2022-23 Emerging Writers Cohort The following writers are participants in the 2022-23 Emerging Writers Mentorship program. Julie Yeeun Kim Julie Yeeun Kim (@julieyeeun) is a Korean American writer, educator, and worship leader. She teaches in the Department of Asian and Asian American Studies at California State University, Long Beach and is concurrently a MDiv student at Fuller Theological Seminary. Julie is a part of The Honor Summit, a women’s ministry, and hosts their in-house podcast called The Honor Summit Podcast. Lauren Murphy Lauren L. Murphy is a freelance copy editor based in St. Cloud, Minnesota. She earned her bachelor’s degree in English from Benedictine College and her master’s degree in theology from Saint John’s University. From 2008 to 2017, she worked at Liturgical Press as a copy editor and as managing editor for the academic department. Her writing focuses on grief, anxiety, faith, and hope. Her hobbies include baking, quilting, gardening, watching British mysteries, and yoga. She and her husband Patrick have two catahoula leopard dogs, Buddy and Cully, and a cat, Scout. Her favorite place to visit is Galway, Ireland. Vivian Nabuule Nabuule is a Hospice Spiritual Care Counselor/Chaplain with Hospice East Bay, California. She was born and raised in Kampala, Uganda, East Africa with her immediate and extended family. Nabuule has served in different capacities including as an information officer (Public relations), a teacher/educator in both elementary and high school; She is also a certified Postpartum Doula. Nabuule currently lives in Oakland, California and is discerning and exploring spiritual writing as a vocation. Marissa Papula Marissa Papula serves in Campus Ministry at Boston College. A trained spiritual director, she spends her days discussing “the stuff of souls” with students while overseeing Kairos, the largest retreat program of its kind in the US, inviting undergraduates to explore their relationships with God, self, and others. A native of New York’s Hudson Valley, she earned her BA from The University of Scranton and her MA from Boston College. She has published and spoken nationally on spirituality. Beyond her work and studies, Marissa enjoys Mary Oliver poetry, teaching barre fitness classes, and TSA precheck. Mashaun D. Simon Rev. Mashaun D. Simon is an equity and inclusion advocate who centers his preaching, writing, and scholarship on cultural competency, identity, and equity. Currently, the metro Atlanta native is a Doctor of Ministry candidate at Columbia Theological Seminary. His doctoral research engages the theoretical and practical implications of grief in church and society. A contributing writer for The Reckoning online magazine, Mashaun has also written for NBC News, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Black Enterprise, Bloomberg News, Ebony Magazine, and Essence Magazine, among others. He is also co-host of B4Nine: The Podcast. In addition to his writing, Mashaun organized and facilitated the 2018 Faith and Sexuality Symposium at Kennesaw State university. Mashaun is the former senior pastor of House of Mercy Everlasting Church, a member of the inaugural 2021-2022 cohort class of the Rising Leaders Fellowship, and a Counter Narrative Project (CNP) Narrative Justice Fellow. Keep up with him at mashaundsimon.com. Ellen Spero Ellen Rowse Spero has been serving as the minister at First Parish Unitarian Universalist in Chelmsford, Massachusetts since 2002. She grew up listening to the many stories of survival, loss and resilience from her Jewish mother, grandmother and great-grandmother, all emigres from Poland. This inheritance has deeply influenced her faith and writing life. Ellen has a M.Ed from the University of Maryland and an M.Div from Wesley Theological Seminary. She lives in Acton, Massachusetts with her husband, Josh, their two dogs and occasional visits from their two young adult children. Writing Mentors Michael N. McGregor Michael N. McGregor is the author of Pure Act: The Uncommon Life of Robert Lax (Fordham University Press), a finalist for a Washington State Book Award and several other prizes. His creative works have appeared in many journals and magazines, including Tin House, Orion, Image, Poetry, The Seattle Review, StoryQuarterly, The South Dakota Review, The Mid-America Poetry Review, Notre Dame Magazine, and Utne Reader. He is the 2022 recipient of the Oregon Historical Society’s Donald J. Sterling, Jr., Senior Research Fellowship in Pacific Northwest History and has received numerous awards for his teaching and writing, including commendations in the Best American Essays and Pushcart Prize series. To learn more about him, go to michaelnmcgregor.com. Patrice Gopo Drawing on her experience as the child of Jamaican immigrants, born and raised in Anchorage, Alaska, Patrice Gopo enjoys exploring issues of race, immigration, and belonging. Her essays have appeared in a variety of publications, including Catapult, Charlotte Magazine, Creative Nonfiction, Gulf Coast, and Full Grown People. Her radio commentaries have appeared on Charlotte, North Carolina’s NPR Station WFAE 90.7, and she is the recipient of a North Carolina Arts Council Artist Fellowship. Her essay “That Autumn” was a notable in the Best American Essays 2020 and earned a City and Regional Magazine Association award for best essay, criticism, and commentary. She is the author of All the Colors We Will See, a Barnes & Noble Discover Great New Writers selection. Her debut picture book, All the Places We Call Home, released in June 2022. Patrice lives with her family in North Carolina.
