to Duke Memorial UMC one day that will last long after you?
Then come join us for a program about Charitable Gift Annuities on Sunday morning, September 19, at 9:45 a.m. in the Bradshaw Room.
Share your Opinions
The newly-formed Communications Task Force needs your help! We have embarked upon a process of evaluating the ways in which we communicate news and information at Duke Memorial so that our church can better meet the needs of our congregation. The first step in the process is to gather your feedback about our current communication vehicles – from the weekly worship bulletin to this newsletter to our Facebook page – and to hear if you have any suggestions for improvements that we can make. Please take a few minutes to visit the web address below and provide us with your opinions! For those of you without Internet access, we have also provided a limited number of printed surveys outside of the church office. Thanks in advance for your time!
Visit: www.surveymonkey.com/s/XKH53CL
Meet Bradley Naylor, Minister of Music
I’m very pleased and excited to serve the congregation of Duke Memorial as its new Minister of Music. These past few years have been a time of transitions and new beginnings for me and my family: the birth of our daughter Abby last March, our family’s relocation to Durham last July, and substantial professional travel for me this past year. I’m so happy to have found in Duke Memorial a place that I can call home, musically and spiritually.
I graduated from Brown University in 2003 with a B.A. in music; not only did I get a great education there, I also met my lovely wife, Elizabeth, who studied history. After her graduation, she continued there as a medical student, earning her M.D. in 2008. She is now a dermatology resident at Duke Hospital. After my graduation, I attended Indiana University for my master of music degree in choral conducting, and then served for two years as Co-head of the music department at the Middlesex School in Concord, Massachusetts. In 2007 I enrolled at the Institute of Sacred Music at Yale University, where I completed my doctoral coursework in choral conducting in May of 2009. Last year I was an assistant professor in the school of music at the University of Georgia, where I taught conducting and directed the Men’s and Women’s Glee Clubs. It was a very rewarding job, but was also a great physical distance from my family. After so much moving around, I am excited to work at Duke Memorial and spend time with my family every day.
Throughout my life, a principal means of musical expression for me has been serving in churches: as a section leader in choirs, as an assistant director, a cantor, and (occasionally) as an organist. One memory that has remained strongly with me is my participation in the church choir of St. Paul’s United Methodist Church in Houston, Texas, where I grew up. That choir worshipped with music of the highest quality and greatest variety. Not content to sing God’s praise solely inside their church’s walls, they brought it joyfully to the world around them, on tours to Washington, D.C., New York City, and England. I remember singing Olivier Messiaen’s O Sacrum Convivium (“O sacred feast”) during communion in the National Cathedral and knowing very clearly at that moment that sacred music was and would always be essential to my being. I look forward to meeting you, getting to know you and your inner music, and to helping you to make a joyful noise unto the Lord.
Meet Faith Dickens, Minister of Children
I am so excited about the opportunity to minister with the children and congregation at Duke Memorial. God has given me a love for children and seeing them grow in their walk with Him and I am honored to have the opportunity to serve as Minister of Children in a church that values their children and seeks to love, nurture, and disciple them.
I graduated from Wingate University in 2008 with a degree in music education. Following my graduation I participated in a year-long urban ministry program called Mission Year. I served my mission year in Camden, New Jersey where I lived in an intentional community with five others. We spent the year learning about issues facing those living in urban poverty, learned from our neighbors, and volunteered our time to organizations in the city. I volunteered at a non-profit organization called Urban Promise where I led a group of 5th and 6th grade students each afternoon in their afterschool program. The year I spent in Camden taught me so much about myself and what it means to be a neighbor to those around me.
Following my year in Camden, I returned to my hometown of Fayetteville, North Carolina where I took a job in a public school teaching music to grades K-5. I was also able to lead a children’s choir, teach a Sunday school class and get involved with many activities at the church where I grew up. I have recently felt a call to ministry and in addition to serving as your minister of children I will also be a student at Campbell Divinity School where I will be working towards a Master of Divinity degree. I am honored to be given this opportunity to use the various experiences I have had to minister to the children at Duke Memorial. I hope to find new, creative ways to minister as I join with the children’s ministry team and engage the entire congregation in ministry to children.
Meet Katie Boone, Administrative Assistant
Hello, I am thrilled to be joining Duke Memorial as your administrative assistant. This is an exciting time at Duke Memorial and I am grateful to join your mission to share Christ from the heart of Durham.
Since 2007 Durham has been my home, but I hail from Wisconsin. My father is a United Methodist pastor and most of my childhood was spent in church offices around the state. My parents are now settled in Madison, WI with my three younger siblings. I attended the University of Iowa and earned my B.A. in English. In 2007, I moved to Durham to attend Duke Divinity. I worked for United Methodist churches in Bailey, NC and Wilmington, NC with a focus on curriculum development. This May I graduated with my M.Div and a week later married Mike Boone, a fellow Divinity student. Mike is entering his third year at Duke and is seeking ordination with the Anglican Church of North America (ACNA). He is serving as youth director at Holy Trinity Anglican church in Raleigh. In the next year I hope to pursue a Masters of Fine Arts in creative writing, freelance write, and develop Christian education curriculum. I love reading, photography, and cheering for the Blue Devils.
I look forward to meeting each of you and hope to be a helpful and encouraging face in the office. You can contact me through email: katieboone@dukememorial.org or by calling the office any day of the week.
