Bio

My Formation

My life in the spirit began at a very early age. I was treated to an education at the Academy of the Sacred Heart in St. Charles, Missouri for 12 years. There I developed a deep devotion to St. Philippine Duchesne and the Sacred Heart. Attending the first school founded by the RSCJ’s in North America gave me the privilege of walking the same holy ground that Philippine walked. I also had the honor of being educated by the very loving, dynamic and bold Religious of the Sacred Heart. These are women who believe in the strength and power of women in the church and embrace Vatican II with courage and leadership, especially encouraging a more robust role for women in the church. It was there at an early age that I first heard the call to become a doctor.

From there I attended St. Louis University where I majored in Biology and studied Theology extensively, including Old and New Testament, ethics, spirituality, the mystics, and prayer. I was fortunate during that time to have as my parish St. Francis Xavier (College) Church where the new music of the St. Louis Jesuits was forming and enhancing worship.

I attended medical school at St. Louis University School of Medicine where I was involved in pastoral ministry to peers and continued my education in ethics and care of the dying. It was there that I developed an interest in Geriatrics. My residency in internal medicine was completed at the Medical College of Wisconsin (the former Marquette Medical School and Hospitals) in Milwaukee, WI and my fellowship in Geriatrics was at Duke Unversity Medical Center from 1984-1986.

I am Board Certified in Internal Medicine and Geriatric Medicine. I am a Fellow of the American Geriatrics Society. I practiced at St. John’s Mercy Medical Center in St. Louis, Missouri for 10 years as Chief of the Division of Geriatric Medicine and later had a solo practice in home care for 5 years. Rich were these years for I had the privilege to attend the chronically ill, the dying, the lonely, the poor and the grieving. I learned much about the spirituality of late life and caregiving. When my family moved to Denver in 1997, I elected to take a sabbatical to care for my young sons and to seek treatment for a severe chronic pain condition that besieged me. My sabbatical turned into a seven year experience where I fine tuned the gifts of motherhood, endured unrelenting pain and studied at length the mystics, prayer, scripture and other theological interests, while at the same time keeping current in medicine. I finally found relief from my pain in 2004, but I know that my suffering was a gift in understanding the burdens, despair and exhaustion that go along with daily pain.

My prayer life grew and I realized that I wanted to share the joy I had received with other women. I honed the skills necessary to companion women along their spiritual odyssey and began this new path in my life. I started It’s Simply Divine, Spiritual Support Services for Women in 2002.

My husband Tom is a Theologian and Ethicist and has a consulting business called Ethically Speaking, www.ethicallyspeaking.com. Ethics. medicine and theology are intrinsically linked in our household and in our work.

I decided to return to the practice of Medicine for many reasons. The first is that my pain is under control and I am able to work a full day. Events like Hurricane Katrina and volunteering at Hospice of Metro Denver made me want to use my medical skills again. I began to feel a gentle pull from God to fulfill a vision I had been dreaming about for many years. Thus the transformation of It’s Simply Divine into Paradigm Care, where health and spiritual care are united for excellent care for the mature woman.

In my leisure I am an avid reader, a novice oil painter, a passionate dog owner and a reluctant walker. I have evolved into a witty wife and daughter, a constantly amazed mother, and would be bon vivant. In October 2006 I became a member of the Third Christian Reformed Church, which I gladly proclaim as my church home.