We are happy to announce Laura Steed Lorino as the founding Executive Director and Community Leader of L’Arche North Carolina. Laura’s first day at L’Arche North Carolina is today!
Laura is originally from the Midwest and attended the University of Indianapolis, receiving a Bachelor of Arts in Youth Ministry. She then completed a Master of Divinity degree at Duke Divinity School. While at Duke, Laura was involved in several ministry opportunities and has since completed a Clinical Pastoral Education residency at the UCSF Medical Center in San Francisco.
Laura is coming to L’Arche North Carolina from the University of the Pacific in Stockton, CA, where she served as the Director of Religious & Spiritual Life and Multifaith Chaplain. In this role, she supervised the Affiliate Campus Ministers and Morris Chapel staff, providing opportunities for students, staff, and faculty to explore and strengthen their religious and nonfaith beliefs and traditions, while encouraging the campus community to build bridges amongst differences through organizing programs and events.
Passionate about service and helping others feel heard, seen, and included, she also led numerous interfaith service-trips locally and beyond. Laura served on the Board of Directors for the Sierra Service Project, an ecumenical Christian non-profit organization providing life-changing experiences through acts of service repairing homes in rural and urban communities, from 2015-2018.
Laura and her wife, Stephanie, were recently married in Yosemite National Park. They have two pups, Berkeley (a Goldendoodle) and Duke (a mini Aussie Doodle). In their spare time, they love to camp, hike, bike, and travel.
Laura’s commitment to L’Arche arises out of her personal commitment to love and inclusion. In her application materials she wrote:
…my passion for sharing and showing kindness with all persons and advocating for inclusion make me a great candidate for this position. I believe this love is a foundation to L’Arche communities, for both Core Members and Assistants to feel heard, seen, and included.
We hope you will join us in welcoming Laura, and make sure she feels “heard, seen, and included” too! You can send her a welcome message at [email protected]. We will be welcoming Laura soon in true L’Arche style with a virtual event, so look for your invitation soon!
