Women’s Mentorship Program Fosters Spiritual Formation

When Jane Carter found out she would be partnered with an experienced healthcare chaplain through Western Seminary’s Women’s Mentorship Program, she was thrilled. Jane is a current Masters of Divinity student and aspires to become a chaplain when she graduates. 

Jane's mentor is Annette Gildemann, a long-time chaplain director in the Tacoma area and Western Seminary graduate. Looking back on the first semester of mentorship meetings, Jane is amazed at how much practical advice she has been given about the chaplaincy profession. But she is even more grateful for the way that her mentor has encouraged her amid some painful trials in her own personal life.

“Before I could delve into questions about chaplaincy, she stopped me and asked me how I was doing,” says Jane. “Annette has used her precious chaplaincy skills to help me pay attention to my own heart in a difficult season.”

Jane is one of 30 female students currently participating in the mentorship program, which connects students with Western alumni and ministry leaders. Students and mentors connect three times a semester, either in person or on the phone. Jane’s most recent conversation with her mentor lasted more than two hours.

“My mentor isn’t just doing this to be a good alum,” notes Jane. “She is fanning the gift that God has placed in me and reminds me of what God is calling me to.”

Thanks to the conversations she has had with Annette, Jane is developing a clearer picture of what it really looks like to serve as a chaplain. She notes that that before you even walk into a room as a chaplain, it helps to remember that God is already there. Consequently, a chaplain’s job is to find out what God may already be doing in a person’s life.

“They might not want anything to do with you, or they might be begging for someone to talk about spiritual things,” she says.

As she works through emotional trauma in her own life, Jane is thinking through how her own experiences have given her a unique perspective which will help her minister to those going through their own difficult times.

“How do we trust God as Lord of our lives when the paths of righteousness go through dark valleys? I want to be able to share with people that maybe dark valleys don’t conflict with God being good.”

As Jane continues to connect with her mentor, she is amazed at how much this program has contributed to both her personal and professional growth.

“Annette asks poignant questions, dares to ask the deeper, elusive questions to me, and provides pastoral wisdom to me to extend grace to myself in the heartache and tension of the here and not yet. It's such a gift to have someone be willing to go deeply into my pain and help me find a way through!”