LSTC to honor three distinguished alumni during all-virtual Homecoming
September 3, 2020
On October 15, the Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago (LSTC) will present 2020 Distinguished Alumni Awards to three of its outstanding graduates. Through their varied ministries they have been witnesses to the good news of Jesus Christ in the public sphere. The presentations will be made during LSTC’s all-virtual 2020 Homecoming. The ceremony will be live-streamed on LSTC’s Facebook page Oct. 15 at 7 p.m.
2020 Distinguished Alumni Award recipients
The Rev. Angela Shannon (1996, MDiv) will receive the Called to Lead Award. She has been a mentor and support for many women in the church, particularly women of color. She has been a mentor and support for many women in the church, particularly women of color. A self-described church “blerd,” she loves liturgy and theology. She is passionate about the ministry of reconciliation which is a sacred call of the baptized. Since 2011 Shannon has been a Benedictine Oblate of Our Lady of Grace Monastery, Beech Grove, Ind. For over 20 years she has been involved in ecumenical and interfaith conversations in the U.S. and abroad. She is an advocate for LGBTQIA+ individuals and other historically oppressed people. She currently serves as pastor of All Saints Lutheran Church, Bowie, Md. Shannon has been director of student life at Luther Seminary, St. Paul, Minn.; associate pastor of King of Glory Lutheran Church, Dallas/Ft. Worth, Texas; and served as intentional interim for several congregations in need of healing and revitalization. She is the national vice president of the African Descent Lutheran Association.
The Rev. Kyle Severson (2015, MDiv) will receive the Emerging Voice Award. In his first years of ordained ministry, Severson has demonstrated a commitment to raising up and equipping new leaders for Christ’s church. He served on and later chaired the Metropolitan Chicago Synod’s candidacy committee and supervised contextual education students at St. Philip Lutheran Church, Glenview, Ill., where he was pastor. He led that congregation to become Reconciling in Christ. He currently serves as associate to the presiding bishop of the Metropolitan Chicago Synod, ELCA, where he focuses on candidacy and relates to the North and Near West Conferences. He was instrumental in providing guidelines to congregations during the Covid-19 pandemic. He is an active member and contributor to Extraordinary Lutheran Ministries and Proclaim, advocating for the inclusion of LGBTQIA+ people in the life of the church.
The Rev. Troy Hedrick (1963, MDiv) will receive the Lifetime Service Award posthumously. Hedrick was known as a kind and patient teacher, a mentor to many. serving four congregations throughout Illinois. While at St. Luke’s, Park Ridge, Ill., he served on the board of Lutheran General Hospital, chairing the committee on medical ethics. He was then called to serve as vice president for community outreach at Trinity Healthcare System in the quad-cities. He retired in 1999 but remained active on the board of Crusader Clinics in Rockford, Ill. He also volunteered as a patient advocate and was part of a group called “No One Dies Alone” at Swedish American Hospital, also in Rockford. He received the Spirit of Caring Award from Crusader Health in 2012.
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Jessica Houston
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