The Revs. Drs. Randy and Joleen Willis and their son, Ethan. (Photo by Annie Lynn)

On July 1, the Rev. Joleen Willis assumed the duties as minister at the West Side United Methodist Church, while her husband, the Rev. Randy Willis, began his ministry at the Centre Grove United Methodist Church. They came to Clearfield from Northern Huntington where they ministered in different churches - she, caring for a three-church charge.

The Rev. Joleen Willis was raised in Williamsburg and graduated from Indiana University of Pennsylvania with a degree in music education. She said she knew she was being called into some kind of ministry, but wasn't sure what. Having a degree in music, she said she assumed it would be in the music field.

She noted that while attending college, she became more and more involved in the church she was attending, especially as choir director. She loved contemporary music and the more involved she became there, the more she was convinced she would be in a music ministry.

After she graduated, she taught music for three years and described those years as a time for seeking direction. And then she had what she called a "God moment" and knew she was being called into the ministry. It was then she entered the Church of God Theological Seminary in Cleveland, Tenn. She noted that even in seminary, she talked about incorporating music into her ministry.

However, one time when she was in Wendy's having a salad, she got a clear message from God that music was not the direction He was taking her - it was into the pastoral ministry. The Rev. Joleen Willis explained it was not an audible message, but a message in her heart and mind. She added that when God opened the door for her to attend seminary, the way became clearer.

The Rev. Randy Willis said he grew up in a Christian home. While he was a sophomore in college, pursuing a career in engineering, his mother died. After she died, he said he was contemplating what to do with the rest of his life, and out of that became a more devoted follower of Christ.

He transferred to a Christian college to pursue the ministry. Following graduation, he went to the Church of God Seminary in Tennessee where he and his wife met. They were married in 1994 and graduated in 1995.

The Rev. Joleen Willis said that for them the question was, "How does marriage and ministry work together?" The question prompted them to write their senior thesis together on co-pastoring, which was defined as co-pastoring one congregation together as equal partners.

They talked to others who were pastoring together. It was a lot of typewritten letters and phone conversations, she said, because the e-mail concept was fairly new. She noted their greatest inspiration was a couple in the Wesleyan Church who were co-pastoring and co-parenting and sharing in every aspect of life together. She said an important part of their journey was meeting couples that were involved together in ministry.

The Rev. Randy Willis said they did co-pastor two churches together, adding that they have been United Methodist for 10 years, although their background is Church of God. They are in the Central Pennsylvania Conference of the United Methodist Church and have found good support there and a sense of belonging from the other pastors.

He said his challenge now basically is getting everyone mobilized around a shared vision for ministry in the community.

The Rev. Joleen Willis said her challenge is learning to know the congregation and its heart for ministry and for both she and the congregation to learn and grow into what God has for them.

The Rev. Randy Willis noted that in May of this year, both he and his wife graduated from Asbury Theological Seminary in Kentucky, both receiving Doctor of Ministry degrees. He described the process of the 4 1/2 years of study as reading and preparing for a month, attending classes in Kentucky for a week, followed by two months of writing papers. At the beginning of 2007, they began writing their dissertations.

However, the best was yet to come. On Feb. 12 of this year, Ethan joined the family through a Korean adoption. They said they could have paid an escort to bring him to the United States, but, they wanted to go there because it would be less traumatic for him and they wanted to experience the Korean culture. It would also fulfill cross-cultural requirements for their degrees.

The Rev. Joleen Willis said when they received the first photos of Ethan at the end of September 2007, they knew from that moment, "This baby is our baby." She added from the end of September to the end of January, when all the legal work was finished, was one of the longest waits ever.

The Rev. Randy Willis said, "When we met Ethan for the first time, it was like we knew him, but he didn't know us."

He was in a foster home and after a one-hour visit one day, they received him the next afternoon. The Rev. Joleen Willis said he cried for 2 1/2 hours when he realized his foster mother wasn't there, but they had a full day to adjust before the flight home.

One of the highlights of the trip was when they were put in contact with a host pastor in Korea. They said the hosts were wonderful, taking them to the cultural highlights of Korea and allowing them to experience Korean food. They added that the church group prepared a whole Korean meal for them, including a cake with one candle to celebrate Ethan joining their family.

During the whole process of adoption, as well as now, they had a blog site to keep friends and family apprised of all that was happening.

The Rev. Randy Willis said they were 7,000 miles away with a 14-hour time difference but still felt they had the support from family and friends because of the blog. You can read it at http://www.williswired.com/ .