I’ve had many roles in life, but none more fulfilling than helping guide folks along their spiritual journeys. I’ve been a professional journalist and editor, college educator, ordained UU minister, and chaplain. In each of these movements of life, it’s the coaching, mentoring, and guiding fellow travelers that has been most fulfilling.

Following early “retirement” from military chaplaincy in 2023, I enrolled at Loyola University Chicago’s Institute of Pastoral Studies to pursue a Graduate Certificate in Spiritual Direction. It’s something I’ve wanted to do for years. I discovered spiritual direction more than 20 years ago and have benefited from the wisdom of many spiritual companions along the way. I want to give back to the universe some of the unconditional love and acceptance I received from my spiritual mentors. I seek to build an inclusive spiritual direction practice, especially for those who have faced rejection based on identity, orientation, presentation, or so-called social norms. My own approach is radically interfaith, open, affirming, and informed by my own neuro-diverse experience. I am also a veteran with experience guiding clients through questions about moral injury, trauma, and stress related to military service.

I approach spiritual direction knowing that clients have been led to a way of knowing and encountering the Divine (or however you name that holy, unseen mystery that guides each of us). My role as a spiritual director isn’t to guide you toward my way of encountering God, but toward a deeper understanding of your own experience. I seek to remind you of that which holds your spirit and life in tenderness, compassion, and strength.

While spiritual direction is different than pastoral counseling, I hope my long-time experience as a pastoral counselor and chaplain will benefit my work as a director. Please contact me to schedule a first session, always free to see if we’re a good fit, or with any questions you might have.

The spiritual director offers the following kinds of spiritual direction services, and is available to meet in the following manners.

Service Offerings: Individual Spiritual Direction

Session Format: In Person, Online (Zoom, Skype, etc.)

Payment Notes: Standard is $50, with a sliding scale for those who need it.

UU Wellspring Approved? 

The spiritual director identifies in the following ways.

Gender: Man

Identities: Disabled (Visible or Invisible)

Other Important Identities:

The spiritual director has direct experience, training, or expertise in the following areas.

Specializations: Abuse (physical/sexual), Addictions, Alcoholism, Creative Arts, Death/Dying/Hospice Care, Disabilities, Embodied practices, Grief and Loss, Mature Adults/Elderly, Meditation/Mindfulness, Men’s Issues, Mental Health, Midlife, Relationships, Trauma

Spiritual Spheres: Buddhism, Christianity, Interfaith, Spiritual but Not Religious, Spiritual Independent

This is where the spiritual director received their training, how often they receive supervision, and the professional associations where they are members.

Supervision: Individual meetings with a Supervisor (5-11 times/year)