“Against the Odds, They Did Preach”: The First Four Women Ordained Elder in the United Methodist Tradition, Part Two

THE REV. PATRICIA J. THOMPSON is a semi-retired elder in the New England Annual Conference (NEAC) of The United Methodist Church, currently serving as 1/4 Coordinating Pastor (in charge of administration) and local church historian for the Wolcott United Methodist church in Wolcott, Vermont. She is also the Historian for the NEAC and served as Editor of Historian's Digest, the newsletter for the Historical Society of the UMC (HSUMC), from 2009–2020. In 2006 she received the GCAH Distinguished Service Award, in part, for her publication of Courageous Past, Bold Future: The Journey Toward Full Clergy Rights for Women in The United Methodist Church.