Director of Godly Play

LuAnn Wilks (she/her/hers) began teaching elementary-age children in 1980. She has an undergraduate degree in Horticulture and Special Education and a master’s degree in Elementary Education and is a certified 3-6 year-old Montessori teacher and was the director of a Montessori School for 10 years. LuAnn is dedicated to nurturing the spiritual formation of children and started teaching Godly Play in 1988, which has served as a major influence in her spiritual life. LuAnn established Godly Play programs in several parishes including St. James and regularly leads Godly Play workshops in Western North Carolina. She has been influenced by Jerome Berryman, Fred Rogers, Maria Montessori, Magda Gerber and Janet Lansbury (author of several books on respectful parenting). LuAnn cares deeply for persons suffering with mental illness and the homeless community. Sustainable gardening and fiber arts including quilting are things that nurture her creativity. Her mother instilled in her the love for the beauty of the mountains which she now explores with her husband Dave and shares with her grandchildren. LuAnn loves to explore cooking foods from other cultures, and baking sourdough bread which she shares with friends and family. Her southern roots are exposed by her love for fried catfish and anything Cajun.