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In 2016 the Episcopal Church in Connecticut decided to reorganize itself into six geographic Regions. They hired missionaries to help the churches connect and collaborate. In the first season we met three missionaries, and now in the second season we're talking to the other three.    We talk about lay preaching, Laundry Love ministry, youth philanthropy leaders, and the role of the missionary in helping make connections that support the existing leaders.   "We get to connect what is already growing!" said Eliza. We don't have to do it ourselves, added Maggie, who talked about Celtic services, centering prayer, and eco-justice ministries in her Region.    If you've wondered what missionaries do, this will help explain it. You can hear the similarities and the differences among the missionaries, and the Regions. Eliza suggested that it might be about breaking down isolation, saying that parish ministry can be isolating, said Eliza for both clergy and lay leaders. So she thinks of her work and ministry as breaking down isolation, or as she calls it, "providing a circulatory system for the Body of Christ."    They also talk about how they meet as a group, and when, and what they do on those occasions. And they talk about hopes for their Regions and its leaders.   This is an incredibly hopeful and hope-filled conversation. It's not about conflict, scarcity, survival, or death, which is how some people want to talk about church. And even though the times we live in are uncertain, what these missionaries see is hope and life and energy, even joy.    Our guests today were Eliza Marth, the Rev. Carlos De La Torre, and Maggie Breen. 

Eliza Marth is the Region Missionary for the Northwest Region. Before ECCT, she lived in Boston and served with the Episcopal Service Corps called Life Together, living in an intentional community. She lives in Torrington and brews kombucha and grows okra. 

The Rev. Carlos de la Torre is the Region Missionary for the Southwest Region. He also serves as curate at Christ Church, New Haven and program director for St. Hilda’s House, a program of Episcopal Service Corps. Carlos lives in New Haven with his poodle, Ozzie. 

Maggie Breen is the Region Missionary for the Northeast Region. Maggie is originally from the Vernon/Tolland, CT area. She has worked in finance and has been a music teacher before coming to ECCT. Maggie lives on a farm in Chaplin, with her husband Michael and four, count them, four sheep  and a dog.