august 2012
Alumni Profile: The Rev. David Wright
A Pastoral Culture “ G eorge School was a safe place to explore my sense of vocation outside of the church environment where I was raised. It allowed me to explore gifts and relationships in a safe and spiritually fostering environment.” By sandra Pilla When the son of a preacher himself becomes a preacher, it is easy to conclude such a career choice was preordained. And, for The Rev. David Wright ’00, family tradition naturally was an influence. But, he says, his vocation as a Christian pastor was very much an individual calling— one that was informed and inspired by his connection to his George School community. “George School was a safe place to explore my sense of vocation outside of the church environment where I was raised,” he explains. “It allowed me to explore gifts and relationships in a safe and spiritually fostering environment.” The school served as David’s launching pad. After graduation, he went on to earn a bachelor of arts in classics and religion from Amherst College and a master of divinity from Princeton Theological Seminary, and enter parish ministry, where he remains entrenched in his mission. Now the pastor of Panther Valley Ecumenical Church in Allamuchy, New Jersey, David credits every aspect of the George School environment for his sense of worth and openarms approach. He acknowledges several particularly influential experiences and supportive faculty members. For starters, he found peace at meeting for worship and teachers and
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coaches who took students under their wings and supported them in the classroom and in the social environment. “In the church, we call this Ministry of Presence,” David explains. Another example of that ministry was Carolyn Lyday, “a wonderful and comforting source of pastoral care and support,” especially at a tragically pivotal moment in 1998, when David’s friend and classmate Carter Waghorne ’99 died suddenly. “Life stopped on campus, and for good reason…mourning happens on its own time,” he says. Faculty members canceled classes because they wanted to comfort their students. English teacher Stephen Murdock, ffac, opted to have students plant a tree in Carter’s honor. “It’s more than being professional,” David notes. “It is understanding the needs of your community.” Thanks to that understanding, he says, classmates who have gone into professions like law and banking are no less spiritually inclined than his brethren in religious ministry. “Students are going to graduate from George School with a different attitude toward their peers and their world, in large part shaped by the school.”