The Reverend Dee Shaffer comes to us after twenty years of serving in a variety of positions within and outside of churches in the south. Prior to her call to work fulltime for God, her career was in marketing and advertising in New York.
Her ministry includes positions as rector, interim, and as a full-time hospice chaplain. Her joy within congregations is on pastoral care and seeking ways to raise the awareness of the power of the Holy Spirit to knit congregations together with the knowledge that all are valued and loved. So that when people come into our church, they can feel the presence of God and want to be a part of it.
While serving in churches she was always drawn to address the unmet needs in the communities that surrounded her congregations by establishing non-profits.
These included an early childhood education center; homeless shelter; literacy and GED programs; life skills and culinary adult education center, and a free bike ministry to name a few.
Dee also organized and led service trips to the Georgia Companion Diocese of the Dominican Republic for more than 7 years where they built the first high school in a rural region focused on trades in demand.
Prior to all this fun connected to the church, Dee was a writer, director and producer of TV commercials and training films that included working on projects for the U.S. Army.
Her degrees include a Master of Divinity, 6th year in Education and BA in Business and Marketing.
Dee retired as Rector of Calvary Parish in Tarboro, N.C. in 2023 and moved to Harrisburg where she and her son purchased a home together. She lives there with her husband and her son’s family. She also has a daughter who lives in Boulder, Colorado.
Her great joy is now working with St. Stephen’s and the School and to be connected with the interfaith community of Harrisburg.