Jennifer Reagan McCleery ’94 

I was a religious studies major at Trinity College and eventually attended Harvard University (M.Ed.) and Yale Divinity School (M.Div.) and became an ordained minister in the UCC Church. I’m currently serving as a pastor at Avon Congregational Church (ACC) in Avon, Connecticut, having previously served in a church in Darien, Connecticut.   

When I began working at ACC, one of the first parishioners to welcome me was Jim Reed ’83, a fellow Bantam and also a religious studies major. We hit it off immediately and have had many great conversations about our college days and theology, among other things. Jim has a local television show called What’s Your Story? in which he sits down with guests from all backgrounds to dive deeper into their stories. Jim has become passionately involved in advocating for the reduction of gun violence on the state and national level.  

We were delighted when our former professor, Leslie Desmangles, and his wonderful wife, Gertrude, began worshipping at ACC. Professor Desmangles (professor of religious studies and international studies, emeritus; retired in 2018) was one of the outstanding faculty members in the Religious Studies Department while I was at Trinity. I am still so grateful for the warmth, personal attention, rich course offerings, intellectual stimulation, and opportunities for organic conversation that he and other professors provided both in and out of the classroom.  

Part of the reason I’m a minister today is because of the foundation laid for me at Trinity College by professors like Leslie Desmangles and classmates like Jim Reed.  

I include a photo taken on March 5, 2023, at fellowship hour. I corralled Leslie and Jim into a photo because I wanted to show that even decades later, our Trinity College connections are strong and vibrant. Thanks, Trinity!