Charlotte completed her undergraduate studies at The College of Wooster in Wooster, Ohio, where she majored in religion.  She entered the ministry in 1984 after receiving her Master of Divinity from Harvard University, and received her diploma in the Art of Spiritual Direction from the San Francisco Theological Seminary in 1998.  Her continuing education has focused on spirituality, with pilgrimages to the Taizé community in France, Ireland to study Celtic Christianity, and the Iona Community in Scotland.

In her first 20 years of ministry, Charlotte served on the staff of two large churches.  Her first call was at First Presbyterian Church in Greenwich, Connecticut where she served as associate pastor and worked with youth.  Her second call was in Ridgewood, New Jersey at West Side Presbyterian Church.  As Associate Pastor of Parish Life, Charlotte worked with the Deacons, the Invitation and Membership Council, Presbyterian Women, and Spiritual Life Group.  She was also active at the presbytery level with the Spiritual Development and Theology Unit, and worked with an interfaith clergy group in Ridgewood.

Although she spent most of her adult life on the East Coast, Charlotte is right at home here in Michigan.  Her family moved to Birmingham, where her father was an associate pastor at First Presbyterian, when she was 10 years old, and she graduated from Seaholm High School.  She plays the oboe, loves all kinds of music, and enjoys going to movies and the theater.  Charlotte’s office is filled with books, but she especially likes to read poetry, The Sun magazine, and spiritual journals such as Weavings.  Her leisure time is mostly spent outdoors:  hiking, biking, skiing, and she even tried snowshoes at the annual Officers Retreat in January.  She loves the Jersey shore and Lake Michigan, too.  And if you want to make her really happy, give her a French vanilla ice cream cone, her favorite flavor!

Contact Rev. Sommers at

pastor@troynorthminster.com