Meet William Terry | Retired Rector of St. Anna’s Episcopal Church; currently Vicar of two small congregations and Adjunct Faculty at the Tulane University School of Medicine.

We had the good fortune of connecting with William Terry and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi William, how do you think about risk?
For much of my life I have been a risk taker rather than a conservator. When I became a priest at a very thread-bare little urban church that did not change. Without the burden of “protecting an endowment” I found that life was much more abundant and filled with potential. Poverty is a terrible thing but it is also liberating in some ways. Our church was poor and we made no apologies for it. After Hurricane Katrina devastated our city, the City of New Orleans and much of the region we discovered that work in our community and diverting resources pouring into us were far better placed in the community rather than “conserving” or “saving the church.” So when we had funds or resources we plowed them back into the community. What we discovered is that the old axiom money follows mission was true. The budget that we worked with prior to August of 2005 was about $180,000 per year for the whole operation. By August of 2006 our budget was about $1,000,000! Because we took what little we had and invested it in the tangible and observable work of aiding and assisting the community rather than “saving the church.” Indeed the church began to thrive because we took those financial risks.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I was a college washout prior to my joining the U.S. Navy. After an Honorable Discharge I attended Tulane University. I then became a Marine Underwriter with an International insurance company. After a few years I joined local firms and soon enough owned my own Underwriting firm. But my life did have some difficult turns. I married at age 32 and within just a few years had to confront the fact that I was an alcoholic. Enjoying a successful recovery my career was paying well and my family lived the “good life.” Then one of our two daughters was diagnosed with bi-polar disorder. In the 1980’s we did not know what that meant and the treatments were not as well known nor tried as they are now. The result was that our daughter committed suicide at age 18. We had leaned into our local church just blocks away in this lovely suburban community. Even then suicide was experienced as something of a social embarrassment. This was another major turning point in my professional and personal life. The summary of all of this is that each of these life changing moments prepared me for my call as clergy to an inner city urban parish surrounded by poverty and crime needing an entrepreneurial spirit. I knew addiction, I knew the loss of a child to violence, I knew professional risk taking.

The upshot is that Saint Anna’s is home to a “Murder Board” and Memorial to the Victims of (Urban) Violence called “The Tree of Life” memorial. In response to urban violence it instituted and has invested in a broad after school arts based program called Anna’s Place NOLA providing strategic support for urban youth of color. Saint Anna’s is also known as a “safe space” for the LGBTQ+ community which is well invested in this crossroads of the city. The faith community also hosts a substantial Food Pantry for those experiencing food shortages; a watering station for passersby; repurposed plastic shopping bags turned into sleeping mats for the unhoused; it participates in community interest groups and advocacy for “cooling stations.” All of this in a little church in an urban area with rich and poor, black, brown, white queer and straight. It is a true melting pot of persons. This is a quiet place in the middle of a social torrent seeking only to do good.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
It is New Orleans from marshes and wetlands, to lakes, to the world famous French Quarter and Frenchmen Street. To the oak lined avenues like Esplanade and St. Charles there is an abundance to experience. And food? What can one say but this is one of the culinary capitals of the world. Not just “Cajun” but a blossoming latin infusion, Vietnamese influences, and Caribbean fare all are ready for you to enjoy and indulge and much of this fare is in local out of the way spots. In fact some of the finest fried chicken is found in local gas stations. No kidding that is true. Where to take someone? Parks, clubs, mansions, historic black landmarks, it has depth in history that is unique to North America. It is a cultural blend and blur.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
My story would not be possible without the heroic efforts of a few people: Diana Meyers, a life long member of the church helped craft and deploy a strategic medical mission that for almost a decade served the survivors of Katrina and was a constant companion to me in this work; Luigi Mandile was a part of this team always with room to listen and to provide friendship even during exhaustion; Mary K. Dodwell a long time member of the church and benefactor and supporter of myself personally and of the work that we did. The Rt. Rev. Charles Jenkins was always a supporter of our work. Finally, whatever ministry model I may have had it was based on the work of “Slum Priests” such as Fr. Stanton Curate at St. Alban’s Anglican Church in Holborn in the 1880’s.