|
Father John Mefrige, originally from Montreal, Canada, is the only child of George Mefrige and Renee Anber. He is a second generation Canadian of Lebanese and Syrian ancestry. His grandparents emigrated at the turn of the cent ury from Rachia Luadi and Ka Farmishkee to Canada and New York. Fr. John’s family has always been close to the Church; his maternal Great Uncle, Emmanuel, was the Antiochian Orthodox bishop of New York and the successor to Bishop Raphael Hawaweeny.
Fr. John has both Theological and Psychological education and training, holding both a Master of Divinity degree from Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology and a Master of Science degree in Marital and Family Therapy from Fuller Theological Seminary.
His linguistic competence includes fluency in English, French, Spanish and he has a basic knowledge of Arabic and Greek. Professionally, Fr. John is also a licensed Marriage and Family Therapist intern in the state of California. His professional qualifications include over one thousand clinical hours of family therapy experience in a community-counseling center. Pastorally, Fr. John has served a number of parishes in the Orthodox Church, including St. Elijah Church in Oklahoma City as Assistant Priest and Youth Director, and St. Nicholas Cathedral in Los Angeles as a Deacon and Youth Director.
Fr. John also has spent numerous years working with and establishing the youth camping program at the Antiochian Village under Fr. John Naime, of blessed memory, in both counseling and administrative capacities. He has extensive intercultural experience, having worked in a number of Latin American countries in the development and educational fields. His most recent project has been the establishment of Nicholas House, a family oriented outreach ministry and community center of St Nicholas Cathedral in Los Angeles, intended to serve the surrounding inner city neighborhood and the local Hispanic community. Fr. John is married to Janet Turkmany and they have a one-year-old daughter, Cassiana
|
