Author and Chaplain Andrea Raynor to Speak at Concordia College Books & Coffee Program Thursday, April 24

Apr. 16, 2014:  Chaplain Andrea Raynor will discuss her new book, Incognito: Lost and Found at Harvard Divinity School, on Thursday, April 24, at 7:00 pm at Concordia College.

The free Books & Coffee program, supported by Friends of Concordia, will be held in Concordia's Sommer Center for Worship and the Performing Arts.

Incognito: Lost and Found at Harvard Divinity School is Raynor's second nonfiction book that gives readers an intimate look into her personal life transformation. It begins with Raynor's leaving Ohio as a 22-year-old college graduate thinking she might become a doctor and evolves into a 1980s tale about a young woman who successfully navigates a male-dominated Harvard institution to attain her ordination as a Methodist minister.

Advance praise for the book includes a statement by renowned author Lee Woodruff, who writes, "Raynor's engrossing memoir switchbacks the reader through the realities, passions, pettiness, lessons, disappointments and triumphs on the way to ordination. . . . Whatever your perceptions are of the men and women who wear the collar, they will be challenged in this honest and soul searching romp."

Raynor's first book, The Voice that Calls You Home: Inspiration for Lost Journeys, is a compelling collection of essays reflecting her experiences as a hospice chaplain, cancer survivor, and chaplain at Ground Zero following 9/11.

She holds a master's of divinity degree from Harvard and was ordained by the United Methodist Church, and she has been a hospice chaplain since 1997. She lives in Rye, New York, where she is chaplain for the Rye Fire Department.

A book sale, book signing, and refreshments will follow Raynor's reading and audience Q&A session.

No registration is required for this free event. All community members are welcome and are encouraged to arrive early.

For more information, contact Ellen de Saint Phalle, director of community relations at Concordia College, at 914-337-9300, ext. 2159, or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Pictured here:  Author and chaplain Andrea Raynor.

Photo courtesy Ellen de Saint Phalle, Director of Community Relations, Concordia College