This article was originally published on February 8th, 2020.

Each month we’ll be featuring a profile on one of the Saint Benedict Parish staff members so parishioners can get to know them a little better and get a better sense of what they do at the parish. This month, we’re featuring Laura O’Rourke.

What’s your job at the parish?
Laura: The fancy title I carry is Director of Children’s Ministries, which means I oversee the evangelizing of babies, kids, and preteens here at Saint Benedict Parish.                       

What staff team are you on?
I’m part of the Disciple Formation Team (DFT). While everyone on staff here has a clear mission to make disciples for Jesus, the DFT is made up of the staff members whose ministries clearly welcome individuals at any faith level and leads them along a path of meeting Jesus and going deeper into their relationship with Him.                      

How long have you worked at Saint Benedict Parish?
I’ve worked here for three and a half years. 

What does your job entail? What’s a typical week look like for you?

On a weekly basis, I oversee three ministries: WOW (Wee Ones’ Word), our Sunday morning nursery & preschool program run primarily by Chantal O’Laughlin; SHINE (Seeking Him In Everything), our Sunday morning program for kids in elementary school, which I primarily run; and The Encounter, our Thursday evening youth group for grades 5 & 6. I’m also the person in charge of Vacation Bible School, a weeklong summer event for kids, and I partner with Judy Savoy in the fall to help plan Christmas Unplugged.                       

Programming for kids and youth rarely happens during a typical 9 to 5 schedule, so my week doesn’t look typical either. I’m also a Mom with three boys 10 & under, and my husband travels often with Divine Renovation Ministry, so each week is unique. That said, I’ve managed to find a bit of a routine to fall back into.

My week usually starts on Tuesdays with a day chock-full of meetings collaborating with ministry teams and leader support. Wednesdays are the days that are least structured. I try to prepare my talk for the following youth night and get done some of the important things that don’t have to do with weekly ministry prep. Thursdays are long days where I’m often here from morning until after 10pm, getting ready for The Encounter.


You will usually find me around the church all day on Saturdays, planning for and setting up our Sunday morning children’s ministries. Sundays are long days as well, starting bright and early to be here in time for 9am SHINE and I stick around until early afternoon to clean up after 11:15am SHINE. By the time I get home, I try to get
a quick nap in before heading out again to lead a small group of women, which has been running for almost as long as I’ve been working here. While that isn’t part of my job description, it is part of my ministry and is part of how I structure my week.        

On Mondays I’m usually pretty exhausted, so I try to take those days to reset and refocus so I can start fresh on Tuesdays. And since Sundays are a work day for me, I have been trying to set aside Fridays as a day of Sabbath, to rest, pray, and worship.                       

What did you do before you worked at Saint Benedict Parish?
Immediately before working at Saint Benedict I was a stay at home mom for half a year. I had come off of my third maternity leave and realized it wouldn’t be financially prudent of me to return to working at the company I had been working at for five years, knowing that I’d have to also pay for the care of my three kids. (Fun fact: a colleague at my previous job, Arlene Sibley, is now my colleague here at Saint Benedict Parish!) Want another fun fact? For years before working at the church, I also wrote a professional mom blog, which was once listed in Reader’s Digest as one of the top mom blogs in Canada!

What do you like most about working at Saint Benedict Parish?
Honestly, I loved feeling called to the work I am doing. Feeling called has allowed me to step up in confidence and use the gifts that I have discovered through this experience that God has given me. I feel so blessed to connect with kids on their faith journey in such an honest and real way. Of course, there is also the added bonus of working somewhere that is more flexible than previous work experiences, which is so helpful for my family life as well.


Do you have a favourite memory from your time working here?
My favourite memories are constantly changing each new time I hear a story of a kid or preteen (or even a toddler) begging to come to church or youth group. Knowing that God has used me to help change the culture of this place to be somewhere these growing individuals want to be on any given week is a privilege. I know many of the kids I see on a weekly basis have personal relationships with Jesus already, and it gives me so much hope to think that this will be a lifelong truth they will hold on to.

What do you like to do outside of work?
I’m a huge fan of TV shows (but very rarely watch movies. I really like that a television show isn’t a multi-hour commitment). I also like to do my nails weekly. I try to find time as often as I can to both read and run, but I like the first much more than the second. And when I have a large period of free time (which is very rare), I try to do something extra creative, like cross-stitch.