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THE REV. JAMES GERTMENIAN

The Rev. James Gertmenian was born in South Pasadena, California, in 1947. After graduating from high school in 1965, he attended Oberlin College, where he received the B.A. Degree in 1969. He completed his graduate work at Union Theological Seminary in 1972, where he received the M.Div. degree.

The Rev. Gertmenian's first pastorate was in a two-point rural parish near Binghamton, New York, where he served as co-pastor with his wife from 1972 until 1979. He then was called by the Presbytery of Southern New England to undertake a New Church Development in Danbury, CT. This pastorate continued through the building of a church edifice in 1988. From 1989 until 1996, he was Senior Minister of Norfield Congregational Church in Weston, CT. He was installed as Senior Minister of Plymouth in October, 1996.

The Rev. Gertmenian is a hymn-writer, with several of his works appearing in various denominational hymnals, including The New Century Hymnal (UCC) and The Book of Praise (Presbyterian Church in Canada). A choral anthem for which he wrote both words and music was published by Mark Foster Press, and his hymn text, The Fallow Heart Is God's Own Field, was premiered in an anthem setting composed by Randall Davidson in 1999.

The Rev. Gertmenian has served on various civic and denominational boards. He was elected to two terms as a member of the School Board in his first parish. He was a cofounder and board member of the Interfaith AIDS Ministry of Greater Danbury. He has served on the Board of the Jeremiah Project in Minneapolis and is currently on the Board of United Theological Seminary, where he chairs the Academic Affairs Committee.  The grandson of Armenian immigrants from Turkey, he has also taken an interest in developments in the Republic of Armenia since the dissolution of the Soviet Union. In particular, he has assisted in the establishment of a Pediatric Health Care program in Yerevan (Armenia's capital) under the auspices of AmeriCares, a Connecticut-based world relief organization.  During a 2003 Sabbatical, he visited Armenian sites in Turkey, including his ancestral village.  In addition, he visited the Gertmenian School in Beirut, founded by his grandfather in 1931.  

His interests include music (piano, guitar), running (New York Marathon, 1993), theater and travel. He is married to Susan Deborah King, a poet and teacher. Together they are parents of twin daughters, Emily and Enid.  Enid, a graduate of the New School University (BA) and Columbia University (MSW) and is a Social Worker in New York.  Emily is a graduate of Gettysburg College and is currently completing a Masters in Education at the University of San Francisco.  The family are summer residents of Great Cranberry Island, Maine.

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