Sam's Dream Fund (Ordination Gift)

This dream fund is meant to inspire and enable Sam and the pastoral team at St. John's to hire local artists to continue creating beauty in the St. John's sanctuary and support art creation in the local community. Any amount you can give is greatly appreciated to celebrate Sam for all the love and passion he has given these past 6 years to arrive at his ordination. Help Sam as he continues to make our world a brighter, more loving place.

Sam began his journey to ordination a little over 6 years ago when he started pursuing his Masters in Divinity at San Francsico Theological Seminary. As many of you know, Sam left his previous profession in entertainment and theme park design to attend to his calling. His journey has tested him in many ways, and he has continued to adapt and persevere. Once receiving his degree in 2019, Sam continued his path towards ordination by checking off an extensive list of required experiential hours, exams, and interviews from the Presbytery. In 2020, he was welcomed into the loving community at St. John's Church in San Francisco as their Pastoral Assistant, where he committed himself to serve the community with all his love and passion.

And now we are here. Sam has made it to the end of this journey and is preparing to be installed as the new Associate Pastor at St. John's Presbyterian Church to begin his next journey.

One of Sam's biggest passions (and gifts) is his artistic creativity. Since joining the St. John's team, Sam has worked alongside their lead pastor, Theresa Cho, to create beautiful art installations in the sanctuary to enrich the worship experience for the congregants and the local neighbors passing through. Sam has talked about his hopes and dreams of hiring local artists to continue creating spaces that inspire all that step into the sanctuary to feel loved and grounded. Sam has also always had a passion for music, knowing its power to reach people's hearts in a profound way that words alone cannot. One of his dreams for his new role as Associate Pastor is to support local musicians by bringing more music into St. John's.