MINISTRY SPOTLIGHT: Sister Gail Guelker
Executive Director, Metropolitan Congregations United
St. Louis, Missouri

Bio Box
Birthplace: St. Louis
Family background:  She grew up on The Hill with a tight-knit family; has 1 sister, 2 nieces, 1 nephew, 5 great-nieces and great-nephews
Quote to live by: “Love tenderly, do justice and walk humbly with your God.”
Living person you most admire: Mary Gonzalez, a faith-based community organizer
Historical figure you identify with: Dorothy Day
Last book you read: Audacity of Hope by Barrack Obama

Q. How did you get started in your ministry?

A. While I was working with BREM Catholic Social Ministry in north St. Louis, I went to a community supper where Greg Galluzzo, director of the Gamaliel Foundation, was in attendance. He encouraged me to attend a national week-long training on faith-based organizing, and I finally went in 1991. Around that same time, a faith-based organization formed in St. Louis, and they hired their first organizer. After serving as an intern and organizer for Metropolitan Congregations United (MCU), I was appointed executive director in 1994.

Q. What does your role as executive director of MCU involve?

A. I’m responsible for the movement of the organization as a whole. I supervise staff, ensure things are integrated with the clusters, work on issues and actions, recruit congregations and organize fundraisers.

Q. How do you extend the charism through your ministry?

A. I direct a faith-based organization that strives for equitability for all people in our region – the poor, women, children, and working class. Our work helps to enact social change and to break down barriers to economic and social justice. We focus on five major issues: healthcare, education, economic development, immigration, and workforce development. MCU is currently working in coalition with other groups to bring back Medicaid to those who need it to provide adequate healthcare for themselves and/or their families.

Q. Name one thing about your ministry people might not know.

A. MCU has 62 congregations that represent 11 different religious denominations.

Q. What goal do you have for the future of MCU?

A. I want to see MCU become a statewide organization.

Q. What do you consider to be your greatest achievement?

A. Taking MCU from 13 congregations to 62.