Elizabeth’s Story

If you had asked Elizabeth Horan a few years ago how she would be spending her summers as a college student, she would not have expected to be working as a summer camp counselor at a Lutheran church. 

Growing up, Elizabeth and her family attended a local church in Northern Virginia. Elizabeth was a devoted and active member; she participated in the church choir, went on mission trips, and volunteered with their hypothermia prevention campaigns. After going off to college, however, Elizabeth became less involved. 

“When college and covid hit, I really didn’t like virtual church,” Elizabeth shared. “My faith journey was kind of paused.”

After her first year of college, one of her best friends from high school, Laurel Echard, invited Elizabeth to come work at Abiding Presence. Last summer, Elizabeth worked as a food pantry intern. 

Elizabeth said that working at Abiding Presence (and devotions specifically) “reopened” her faith journey. 

“Devotions are a really special part of my day,” Elizabeth shared. “It’s one of the best ways to start the day at this job because its a moment where we all get to reflect and thank God in our own way.”

In addition to strengthening her faith, Elizabeth has learned a lot her future career in marketing. Last summer, Elizabeth helped create content for the church's social media and the food pantry. 

“I’ve learned that it’s super important to know who your audience is,” Elizabeth said. “You can create content to your own style but if it’s not tailored to your audience it won’t have an impact.”

Overall, Elizabeth is thankful for her experience working at Abiding Presence and feels that she has found a new church home.

“I’m most thankful for the community,” Elizabeth shared. “I was really lost in my faith journey and this experience has strengthened it.

This fall, Elizabeth will be a junior Marketing major at James Madison University with a minor in Sports Communication. After college, she hopes to have a career in social media content creation for a sports team.