Catherine Freytag ’26
“What I’ve always hoped to do is help people to see how beloved they are, and that they’re always looked after by something bigger than themselves that is a force of good that we could never possibly understand. And that we are to carry that on and share that with others. What I especially want all the kids to know is that they’re never alone. And they always have somebody looking after them, and they always have me praying for them.”
– Chaplain Slater, commenting on how she helps and teaches students from all different backgrounds and religions.
Unfortunately, this year will be Chaplain Sally Slater’s last at St. Andrew’s. This is very hard for many students, parents, and teachers, as she has been beloved in our community for so many years.
Most high schoolers may know Chaplain Slater from our occasional all-school chapels, but she is much more than that to the St. Andrew’s community.
Chaplain Slater has held the position of Chaplain to the Lower school, counselor, and religion teacher for ten years in the community. She’s been at the school since 2014 when the lower school included a separate intermediate school section, as well as a preschool to second grade lower school campus of its own.
Back then, she had to split her time between both campuses. However, she was always able to be everywhere she was needed, as I can attest to from my memories of her in my lower school chapels.
Coincidentally, Chaplain Slater joined our community the same year my family did, and she has been a pillar of our religious journey, along with many others who have known her.
One of the most prominent ways she impacts the community is in her weekly chapel services, where Chaplain Slater always shares her well-recognized and well-loved blessings to help curate a positive space.
When the congregation finishes the Lord’s Prayer and prepares for dismissal, she makes sure to bless the community by saying, “Make a difference in someone’s life today. Let your kind word, action, or smile touch the heart of everyone you meet.” She hopes this serves as a reminder to be mindful of others and their struggles, and to have compassion.
Another favorite closing blessing goes, “Too small for anything but love, and too fragile for anything but care.” With this, she considers the importance of each person, and she hopes to always ensure “all the adults, and especially the kids, really know how precious and wonderful they are. That someone is there for them. When you think there’s not, there is someone there for you and God is always with you.”
These blessings beautifully capture Chaplain Slater’s goals as a minister and showcase the kind of loving space she strives to create in the community.
In addition to her goals in a chapel setting, Chaplain Slater also shared her goals for her classroom environment as a religion teacher. When asked what she hopes to teach kids, Chaplain Slater remarked,
“I want to give students just a sense of some of the typical stories they might run into. There’s so much that we don’t even think about that’s referenced somehow to a Bible story. But also to realize whatever sacred text we’re looking at, whether it’s a Hebrew Bible, the Christian Bible, the Quran, or something else, there’s a universal story in there.”
As an example, She mentioned the parable of David and the lion’s den, and how she uses that lesson specifically to teach younger students to show courage in their own lives.
Another way she teaches the universal story is by providing a space where older students can curate a chapel service focused on what they find important, and she finds joy in showing these students the power of their voices.
Chaplain Slater has also had an extensive career before St. Andrew’s, with this being her 40th year in education. She got her education degree from Tucson University, and after that pursued a degree in special education from Syracuse University, which she then used in her first job as a teacher at a special needs school. During her time at that school, Chaplain Slater also taught classes at Syracuse and De Moines universities. She then worked with Johns Hopkins to establish a partnership for graduate students interested in Special Ed, and then as director of special services at a Hebrew academy.
From there, she transitioned to Berkeley Divinity School at Yale to study Episcopal seminary, sharing that it was a great opportunity “to hear about what other people believed” because of its religious diversity.
When asked how someone could get started in ministry, Chaplain Slater advised to first talk to an experienced chaplain and find an opportunity to shadow your local chaplain if possible. She also mentioned that not all chaplains are officially ordained and that “there are lots of different paths to being a chaplain.”
Finally, Chaplain Slater reflected on the gifts St. Andrew’s has given her, and how her weekly chapels allow her to appreciate the wonderful community, marveling, “Don’t we have a great community? And aren’t we blessed that God is among us?”
When asked what her takeaways will be from her time here, she shared what an honor it has been to be a part of so many people’s journeys, whether they be joyous or somber, and she hopes to have been a godly presence of support.
For Chaplain Slater, leaving St. Andrew’s “was a really, really hard decision to make.” She said, “I’ll miss people a lot. But I’ve really felt that for the past couple of years that God’s calling me into some new ministries, and so, you know, I’ll listen to where he is calling me next.”
She plans on studying to become a spiritual director, which is “a companion that walks with you spiritually”. She also hopes to return to her past of leading spiritual retreats that she frequented before COVID-19. Lastly, she wishes to work more in churches, specifically looking forward to reconnecting with the congregation at the National Cathedral and writing sermons for them, something she hasn’t found time for in recent years.
Chaplain Slater will be sorely missed, and her contributions to this community will live on for many years, especially in the hearts she has touched.
Photograph by St. Andrew’s Photographer