The Rev. Dr. Judith Blanchard will be preaching at Wilson Memorial Chapel, Ocean Point, on Sunday, Aug. 25. The service is at 9:30 a.m. and all are welcome.

Dr. Blanchard is the Chaplain Clinical Leader at Maine Medical Center in Portland, where she has completed 16 years of ministry. Prior to her chaplaincy work, Judith was the Administrative Dean of Bangor Theological Seminary, overseeing the school's Portland Campus and directing their development efforts. She returned to Maine with her husband Eric in 1993 to assume that position, but she had spent much of her childhood in the Bangor area where her father served two Evangelical Covenant Churches.

Blanchard is a graduate of Union Theological Seminary in New York City, and she received a doctorate from Bangor Seminary in 2001, having done original research into the spiritual needs of open heart patients. She is ordained by the United Church of Christ and was the 2010 recipient of their Julius Varwig Award for a professional chaplain or counselor who has demonstrated dedication and commitment to serving persons in the name of Jesus Christ.  

Blanchard and her husband live in South Freeport, where she is often seen on her bicycle. In June she completed her 10th Trek Across Maine, the 180-mile bicycle tour supporting the American Lung Association. They have three grown children and six grandchildren.