Jo Forrest accepted the call to serve Westminster Presbyterian Church in 2021 and delights in the ways this community flourishes. While a member at Fourth Presbyterian in Chicago, she felt called to ministry and later accepted her first call to serve there as an interim minister. She later served Kenilworth Union Church in the northern suburbs of Chicago and remained active in the Chicago Presbytery.

Prior to becoming a minister, Jo worked for several decades in the financial services. She appreciates the challenge to walk faithfully with Jesus in a culture that often pushes us to compete and win. Those years also shaped the way she invites people to imagine ministries in a large and growing church.

Jo earned a Master of Liberal Arts and Master of Divinity at the University of Chicago and a Doctorate in Ministry from The Candler School of Theology of Emory University.

Jo and her husband, Hamish, live in Mt Lebanon. They enjoy biking the rails to trails in the Pittsburgh area and restoring a very rusty golf swing. They have led pilgrimages in Canada, Israel, Scotland, and Spain and enjoy the fellowship gained along muddy and dusty trails.

Laura is excited to join the Westminster community to serve as associate pastor. She is passionate about helping people feel connected to one another and to God in their ordinary, everyday lives. She is a 2016 graduate of Pittsburgh Theological Seminary and was ordained in 2017 as a PC(USA) Minister of Word and Sacrament. She was ordained as the pastor of a new worshiping community, and most recently served as an associate pastor at Southminster Presbyterian Church. She strives to bring creativity and warmth to all she does in ministry, as well as a good dose of humor and flexibility.

Laura has found ministry most meaningful as she has walked alongside folks in transitions, whether celebratory or challenging. She feels called to discover God’s abiding presence amid change and uncertainty, and to cultivate a community of care in the church that truly grieves and rejoices together. We never walk the path of faith alone, and whether it is in worshiping together, sharing a meal, or exchanging a text, Laura’s desire as a pastor is to deepen our ties as a community and to deepen our trust in God’s love and grace.

Laura lives in Mount Lebanon with her husband, Ed, two children, Junia (8) and Oscar (4), and two dogs, Calvin and Waffles. In her free time, she enjoys hiking, traveling, and reading good books while sipping good coffee.