Th Reverend (Pastor) Monica Jefferson~~Biography
The Reverend Monica Jefferson (Pastor Monica) is a native of St. Louis, Missouri. She serves as the Senior Pastor of St. Andrew United Methodist Church, Florissant, Missouri. She has the rare distinction of being one of the very few pastors to return as the Senior Pastor of a congregation where she once served as a student and associate pastor. She is one of the first African American females to serve as a Senior Pastor a program staff congregation.
Education and Professional History
Pastor Monica Jefferson attended St. Louis University and Fontbonne University, where she majored in business administration and marketing. She graduated from Saint Paul School of Theology COS in 1997 and was ordained in June 1998. Prior to full-time ministry and ordination, Rev. Jefferson worked for Sears and Roebuck, Limited Stores, and Lord and Taylor as human relations manager, regional and area sales manager.
Appointments and Service
Her assignments have included Associate Pastor, St. Andrew United Methodist Church, 1992-1998. She has served as staff to Bishop Ann B. Sherer and Bishop Robert Schnase as the Associate Conference Council Director for the Missouri East Conference from 1998-2000 and as United Methodist Missouri State Conference Coordinator of Urban and Intercultural Ministries 2000-2007. Pastor Monica (2012-Present) serves as the state of Missouri and Missouri Conference Secretary of the United Methodist Church, she serves as the Gateway Central District and Missouri Conference Boards of Ordain ministry as a mentor. She is the Administrative Pastor for the St. Andrew and North Hills United Methodist Church Cooperative Parish.
Service Awards and Honors
She has received awards for Social Justice and Community Advocacy from North County Churches United for Racial Harmony and Justice, The Missouri Conference of the United Methodist Church, and with the help of the office of Communications of the United Methodist Church produced and wrote the script for a training video titled “The Cost of Reconciliation. She serves on the “Solutions Committee” meeting with police chiefs and police officers from St. Louis County and several counties in Illinois to find ways to work together to stop violence through positive engagement. Recently she served on the steering committee for the first Martin Luther King, Jr. Celebration, with the Christian Hospital Foundation to raise funds for scholarships to help young people further their education. She is also a member of the North County Chamber of Commerce.
Ministry of Reconciliation and Building Bridges
Pastor Monica builds bridges between people, churches, and the community. She says, “Sometimes one must demolish old bridges and build new ones especially when dealing with ethnicity, race, class, systems, and institutions. Bridge building and the ministry reconciliation is wonderfully messy work that continues to stretch us to live Christ-centered lives, always growing in faith and practice.”
Reverend Jefferson is married to Dennis Jefferson, a retired executive of Macy’s Department Stores; they have one adult daughter, Shaunta Terea Jefferson.
