The Rev. Hollis Wright, the new minister at St. Matthew's Episcopal Church, used to be the vice-president of consumer products at the Bank of Hawaii before she was called to the ministry 16 years ago.

At the time, Wright's daughter Erin was attending private school where there was chapel every week.

“She wanted to know more about God so we decided to go to church,” Wright said. “We went to the Episcopal church which was near our house. It changed our lives — that's the truth — it made us a stronger family.”

A couple of years later Wright began the lengthy process of becoming an ordained minister.

The family — Wright, her husband Christopher Parsons and their children, Erin and Zack, moved to Berkeley, Calif., in 1993 where Wright studied with Jesuits at the Graduate Theological Union.

“You can study with others as well as with your own denomination,” which is helpful, Wright said. She also studied with Dominicans, Lutherans, Presbyterians and Baptists.

Wright spent 400 hours in pastoral care training, ministering to people at Summit Hospital in Oakland. Then, after completing her training the family returned to Hawaii where the Diocese of Hawaii ordained Wright as a minister. Wright served in three different churches in Hawaii.

Then, “I became aware last summer I was being called somewhere,” she said. “Coming to St. Matthew's came about through prayer.”

Wright became pastor of St. Matthew's Episcopal Church, 3888 27 1/2 Road, in March.

“I'm so lucky to be at St. Matthew's. It's a phenomenal group of people and a phenomenal church,” Wright said. “This church welcomes everyone who comes through the door.”

Wright is impressed with the number of ministries coming out of the church. She said she's continually finding out what church members do.

For example, just the other day she learned the congregation buys shoes for kids who need them, after an employee at Chipeta Elementary School called to thank the church for providing a pair of shoes for a student.

St. Matthew's provides food to the food banks.

Parishioners serve the homeless by volunteering at Grand Valley Catholic Outreach Day Center.

Volunteers also drive a church van whose sole purpose is to transport homeless people from the shelter to the Day Center, and to various appointments.

For two years, the church has supported missionary Cathy Donahoe who works as a physical therapist in the Dominican Republic.

The congregation also supports an orphanage in Honduras.

A woman's organization within the church — Daughters of the King — ministers to low- or no-income women giving birth at St. Mary's Hospital. The group provides newborn bags with diapers, and other supplies to help mothers and babies get by for the first couple of weeks.

“This is a very healthy church,” Wright said. It's full of “people who can go out and impact the world because of their faith.”

“Jesus said, ‘go out and feed the hungry, provide clothes for those who need clothes, care for the sick and visit the prisoner.' He also said ‘go forth and teach,'” Wright said.

Wright said she's never seen such devotion as she's found at St. Matthew's.

“I think (people here) are very empowered. They don't ask permission. They just do it. The church is not constrained by the clergy,” Wright said.

A prayer group meets at 12:15 p.m. Wednesdays to pray for people on a “substantial” prayer list the church keeps.

“This church has a strong healing ministry,” Wright said. “We have people who pray daily for people in need.”

Wright spends about 60 hours a week working, between preparing a weekly sermon, planning programs for the future, working with church leaders and helping people who are experiencing crisis.

Planning the worship sermon takes “at least 10 hours, sometimes 20,” Wright said.

For the July 4 holiday sermon, Wright turned to Alexis de Tocqueville's “Democracy in America.”

“I'm quoting Alexis de Tocqueville,” Wright said. “He came to America (in the 19th century from France) to figure out why America was so great. He concluded it was because of its churches.”

On Wright's office wall are photographs of two children, Gabriel and Ana Clara. Wright and her husband sponsor the two Brazilian children through the Colorado Springs-based Compassion International. The Christian child advocacy ministry organization works with local churches to establish schools and give clothes and provide education to poor families around the world, Wright said.

Although Wright said there are people she misses in Hawaii, she's happy to be at St. Matthew's.

“When God starts tugging on your heart, you follow,” she said.

Reach Sharon Sullivan at ssullivan@gjfreepress.com.