It is with great excitement that we announce that Simone Monique Barnes has accepted the position of Director of Family Ministries at St. James’, starting October 1. In this part-time (20 hour/wk) role, Simone will work with parents and volunteers in coordinating the nursery and children’s ministries, even as we work together to rebuild an active youth ministry. Simone brings a depth of formation, experience and creativity to this work, as well as an understanding of the St. James’ community and its mission in east Austin. We are delighted that Simone has said ‘yes’ to this gospel work of equipping all people, regardless of age to hear and respond to God’s call.
Simone’s first Sunday in her new role will be October 6, but here is a little bit of information so that you can begin to get to know her better:
Simone Monique Barnes’s bio is sprinkled with words like interdisciplinary artist, educator, curator, writer, speaker, researcher, outreach, advocate, and ministry, which all intersect at the corner of community and relationships.
When she’s not writing, or using the arts as a teaching tool for social change or youth development, she can be found practicing and leading Laughter Yoga.
She has earned a BA (cum laude) in English Literature and Criticism, from University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, an EdM in Arts in Education from Harvard Graduate School of Education, attended conservatory at the Hartt School of Music, and is a proud vocal music graduate of Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music and Art and Performing Arts also known as the “Fame” school in New York City.
During the 7.5 years that Simone has worshiped at St. James’, Austin (she became a confirmed member in 2013), she has preached a few sermons, and has enjoyed being of service to others through a number of ministries including Trinity Center, Mobile Loaves and Fishes, Freedom School, Brushbusters, Good Friday Project, and also the Artist Salon series which she started in 2017.
As one of over thirty first cousins, Simone has spent her entire life surrounded by large groups of young people, and has continued this trend throughout her professional life, having worked with infants and toddlers, PK-12 students, and college and graduate students. She is also the former Director of Children’s Ministry at Bethel AME Church in Boston, MA (pastors Ray Hammond and Gloria White-Hammond), served as Dean at a Christian sleepaway summer camp: Silver Lake Camp and Conference Center in Sharon, CT; and is a Past President of the Young Adult Ministry (YAM) at Grace Baptist Church, Mt Vernon, NY.
Born in NYC, while growing up as the daughter of American and Caribbean parents, Simone participated in New York City’s public school system’s desegregation program of the 1970s and 1980s, traveling from her home in a mostly Black and Latinx community in the Northeast Bronx to her school in a mostly white Italian Bronx neighborhood. That formative experience taught her the importance of having a strong sense of self and the value of reciprocal sharing of diverse experiences, traditions, and perspectives.
Simone often draws inspiration from the lyrics of “Ella’s Song” written by Dr. Bernice Johnson Reagon (Sweet Honey in the Rock), a song which was inspired by the life and words of civil rights and human rights activist Ella Baker. The song includes the lines: “To me young people come first, they have the courage where we fail, and if I can but shed some light as they carry us through the gale.” In that vein, Simone is looking forward to learning from, supporting, and nurturing the infants, the children, the youth, the families, and the village of St James’ Episcopal Church, Austin, that surrounds them.
