PCA Junior High Chapel Hosts Parent Career Panel

Bruce Sayre, Ruth Ogembo, Al Markert, and Elaina Russo (from left to right) speak to Junior High students about career choices.

At Friday’s regular chapel time this week, PCA’s Junior High hosted a panel of parents who talked to students about their career journeys and God’s leading in their lives. Panelists were transparent with students in sharing about bumps in the road, changes in direction, and the reality of failure in the professional world. Each panelist was asked about their career ambitions when they were young and how those ambitions measured up to what they ended up doing professionally. They joyfully shared about how, in many cases, God directed their path despite their own ideas of where their lives would head.

The participating parents also spoke with the students about feeling fulfilled in positions where they were confident that they were helping others and sharing the love of God. Ruth Ogembo, a Community Health Program Manager,  talked about her desire to help people and the way that God allows her to bring her own experiences to benefit others. Elaina Russo, PCA’s Admissions Director, shared about fulfillment and feeling God’s call to a position that allows her to use her gifts to support a cause that ignites her passion.

Each panelist also shared some practical lessons and real life advice. Bruce Sayre, a pilot, encouraged students to persevere in failure, sharing that what often seems like failure can direct you in the path that God has planned. Al Markert, an IT specialist, talked about God’s perfect timing and the wisdom in fully relying on His provision despite set-backs and daunting circumstances. Overall, the panelists shared diverse experiences and gave Junior High students a sense of the way that God works through his people to carry out His plans.