• By RJ Walters, Editor •
The Rev. Anita Hahn calls herself “just a normal lady” who enjoys being outside, sledding and playing in the snow.
She loves camping with the family or taking a nice bike ride on a warm Michigan day, and she especially likes to connect with people of all ages wherever they’re at in life.
But to call her ordinary is to overlook the significant ministry gifts Michigan Area Bishop Jonathan D. Keaton recognized in Hahn when, on Jan. 20, he named her the next district superintendent of the Grand Traverse District.
The lead pastor of New Life UMC in Six Lakes, Mich., will take her 14 years of local church leadership to the west side of the state, starting as the new superintendent on July 1.
Hahn said Bishop Keaton shared with her that when he was going through the list of possible superintendent candidates, none of them really felt right until he came to hers.
And oddly enough, Hahn can thank her high school son Wesley for a bit of influence.
“He didn’t really know who I was except my son had told (Clergy Assistant to the Bishop, the Rev.) Bill Dobbs a joke when he was a DS, and Bill told that joke to the bishop, so Bill said, ‘You know her, this is her son.’ So I looked at my sophomore in high school and realized, this is your fault,” she said jokingly. “I told Wesley that his job when I go to Cabinet is to give me a good joke each time I encounter the bishop. I’m not sure we can keep that up.”
Keaton said Hahn is a welcome addition to the West Michigan Cabinet.
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| The Rev. Anita Hahn, with her family for Thanksgiving in 2010. |
Hahn holds a Master’s of Divinity from United Theological Seminary, a Bachelor’s of Science in Special Education Centering with the Deaf and Hard of Hearing, and a Master’s in Early Childhood Education from Grand Valley State University.
She says she doesn’t see herself as being “above anybody else” and she tries to carry that attitude into her professional calling.
“As you start new ministries, I see myself as a starter, but bringing others with me so eventually they can carry on,” she said. “There are other doorways and needs you can then tend to and you are always equipping and encouraging people to use their ministry gifts.”
She said some of the fruits of her time at New Life UMC have included encouraging parishioners to successfully pay off a $1.7-million mortgage and seeing the growth of the church’s Wednesday night children’s programs.
“Over the years, we’re seeing growth not only in our children, but growth in their parents,” she said. “We’re seeing more and more come into the life of the church on Sunday mornings for worship, whereas when I started Sunday mornings were often one group of folks and Wednesday night was another.”
Hahn admits she was surprised when Keaton called her to set up a time to discuss the superintendent position, figuring it was just a meeting to address an issue related to her role as a member of the District Board of Ordained Ministry.
She said she has a lot to learn about her new responsibilities and the people she works with, but she “just loves loving people.”
“To be honest I’m probably clueless about what a DS does…but I’ve had some conversations with people and when I read the job description (the bishop) gave me I was like, ‘oh, that describes me’,” she said. “If the bishop sees something that is affirmed by others who know me, then this is a door that God opened so I’m being real open to seeing what God is wanting me to do.”
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