Rev. Alice Diebel

I am an ordained Unitarian Universalist (UU) minister serving the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Petoskey (UUCoP) since 2020. Beginning in January of 2023, I will be in the virtual pulpit twice a month. I am grateful for this community’s commitment to our liberal faith.

I have been UU for over 30 years, went to a UU seminary (Meadville Lombard Theological School) for a Master of Divinity and was ordained in 2020. My ministry is a bit unique and has two very different focuses. First, I serve UUCoP on a part-time basis from a distance. One of the gifts of the pandemic was our ability to create inspiring and inclusive worship services on-line! While I live in another state (Dayton, Ohio) I am readily available thanks to technology. I am originally from Michigan and have strong connections to the state. Second, I pursued the ministry after receiving a “calling” from the voices of people deeply involved in criminal justice reform, voices such as Bryan Stevenson and Michelle Alexander. I knew I could no longer turn away from this ache in our society. This ministry is outside the walls of any congregation and is called community ministry. This ministry is working to reform our systems of mass incarceration (justice work) and reaching out with compassion to people who have been affected by incarceration (pastoral work). I am grateful to have two paths to serve.

Prior to the ministry I served as a Program Officer for the Kettering Foundation, moving to Ohio in 2005 from Michigan. In Michigan, I worked in nursing and health care administration for 30 years. I have a PhD from Michigan State University in Resource Development, a Master of Science in Nursing from the University of Michigan, and a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Wayne State University. I live with my partner Bob, and the birds that frequent our backyard feeders in Dayton.