Back Bay Mission is honoring outgoing Executive Director Shari Prestemon by creating the Shari Prestemon Social Justice Internship.
The Shari Prestemon Social Justice Internship will provide a member of the United Church of Christ between the ages of 19 and 23 with a unique opportunity to participate in a 10-week summer program tailored to their interests. Drawing on the Mission’s long experience in community engagement and advocacy for justice, the internship will nurture participants’ passion for social justice and develop their appreciation for the church’s role in seeking social justice.
Rev. Prestemon’s own association with Back Bay Mission began when she was a college student and spent a summer at the Mission as an intern. Though she worked most closely with the Mission Trip program, she also had the opportunity to observe other aspects of the Mission in action. That internship experience powerfully shaped her professional discernment and established an enduring relationship between Prestemon and Back Bay Mission.
“That internship was such a transformational experience for me in so many ways,” says Prestemon, “It allowed me to meet members and pastors from all across the United Church of Christ. It gave me a vision of the Church centered on doing justice and making a difference in the world. The incredible diversity, culture, and history of the Gulf Coast offered a rich and eye-opening experience. And it was a time when I learned so much about myself, discovering gifts and strengths I didn’t know I had and feeling a growing call from God to service and ministry as a life-long vocation. That internship profoundly changed and directed my life; what a joy it would be to know that other young adults could also have such a tremendous opportunity!”
Not all Shari Prestemon Social Justice interns will go on to be ordained or make a profession in ministry. The Mission hopes, however, that this experience will lead to a lifetime of strengthening neighborhoods, seeking justice and transforming lives in the field of the intern’s choosing.
You can make a gift to support the Internship online or by sending a check to: Back Bay Mission, 1012 Division Street, Biloxi, MS 39530.
