A Prominent Spiritual Leader With Community Ties––

Rev Ann Beams Joins Valley Presbyterian Church

By Dottie Evans

Since starting her new job June 1 as permanent pastor of Valley Presbyterian Church in South Brookfield, the Reverend Ann Beams is happily reacquainting herself with the church’s 113 active members –– many of whom she “knew before” when she served as part-time supply pastor three years ago.

“I already knew some faces, which helped. Now I hope to meet the ones I don’t know. I’ll be calling them up to schedule a visit. It’s a small church and I think I can manage to meet everyone,” she said during an interview in her office June 21.

Rev Beams is well known to Valley Presbyterian Church and to the town of Newtown, where she and her husband Mark, an attorney with General Electric Company, have lived since 1989.

Their two children, Claire Beams, 22, and Owen Beams, 19, now at Princeton University and Dartmouth College, may have been the only sister-brother combination to graduate as valedictorians from Newtown High School, in 2000 and 2003, respectively.

“My husband is an antiques buff and when we moved here, he wanted a house that was older than 1850 in a town with an excellent school system. Newtown was it, and we’ve been very happy here,” she said.

“We found a historic house on Dodgingtown Road that was built in 1734 and we’ve loved it. But now we’re looking to downsize,” she said.

Rev Beams said she felt “very excited” at the prospect of being able to devote her time and energies fully to her calling, now that both children are in college. In her eyes, the appointment at Valley Presbyterian Church could not have come at a better time.

Ann Beams, an Ohio native, received her bachelor of arts degree from Dartmouth College, and later received a master of divinity and STM degrees from Yale Divinity School.

She was ordained to the Ministry of Word and Sacrament in the Presbyterian Council of the United States of America in 1980, and served as associate pastor for nine years to an experienced minister in a congregation of 400 members at St Mark Presbyterian Church in Rockville, Md.

“We lived across the Potomac River in Arlington because we liked the historic area, the small houses, and access to metro,” she said.

Since then she has served five Presbyterian and three United Church of Christ churches in various interim capacities, ranging in size from 70 to 700 members. Her last full-time position was interim senior minister at Norfield Congregational Church in Weston.

Robert Birch, Valley Presbyterian Church’s clerk of session, stated recently, “It is a privilege and a blessing to have Ann Beams agree to serve as our pastor…She has integrity, honesty, is direct and selfless. She’s genuinely spiritual.”

 

Habitat For Humanity: Ongoing Commitment

During her 15 years in Newtown, the Rev Beams has been prominently involved in Habitat for Humanity. She is now finishing her fourth year on its governing board. She was board president from 2001 to 2003, and she currently co-chairs the affiliate’s Youth United Initiative, which numbers 300 young people.

“We are building a house with funds raised by high school-age youth on property on Golden Hills Road in Danbury. It costs $80,000 to build a home, and we have already raised $18,000 toward that goal,” she said. The group is planning a Battle of the Bands fundraiser at Danbury High School in the fall.

“The Presbyterian Church is very involved. We’re a covenant church for Habitat, one of only 16 in the area. Another is Trinity Episcopal Church in Newtown. It’s a substantial commitment of funds, prayer, and volunteers. We are actively recruiting youth between the ages of 5 and 25,” she added.

Also prominent in church leadership roles, Rev Beams has been active in the Presbytery of Southern New England, serving on the Christian Education Committee, the Candidates’ Committee, and two terms on its council where she is currently chair.

 

Pastoral Duties Come First

In addition to all of her other commitments, Rev Beams intends to put her pastoral duties at Valley Presbyterian at the top of the list. Although her position was described as “roughly 75 percent of full time,” she is prepared to fully assume church leadership responsibility.

“When I came on board, I made a commitment to always be involved in ministry. Primarily, I will administer the sacrament and have charge of pastoral care and worship. We have several independent committees that are very involved in the management and mission of this church, and I plan to sit in on those as well,” she added.

As the only mainstream Presbyterian church in Northern Fairfield County, Rev Beams feels confident that Valley Presbyterian, located at 21 West Whisconier Road in southern Brookfield off Route 25, is in a unique position to grow.

“The only other Presbyterian churches in the area are in Stamford, Fairfield, and Hartford,” she pointed out.

While Valley Presbyterian could fulfill an important leadership role in the Presbyterian Council of the United States of America for this area, Rev Beams does not want to see the church grow too quickly, overextend itself, or lose its “family feel.”

“We are small and energetic and we should keep on doing what we do well, but not spread ourselves too thin,” she said.