The staff of advisors and instructors is a collaborative body, who come from many faith traditions: Catholic, Episcopalian, Lutheran, Baptist, Methodist, and others. They are all dedicated to serving in this ministry of helping form new spiritual directors.
Mary Kay has worked in pastoral ministry in the Catholic Church for more than 45 years. She received a Master’s degree in Religious Education in 1982, and her Doctor of Ministry in 2017 from Seattle University. After she graduated from the Souljourners in 2005, she joined the staff and is currently a part of the Souljourners Leadership team and the Sophia Center staff.
Sr. Marcia Ziska has been a member of the Benedictine Sisters of Mount St. Scholastica since 1974. She received a masters in Christian Spirituality from Creighton University and a professional certificate in spiritual gerontology from the Johnson Institute. A retired certified hospital chaplain, she has served her community in pastoral care, vocation and formation work, and as associate director of the Sophia Center. She was privileged to coordinate the Rome Renewal Program for English-speaking Benedictine women worldwide from 2003-2010. She served four years on the National Religious Vocation Conference Board and eight years with the American Benedictine Formation Conference Core team. Currently she is the vocation director for the monastery, a spiritual director, and a member of the leadership team for Souljourners, a formation program for spiritual directors. Sr. Marcia enjoys making jelly to give as gifts and to sell in the monastery gift shop. You can also find her making lemon meringue pie and lemon curd from the fresh Arizona lemons sent by her sister, Barb.
Sr. Patricia ministered as a teacher for many years in Missouri and Kansas and also worked at Keeler Women’s Center (another ministry of the Benedictine Sisters of Mount St. Scholastica). She is a graduate of the Souljourners and currently serves as part of the Leadership Team. Sr. Patricia also currently serves as Community Formation Director and offers spiritual direction. She enjoys art, being outdoors, arranging flowers for the chapels, working with the bees, and making various kinds of rosaries for Monastery Goods.
Nick Pickrell is a 2020 graduate of Souljourners. He has a bachelor’s degree in Liberal Arts from UMKC. Nick is a seeker and has been heavily involved in church through the years. He lived and worked in the Cherith Brook Catholic Worker House where he remained for five years and currently serves as a trustee. He is the founding pastor of the Open Table, a socially progressive church that is committed to liberation and healing, which is part of the Presbyterian Church USA. He has over fifteen years of experience doing anti-poverty and anti-racism work, and is presently a real estate agent in the Kansas City area.
Kristina Frank is a 2023 graduate of Souljourners and serves as Coordinator of Contemplative Outreach Kansas City. She is a Certified Enneagram Teacher, working regularly with individuals and groups. Kristina is a mother of six, has a growing number of grandchildren, and has served in various ministries and leadership roles in her Catholic parish and in other spiritual arenas.
Bernadette “Bernie” Graves lives in Kansas City, Missouri. She is a graduate of the New Wine Lay Ministry Formation program and participated in parish ministry for many years. She graduated from Souljourners in 2013 and was an intern with the program from 2015-2017. She is presently serving on staff.
Mary is the mother of seven, and currently lives with her husband, in the Ozarks, on a tree farm, where permaculture and sustainable agriculture are a part of daily life. She earned her Master’s in Religious Studies, as well as a Graduate Certificate in Mediation and Conflict Resolution from Missouri State University. She is also a graduate of the Souljourners Program. Her definition of spiritual direction is drawn from Parker Palmer’s use of the phrase “a space between us that honors the soul,” describing a circle of trust. Mary believes holding space to honor the soul is at the heart of the spiritual direction relationship, and she strives to do that.
