Rev. Barrett Ingram, Pastor
I was born and reared in Lake Charles, Louisiana. I moved away from South Louisiana ten years ago, and in many ways, the move to Galveston feels like moving home. Both are culturally similar, I’m accustomed to the high humidity, and we have Mardi Gras too!
I am a life-long Presbyterian, and the church in which I grew up is very similar to Westminster. Like many teenagers, I drifted away from the church for a few years after completing Confirmation. The summer between middle school and high school was a turning point for me spiritually; I began to take my faith seriously. So during high school I was involved in the church. I sang in the choir and served on a few committees.
After graduating from high school, I attended Millsaps College in Jackson, MS. My original plan was to major in economics, since the men in my family are all in business-related fields. But my 8:00 a.m. economics class seemed to squelch any interest I had in the subject. On the other hand, the elective class in religious studies proved to be of great interest to me. I was speaking to the professor one day in her office, and she asked me, “Have you ever considered going into the ministry?” In my mind, I was thinking, “No!” but what came out of my mouth was, “Yes.” So, I often look to that moment as the point in time when I began to take the call to ministry seriously. During my senior year of college, I had the opportunity to spend the fall semester as an “exchange” student at a seminary in Chicago. And following that trial semester at seminary I decided to apply to Divinity School.
I entered The Divinity School at Vanderbilt University the fall semester after graduating from college. I chose a university-based theological school because I have always enjoyed learning from a diverse peer group. Since I am a “cradle Presbyterian,” I thought it would be helpful to learn about other denominations from the people who are actually members of those churches. It was a rich and challenging learning environment. During my time in school, I completed two internships: one in a small Presbyterian church, and the other working with the Presbyterian Campus Ministry at Vanderbilt.
After three years in Nashville, I moved to Atlanta, GA for six months to complete a CPE (Clinical Pastoral Education) program by working as a hospital chaplain at the Atlanta Medical Center. While in Atlanta, I also took classes at nearby Columbia Theological Seminary, one of our Presbyterian seminaries.
Following my time in Atlanta, I moved to Lufkin, Texas, which was quite a contrast! Since I went through school without any time off, it seemed like a good idea to gain some practical experience by working fulltime in a church. My aunt was a member of First Presbyterian Church in Lufkin, and she told me that they were in the midst of a staffing transition. On a whim, I contacted them about working there as a non-ordained staff member. I was hired and spent ten months doing a “pastoral residency” at the church. As my time there was winding down, I knew it was time to begin looking for my first ordainable call. I was looking through the list of openings in New Covenant Presbytery and came across Westminster. I thought, “This sounds like a neat church!” So I e-mailed Dr. Beach, and the rest, as they say, is history.
