Faith Group Elects a Woman

On May 9, 2006, Ecumenical Ministries of Oregon installed new officers to serve on the Board of Directors at its Annual Community Awards and Celebration Dinner, held at the Hilton Hotel in Portland.
The interfaith organization Ecumenical Ministries of Oregon made history recently when it installed the Rev. Alcena Boozer as its new president. The Rev. Boozer, rector of St. Philip the Deacon Episcopal Church in Portland – and former Jefferson High School principal — is the first woman to hold the position.
The organization's outgoing president, the Rev. Dr. Daniel Bryant, senior pastor of First Christian Church in Eugene, installed. Boozer at a recent ceremony at the Hilton Hotel in downtown Portland.
He also installed the following officers of the board of directors: the Rev. Kent Harrop, pastor of First Baptist Church in McMinnville, board president; Trudy Bradley, business manager of First Christian Church in Portland, treasurer; and the Rev. Robert L. Ned, pastor of Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Portland, secretary.
"I am humbled and excited by the opportunity to join the leadership team of the board of directors for EMO," Boozer said.
She called the organization a "steady and strong prophetic voice in the community over the years" and said it would continue its work of "advocating for the poor and underserved as we work on justice and equality for all citizens across the state. This work is critical as we face continuing cuts in social service budgets at the national and local levels."
A native Portlander, Boozer has served the local community as an educator and as a priest of the Episcopal Church. As an educator, she had a 26-year career in Portland Public Schools as a teacher, counselor, vice-principal at Grant High School, assistant director of alternative education and principal of Jefferson High School. She retired from Portland Public Schools in 1997.
As a pastor, Boozer has served as an associate at St. John the Baptist, St. Stephen and Grace Memorial parishes in Portland and as vicar of St. Augustine in Clatskanie and Emanuel in Birkenfeld.
She works half-time as rector of St. Philip the Deacon Episcopal Church in Portland. Every Saturday morning at the Deacon's Dining Room, an outreach ministry of the parish, she helps to prepare and serve food to anyone in the community in need of a healthy, balanced meal. Last year the Deacon's Dining Room served more than 6,000 meals.
Ecumenical Ministries of Oregon is a statewide association of 16 Christian denominations including Protestant, Roman Catholic and Orthodox bodies working together to improve the lives of Oregonians through community ministry programs, ecumenical and inter-religious dialogue, environmental ministry and public policy advocacy.