Spiritual Health: Support for the Human Spirit
Spiritual Health: Support for the Human Spirit
Confronted with a Health Crisis
When confronted with a health crisis, or a new and frightening diagnosis, you may benefit from talking with someone who is able to listen deeply, help you reflect theologically, and discern which path to take as decisions need to be made, all while providing emotional support. Our Spiritual Health team is specifically trained to assist persons of all faiths, as well as those with no faith tradition, who want support in coping with illness, loss, or trauma.
Our intent is to provide you and your family members supportive spiritual care that will help bring healing and wholeness in your life. Our chaplains approach everyone with spiritual and cultural humility – we are here to meet you where you are. We are also acquainted with various religious resources in the community to help meet any specific needs you might have.
We are available to all throughout the Bozeman Health system. Please tell your nurse or doctor if you would like to speak with a chaplain. Our team of women and men are educated professionals who understand how to apply their pastoral and theological expertise in a healthcare setting. Using their knowledge, they focus on helping patients understand the deeper spiritual meaning of suffering, sickness, health, and wellness. We serve each patient as members of your health care team, working in partnership with physicians, nurses, therapists, and other professionals.
Request a chaplain by calling the Spiritual Heath office or if you are in the hospital dial extension x5073 or, send us an email.
Meet Our Spiritual Health Team
Joseph Carver - System Director of Spiritual Health
Joseph Carver is an interfaith Chaplain and Director of Spiritual Health for the Bozeman Health System. Born and raised on a farm in rural New York, his interest in our relationship with creation has deep roots.
He continues to be inspired, by both the poetry of Jane Kenyon, Mary Oliver as well as the writings of Teilhard de Chardin. Carver completed an M.Phil.at Oxford University, and an MA, MTS, M.Div. and STL at the Jesuit School of Theology in Berkeley, CA.
Joseph has worked in ministry for over 25 years and as a chaplain for 15 years. He regards embodied spirituality as a path into the breadth and depth of instruction unfolding in creation. He feels fortunate to lead this extraordinary pastoral team.
Chaplain Connie Campbell-Pearson
Chaplain Connie Campbell-Pearson is an interfaith Chaplain at Bozeman Hospital. Born in New Orleans, and raised in Iowa she studied nursing at the University of Iowa and then served in the Peace Corps in Costa Rica. She has worked in missions with Youth With a Mission and studied at the University of the Nations, taking Biblical Studies, Greek and Hebrew.
She was ordained in 2014 and is currently enrolled in a Doctorate in Ministry at Bexley Seabury Seminary in Chicago. She sings in the Bozeman Symphonic Choir and is a member of the Board of Directors for MT NOW and MT Interfaith Power and Light. She is an avid golfer and pianist/organist.
She regularly plays the organ for All Saints in Big Sky and is the Missioner in charge of Gethsemane Episcopal Church in Manhattan, MT.
Chaplain Grant Barnett Christenson
Chaplain Grant Barnett Christenson is an ordained minister with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. He completed his Masters of Divinity at Luther Seminary in St. Paul, Minnesota.
Grant joined the Spiritual Health team in 2009, and focuses his work on grief support for patients, their families, and staff. He is trained in the Critical Incident Stress Management protocol (CISM) as a facilitator for critical incident debriefings.
Being a member of trauma activation teams has made him appreciate the stressors of trauma upon team members and works to mitigate its corrosive effects upon employees’ health and well-being. Grant enjoys camping, walking, biking, and preparing Northern Italian food. He is happily married to the Rev.Lindean Barnett Christenson.
Chaplain Jennifer Gellock
Chaplain Jennifer Gellock, PhD is an interfaith chaplain at Bozeman Health whose work sits at the intersection of spirituality, creative expression, and emotional healing. As a poet, she believes art is medicine for the soul and honors every story as sacred, especially in moments of uncertainty and change.
Jen joins the Spiritual Health team after completing a year-long Clinical Pastoral Education residency at Tampa General Hospital (’24-’25) in Tampa, FL. Prior to answering her call to ministry as a chaplain, Jen worked as a full-time tenure-track assistant professor at multiple institutions after completing her PhD in Education in 2019 from Virginia Commonwealth University, with a dissertation focused on job burnout and work engagement.
When not offering support, she enjoys writing, attending open mics, cultural and art events, yoga, hiking, and spending time with family and friends. Originally from Westfield, MA she is excited to be exploring the big sky out west.
Chaplain Katie Michael
Chaplain Katie Michael is an interfaith chaplain. She received her M. Div from the Starr King School for the Ministry in 2008. Her training also included a yearlong chaplaincy residency at Presbyterian Hospital in Albuquerque, NM, and a certificate in Interfaith Spiritual Direction from The Chaplaincy Institute.
She has been working at Bozeman Health since 2018. Katie has a background in working with marginalized communities and in comprehensive sexuality education. When not providing care to our patients, family, and staff, Katie enjoys reading cozy mysteries, sitting in natural bodies of water, and crocheting.
Chaplain Lorrie A. Vennes
Lorrie A. Vennes – I grew up in Livingston, MT, married my husband Gail in 1977. We currently live south of Townsend, MT on a small ranch where we raise registered Black Angus cattle. We have two adult children, and three granddaughters.
