Welcome Stephanie

Stephanie grew up in western Wisconsin on a large dairy farm in a little town called Hammond. She graduated from the University of Northwestern-St. Paul (used to be Northwestern College) for Psychology and started her career there in registration for the Online Learning department. From there, she worked at a staffing firm supporting recruiters and account managers, doing some aspects of HR and discovered she loved working in HR! Stephanie completed a couple of consulting contracts with CWT and IDeaS, and most recently at the City of Chaska as their HR Generalist. She is excited to be Auburn’s HR Business Partner and has enjoyed getting to the team at Auburn. Feel free to swing by her office in Chaska and select a ‘getting-to-know-you’ question out of her Tomato Soup can so she can get to know you better! 

Stephanie resides in Chaska with her husband Jason and daughter Azalea (3). In her free time she chases her daughter around the house and enjoys theatre – acting, singing, dancing, choreography and going to shows.

Fun fact: Stephanie's go-to karaoke songs are: Total Eclipse of the Heart (Bonnie Tyler),  Livin’ on Prayer (Bon Jovi) and Walking on Broken Glass (Annie Lennox).

Pastor's Corner with Reverend Cathy Kolwey

Do you have a spiritual practice? 

Maybe you have a moment in your day set aside for prayer, or you have a plan to read the Bible every morning. Maybe your spiritual practice includes meeting with a group at church or saying the rosary every evening. There are many traditional spiritual practices that can help your faith journey. They are a great way to center yourself and ground yourself. AND spiritual practices can be unique and creative, too. It’s not just about reading you Bible.

For instance, I know one Auburn friend who has said that walking an archery path feels like a spiritual practice for them. The time alone, communing with nature, as well as the challenge of having to hit marks along the way helps them to get grounded and centered, and gives them time to talk to God. See what I mean? An archery path may be non-traditional, but for this person, it is spiritually fulfilling. There are plenty of unique ways to develop your spiritual self. Things like walking a labyrinth, reading scripture with Lectio Divina, drawing mandalas, or writing in a journal can all be spiritual practices. One year, I decided that I was going to write a poem a day for an entire year. Writing haiku became a spiritual practice for me because as I looked back through what I had written, I could see signs of God speaking to me through my writing. Anything, done with intention, can become a spiritual practice.

For Lent this year (which, by the way, starts on Feb. 14^th…. Just around the corner!...) we here at Auburn Homes & Services will be exploring different spiritual practices. In chapel chats and Bible studies, we will be learning about different ways to connect with God and deepen our faith. Both residents and staff will have opportunities each week to try out a new practice, and experience both traditional and unique ways to grow spiritually. 

I would invite you too into a Lenten journey where you try a new spiritual practice for 2024. You might be surprised and connect with your spiritual side in a whole new way. If you need some ideas about what to do, just call the Spiritual Care office. We have lots of ideas.

God’s richest blessings to you in 2024,

Rev. Cathy M. Kolwey

Director of Spiritual Care