News

Dear all,

My name is Courtney Esteves (she/her), and I am delighted to accept the Pastoral Residency Committee’s invitation to serve at Village Church! I deeply appreciated the care and consideration of each committee member, and I am honored that the congregation will vote on this call on April 27th.

This spring, I am preparing to graduate with a Master of Divinity from Yale Divinity School along with a diploma from Andover Newton Seminary. Across my years of seminary, some of my favorite areas of study have included disability theology, trauma-informed pastoral care, and housing justice. Following graduation, I am looking forward to a summer back home in New York City, during which I will be a Clinical Pastoral Education (CPE) student at Bellevue Hospital.

A proud alumna of the College of the Holy Cross, I am excited by the prospect of making another home in Massachusetts! After college in Worcester, I taught Religion at my alma mater Marymount School of New York before I left the northeast to share life in the L’Arche Jacksonville community, a home for adults with and without intellectual disabilities.

As I prepare to move away from Connecticut, I am grateful for the proximity between Wellesley/Weston and my home congregation, Waquoit Congregational Church in East Falmouth, who is supporting my ordination discernment in the UCC.

Outside of church, I love going for walks, sending snail mail to loved ones, playing board games, and learning about others’ passions. Even in a (so-far) short period of getting to know Village Church, I have been in awe of the congregation’s passion for “choosing love and making it real.” I really have sensed the love that pulses through Wellesley and Weston by way of this community, and I trust that a Pastoral Residency here would be a blessing!

With gratitude,

Courtney

Village Church held a congregational meeting Sunday, April 27, 2025 following 10 AM worship and joyfully voted to call Courtney to serve as our next pastoral resident June 2025 through August 2027.