My husband and I are members of Saint John’s Lutheran Church in Helena. In 2008, I earned an Associate of Science degree in Accounting from MSU-Billings. In 2012 the Lord guided me to the ministry. I obtained an Associate of Lay Lutheran Ministry through the Montana Synod. I provide pastoral services to Lutheran churches and our ecumenical partner churches in Montana. I am blessed to be the chaplain at Hillcrest Senior Living in Bozeman.
I provide church services, bible studies, prayer groups and do resident visits. I have come to know amazing people and it is indeed a joy to be working with them. God’s Peace.
Chaplain Michael D. Flannery
Chaplain Michael D. Flannery. I grew up in Loma Linda California where I met and married my beautiful wife in 1988. I left California for Frederick Maryland to start a business; a Dental Laboratory which I owned for 26 years. God called me into ministry at the age of forty while involved in addiction ministry. I attended Washington Adventist University until moving to Montana in 2014 where I finished my studies online at Liberty University in Lynchburg Virginia. After entering a CPE program at Frederick Memorial Hospital, I was convinced that Hospital Chaplaincy is where I was called to serve. I served as an elder and worship pastor at Frederick Seventh Day Adventist Church and interim pastor at Livingston Seventh Day Adventist church in Livingston Montana. I am honored to serve our community and staff at Bozeman Health.
Chaplain Miriam Schmidt
Chaplain Miriam Schmidt has served as the Pastor/Priest of All Saints in Big Sky, a shared ministry of the Episcopal and Lutheran (ELCA) churches, since 2016. In 2018, she joined the Spiritual Health department of Bozeman Health in order to provide an on-call chaplain for Big Sky Medical Center. She appreciates the opportunity to support the staff in Big Sky, and provide spiritual assistance for patients and their families in times of trauma. Miriam received her chaplaincy training at Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center, NH (2005), and served churches in Plains, MT (2008-2011) and Bratislava, Slovakia (2012-2015) before moving to Big Sky.
Our Vision
Spiritual Health
Whatever your beliefs may be, chaplains are dedicated to empowering and supporting you in times of crisis. They serve as a resource and advocate for you in your search for wholeness and peace. Chaplains offer spiritual support when confronting significant life situations, such as:
- Life-changing medical diagnoses
- Ethical and end-of-life issues
- Grief
- Pre-operative Prayer
- Unresolved spiritual issues (such as guilt, shame or fear)
- Conflicts in your belief system
- Feelings of abandonment
- Loss of hope
- Bozeman Health System staff support
Interfaith Support
Emotional and spiritual care can play an important role in enhancing your body’s healing systems. Bozeman Health Chaplains in our Spiritual Health departments are committed to honoring your faith, beliefs, and values while you are here, and to providing you with excellent care. Spiritual health services may include:
- Chaplain availability 24 hours/day
- Prayer/Blessings
- Compassionate Listening
- Eucharist
- Sanctuary and Meditation Room open to all
- Smudging by local Navajo elder
- Spiritual reading materials
- Guided Mediation/Imagery
- Advance Directive assistance
- Communication with your personal rabbi, priest, imam, minister, or other spiritual leader
Spiritual Health Resources and Services
Request a chaplain by calling the Spiritual Care office at 406-414-5073 or if you are in the hospital, dial extension 4301, or you may submit an email.
- Sanctuary and Quiet Room at Deaconess Hospital
- Support for individuals, families, staff experiencing the death of a loved one, including newborn/perinatal loss
- Prayer / Blessings
- Pre-Operative Prayer
- Guided Mediation/Imagery
- Compassionate Listening for all
- Eucharist
- Smudging by local Navajo elder / prayer leader
- Spiritual reading booklets and other literature
- Bibles, Torah, Qur’an, Baha’i prayer book, Book of Mormon
- Rosaries, medals, etc.
- Meditation Cushion
- Muslim Prayer Rug
Sanctuary & Quiet Space
The Sanctuary and Quiet Space at Bozeman Health Deaconess Hospital are open to individuals of all faiths and are located near Entrance 1 in the hospital’s main lobby. If you are a patient wishing to visit the Sanctuary or Quiet Space, for safety reasons, please speak with your nurse.
Support Groups
Prayer Requests
Religious Services
- Protestant services offered:
- Chaplains: available as needed
- Sacraments and rituals:
- Communion: Chaplains are available to bring communion to your room.
- Coordination of baptisms, anointing, blessing, prayer, etc.
- Blessing for newborns & parents.
- Roman Catholic services offered:
- Coordination upon request of all priestly visitations, the Sacrament of Healing (Anointing), and Reconciliation
- Communion: Lay Eucharistic Ministers of Eucharist customarily bring communion to patients during the week. Eucharist can be arranged at any time by contacting the Spiritual Health office.
- Other services offered:
- Jewish Pastoral Care: Rabbis are available to Bozeman Health upon request and availability. Bozeman is the home to both Beth Shalom, a member of the Union of Reform Judaism, and Chabad-Lubavitch, the only Orthodox Shul in the state.
- Latter Day Saints Ministry – Providers within Bozeman Health Hospital offer prayerful presence as members of Bozeman 1st (YSA) Ward.
- If you need any other local pastor/priest/clergy or spiritual leader, Spiritual Health will act as a liaison connecting you with your religious advisor, and other community resources.
Spiritual Health Remembers Those We've lost
Past Ceremonies
2022 Remembrance Ceremony
2021 Remembrance Ceremony
