Angela Finet

Angela joined the Oakton congregation in June of 2007.  She was called into the Deacon ministry of the church in May of 2010, a role in which she still serves.  Shortly thereafter, she received a call to begin seminary studies through the Connections program of Bethany Theological Seminary.

She began her studies in January of 2011 in the Masters of Divinity program as a distance learner.  Angela has a heart for pastoral care and preaching, and a strong interest in peace and justice studies.  She interned with On Earth Peace in 2013-14 where she is instrumental in launching the Living Peace Church initiative, an ecumenical effort to bring a peace witness into our communities by “living and teaching as Jesus lived and taught.”  Her recent internship was at Arlington Church of the Brethren in 2014. Angela further participates in the life of her congregation and denomination by providing “substitute preaching”, her term for preaching support for area churches.

In addition to her church duties and seminary studies, Angela leads a full life.  She is mother to two teenage boys and owner of a paper-crafting shop in Reston.  Angela’s Happy Stamper (www.ahappystamper.com) offers classes and workshops in all types of crafts and also serves as a hub for community outreach.  Angela holds a marketing degree from Columbia College in Chicago and an MBA from Temple University and found the craft store to be a perfect extension of all of her education, experience and interests – a postmodern ministry outside the church walls.

 

Claire Flowers-Waggener

Claire Flowers-Waggener and her husband, Keegan are originally from Williamsburg, Virginia, and came to Oakton in 2008.  Both were working for the federal government in Northern Virginia when Claire was admitted in 2010 to Bethany Theological Seminary in Richmond, Indiana.

Claire and Keegan both currently study and live in Indiana on a small environmental research farm owned by Keegan’s university. Claire currently works at the seminary as a chapel coordinator and a teaching assistant. She was licensed to the ministry at Oakton Church in 2013 and completed her studies in seminary in 2014.  She envisions serving in both congregational and academic ministries in the future.