Reverend Heidi Heath to Stay on at Exeter

Reverend Heidi Heath, who has served as Exeter’s interim minister this year, will continue in her role at Exeter indefinitely. Heath moved to Exeter three years ago with her spouse, Reverend Emily C. Heath, who had been offered a position as minister for the Congregational Church on Front Street.

As an ordained minister in the United Church of Christ, Heath’s experience with faith and the dialogue around religion is vast. After receiving her BA in Psychology and Religious Studies from Hobart and William Smith Colleges, she completed her master’s degree in divinity at the Andover Newton Theological School. Heath has served as minister in congregations across Massachusetts, Vermont and New Hampshire for the last thirteen years, but she had never worked on a campus before. “I was excited to be part of an institution where people were excited about learning and thinking together about what it means to be a person of faith,” she said.

“I was excited to be part of an institution where people were excited about learning and thinking together about what it means to be a person of faith.”

When the Academy reached out to Heath, she was thrilled by the opportunity they offered her. “In a lot of different ways this is the dream of my life,” she said. “I’ve always wanted the opportunity to work with children and youths, and the opportunity to be in a campus ministry, especially in a place like this, is very special.”

Heath finds joy in the wide variety of faiths practiced among Exonians. She cited the advisors of the Muslim Student Association, Khadijah Campbell and Rabbi Jennifer Marx-Ash, as two colleagues she has particularly enjoyed working with.

Heath also acknowledged that there is still work to be done. “All of us know that there is more we can do to reach out to students together, especially the kids who don’t identify as part of a faith community,” she said.

Heath has also had to grow accustomed to some of Exeter’s unique spiritual traditions, such as Evening Prayer. “I’ve been figuring how to honor traditions like EP that are really a part of our experience at Exeter and who we are, and also do them in a way that have integrity to me and who I am,” she said. “It’s always been a balance—I want to honor those traditions, but I also want to bring the whole of myself as a minister to them.”

Heath does not work alone organizing Evening Prayer and other religious services: A small group of church stewards and occasionally the students of Christian Fellowship have helped Heath lead Sunday Mass, an much more. “[The church stewards] really helped me keep a pulse on things like how the services are going and what they’re hearing,” she said. “They’ve been really great with giving feedback on the new things we’ve tried out.”

The church stewards, uppers Sarah Shepley and Oluwadara Okeremi and seniors Jada Huang, Kelvin Green, Mel Duenas and Elizabeth Cleveland, spend each Sunday with Heath, eating brunch and discussing upcoming plans for the Phillips Church. At the church service that follows, which is open to all, they help to distribute hymn sheets and read scriptures.

Shepley expressed gratitude for Heath, explaining that she often reaches out to her for advice. “She has helped me deal with tough teachers and just to navigate through obstacles in life,” Shepley said. “Rev. Heidi is so bubbly and fun-loving.”

Senior and active member of the Christian Fellowship Eliza Khokhar also described Heath as a trustworthy and valuable figure on campus. “We have meetings at least once or twice a term to go over what our plans are, and she also checks in with us personally to see how we are doing,” Khokhar said.

She also commended Heath for her willingness to help with the minutia of the club, such as the analysis of textual references in the Bible, and the care she puts into making the club a safe space. “She’s proactive about the direction in which the club is going and she puts a lot of thought into it,” Khokhar said. “I feel comfortable sharing all of my concerns with her.”

Heath extends her wisdom, knowledge and approachability far beyond the religious community. She serves as an unofficial advisor for the Gender and Sexuality Alliance and is part of a group of faculty seeking to bring the LGBTQ+ community and the religious community into contact.

In pursuit of this goal, Heath, GSA and the Office of Multicultural Affairs recently screened the film “Out of Order,” a documentary about LGBTQ+ “faith leaders” struggling to find support and love within their church community. Two of the film’s subjects, Alex Patchin McNeil and Reverend John Russell Stanger, came to the event as well and answered questions for those in attendance.

Co-head of GSA and lower Adrian Venzon enjoyed the event. “That ended up being a very cool event,” Venzon said. “It was, [to] our knowledge, the first ever collaboration between GSA and the religious aspect of Exeter, so I think it’s something awesome that Reverend Heidi did, and it wouldn’t have happened if she had not come this year.”

Heath is also affiliated with Amen Hall and currently acts as advisor to a group of girls there. One of her advisees, prep Cristal Reyes, expressed appreciation for Heath’s guidance and advice. “She seems like a very cheery and positive person,” Reyes said. “I feel comfortable talking to her; we’ve frequently had one-on-one conversations after check in.”

Although she does not bear an official title, Heath acts as a coordinator for many religious aspects of campus life. She also seeks to be a voice for “moral leadership” in the Exeter community. “I’m a resource for all kids on campus even if they identify with a religious tradition or not,” she said.

Heath sees religion both on and off the Exeter campus as a way of reckoning with who we are. “For me, it’s about us finding a place in the world and wrestling  with big questions, like, ‘What am I?’ and ‘What is my purpose in living?’” she said.

Next year, she looks forward to continuing to help Exonians grapple with these questions. Despite the adjustment, Heath has loved her time on campus thus far and is excited to continue working at Exeter. “I thought I was prepared coming in for how smart and wonderful the people here would be, but in so many ways, you’re even smarter and more wonderful than I anticipated,” she said. “It’s been a real joy, and also in some ways a challenge, getting used to the rhythm of campus life and campus ministry.”