Community Corner

Forest Hills Councilwoman Leads Church, Community

Devon Wood works to help people in the Forest Hills community and the Unitarian Universalist Church.

Devon Wood may soon become a fourth-generation minister, also known as “Rev. Dev,” as she pursues seminary school while leading campus ministry at the First Unitarian Universalist Church in Shadyside.

“My husband and I came from different faith backgrounds and when we were thinking about getting engaged and thinking about the future, we really wanted to find a faith community that would work for us,” Wood said of finding the Unitarian Universalism. “It was more about the people in the pews than the pews themselves for me. That is what mattered.”

Wood, a Forest Hills councilwoman, is in a transition of sorts as she contemplates the move of completing seminary school all while starting a new job as the enrollment and marketing coordinator at Waldorf School of Pittsburgh. 

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“The schools were started in Germany in response to world wars and created schools with a foundation based in private funding,” Wood said. “It’s a peacemaking kind of project, so part of the element of the school is to think critically and be compassionate with other people around them and that is maintained.”

Wood has a daughter, 7, and a son, 3, who both attend the school. She starts full-time Aug. 1, but will maintain her duties with campus ministry for the First Unitarian Church at the University of Pittsburgh and as the member of the Council of Religious Advisors co-chair and treasurer at Carnegie Mellon University.

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Wood said she was three credits shy of a religious studies minor, but even then had never heard of the Unitarian Universalism. Her grandfather, a Methodist minister, suggested that Wood and her husband check it out before they got married.

“We drove over to First Unitarian Church in Shadyside and it looked really nice,” she said. “We started coming there and joined the church, getting involved in a small group ministry.”

The couple joined the church in 2001 right after 9/11. In 2002, Pastor David Herndon married the couple at Phipps Conservatory. Soon after, a part-time position for membership opened at the church and she thought it would be fun.

“I have always been interested in religion and spirituality and it took me so long to find the First Unitarian Church, so I applied for the job and thought I would just do it for fun and as my service to the church and they asked me about the campus part,” Wood said. “I decided to take the leap and quit my full-time management level job.”

The church didn’t have a college program and it grew quickly from there.

“There was so much response to First Unitarian Church on campus that I helped to develop a college program and they added more hours to the job,” she said. “I would love to grow our campus ministry program into a full scale one that talks to all young adults and offers cooperative housing.”

Wood said the nondogmatic and welcoming approach of the Unitarian Universalist Church is what drew her in to become a member.

“It wasn’t so much about what my personal belief system was, although that was important, but it’s about living your life as a good person,” Wood said. “You are trying to make this world a better world right now.”

The focus isn’t on whether or not there is a heaven or salvation at the church, rather, the focus is on making this world a better place and making a difference.

“That was huge for me,” she said. “It was really nice to come to a church where all types of people and all types of families are included. I really like that we could walk into a church and not only did they say we welcome the LGBT community, but we actively work for civil marriage.”

Wood said she is happy that her children are being raised in a community where they can connect with a diverse group of children and families.

“I also like that there is science and individual thought had influence—it wasn’t one particular writing or doctrine. People look at things critically,” Wood said.

Wood found the neighborhood of Forest Hills after meeting a couple from the church who had a baby as she brought them food. They lived in Edgewood Acres on Cascade and Wood and her family thought the community was appealing to them. They moved to the neighborhood in 2004.

Two years ago, she was successful in pursuing a spot on Forest Hills Council.

“I have always been interested in working behind the scenes of politics than inside, but someone on council approached me and asked if I would be interested,” she said.

Wood ran as a write-in candidate on a platform of strong community partnerships, sustainability, keeping the community safe and friendly, and maintaining a vibrant business district.

“Right now, it’s the budget,” she said of the current issues facing the borough. “We can’t afford to raise taxes and right now we are in a school district that isn’t always appealing to people."

Fiscal responsibility and attracting new families to Forest Hills are among her top priorities.

Maintaining the identity of the borough while pursuing shared services with neighboring communities also can help with budget woes during a tough economy, she said. It’s all about “keeping all of the wonderful things we have without raising taxes,” she said.

As a local leader in a variety of different communities in Pittsburgh, Wood said her work on council is rewarding not only because she is giving back to the borough that her family lives in, but also because she works with concerned citizens.

“It’s very gratifying to work with other people who put the community before their individual egos,” Wood said. “They have the community’s best interest at heart.”


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