Rev. Christy Ann Clark is a Commission Deacon of the California-Pacific Conference of the United Methodist Church (UMC) and Executive Director and pioneer of Strengthening the Black Village (SBV). SBV seeks to meet the needs of children, youth and families impacted by the foster care system. SBV was born out of her vision to unite faith, government and community leaders in a shared mission to bring spiritual, emotional, social and physical wholeness and healing to at-risk children, youth and families, especially Black and Brown families/villages of care.
Rev. Christy earned a Master’s of Divinity from Fuller Theological Seminary and is currently working toward earning her Doctor in Ministry from Fuller. In addition, she earned double B.A. Degrees from California State University, Monterey Bay. Her undergraduate degrees are in Human Communications, and Collaborative Health, Human Services and Public Policy.
SBV’s Executive Director Is certified as a Supervised Monitor and Coach with the Los Angeles Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) and serves as a monitor/coach with Crossroads UMC, supervising court-ordered visits for families seeking reunification. As a Certified parent educator and instructor, she has a passion for educating parents in raising healthy and resilient children as well as in teaching other leaders to conduct parenting training. She has served as Minister of Children, Youth and Young Families with Saint Mark UMC (Los Angeles). Before that, she served as Youth Director at St. Paul UMC in Redondo Beach. Her previous work with the Monterey County Department of Social and Employment Services granted her valuable insight into out-of-home care from the social service providers’ vantage point. She has also worked in case management, grant-writing and direct care with blind/visually impaired children and adults. Raised in South Central LA, her call and dream has always been to return and serve the youth of the inner city, which is a dream being gloriously realized.
Raised in a combination of foster homes, group homes and kinship care settings, God helped Christy overcome traumatic beginnings, and called her to support, inspire and guide others who might otherwise not see hope and joy in their futures. Christy, a beloved, faithful, young Black woman with a visual impairment and a rough beginning in foster care, stands as a testament to God‘s grace, love and power.
Christy and her husband, Marlon, have been married since 2007 and have one son, Shaun! The family adopted Tuggles, a Jack Russell Terrier mix, from the ASPCA, thereby extending their love and care for the lost and abandoned even to dogs.
CONTACT SBV
(323)804-8469
revcaclark@strengtheningtheblackvillage.org
ATTN. Strengthening the Black Village (SBV) 8305 S. Gramercy Pl., Los Angeles, CA 90047
Charitable donations/contributions are accepted through PayPal!
Strengthening the Black Village (SBV) 