Rev. Hope Hutchison. Photo courtesy of Minnesota UMC.

Rev. Hope Hutchison, an ordained deacon in the Minnesota Conference, is serving as the Executive Administrative Assistant to the Bishop. She replaces Janet Beard, who left for another job.

Rev. Hutchison previously served at Richfield United Methodist Church in Minneapolis, Minnesota, for five years, working with the children’s, youth, family, and outreach ministries. She also served at Northeast United Methodist Church in Minneapolis.

Pastor Hope is a lifelong United Methodist and the daughter of a pastor. “My dad is a member of the California-Pacific Annual Conference. I grew up attending different churches in southern California, mostly east of Los Angeles.” 

She ventured away from home to attend Macalester College in St. Paul, Minnesota. “I wanted to go to a small school and experience a different place,” shared Pastor Hope.

Her aunt, Rev. Becky Sechrist, a clergy member of the Minnesota Conference, was nearby to provide a home away from home. 

“I was away from my parents but close to some other family,” said Pastor Hope. I met my husband at Macalester, and we both have ties in Minnesota.” 

Her call to ministry came at various times throughout her life. As a child, she experienced different churches at the places her dad was serving. 
 
“I think a lot of saints were along the way who kept pointing things out. I wasn’t necessarily ready to hear my calling. I really accepted it in college,” Pastor Hope said. “I felt a strong calling to justice ministries through the environmental justice movement.”

After completing her undergraduate degree in Environmental Studies, Hutchison attended Methodist Theological School in Ohio for her Master of Divinity.

“Dr. Tim Eberhart advised my thesis and helped me to apply the skills I learned in environmental justice in different justice arenas. It helped me prepare for a broader ministry,” said Pastor Hope.

The intersection of faith formation and transforming the world is a passion of Pastor Hope’s ministry. Defining ways to do faith formation that helps and enables justice work and doing justice work in ways that lead us to know and better define our faith beliefs and ethics is central to her ministry.

Organization and administrative skills are among her skill sets. “I did a lot of the background organizing that made many ministries run. That skill set has been very strong for me,” Pastor Hope explains. 

Pastor Hope takes her cat Zennie for a stroll. Photo courtesy of Hope Hutchison.

That is one of the reasons that she felt called to the Administrative Assistant to the Bishop position. She was ready for a different schedule so she could be present in the lives of the children of close friends. 

“I love children’s ministry, but there are a lot of nights and weekends. This position is a good fit for my skill set, and the change of pace will allow me to show up for the children in my life,” said Pastor Hope. “I have always seen my calling as being the extra adult in kids’ lives. That was so important to me growing up. I think it is a huge part of what church is, and it helped me see Jesus in the faces of the people I knew.”

She is an avid baseball fan, cheering for the Los Angeles Dodgers. Currently, she is training for a triathlon. Pastor Hope likes to spend time outside kayaking, gardening, and snowshoeing in the winter. 

Her husband, Aaron Dawson, is a software developer who tours with an electronic dance music duo. They live in south Minneapolis with their cat, Zennie. 

Pastor Hope will work in the Minneapolis episcopal office and from home. She looks forward to meeting and connecting with people throughout the Dakotas Conference.