Sylvia Morra
Sylvia Morra realizes that her life was shaped by when and where she was born – that would be in rural northeastern Pennsylvania.
“One of the adjacent towns was founded in 1790. The name of one of our ancestor’s was engraved on a monument in honor of the nine partners that undertook that venture,” she said. “The monument was hidden away on the wooded mountainside behind our house. As kids, we made many a pilgrimage to that monument and once had a winter picnic there.”
Sylvia’s family belonged to the First Congregational Church of Harford, Pennsylvania. The church was founded in 1800. It still has pew boxes with doors and large clear paned windows extending from ceiling to wainscoting, allowing nature to surround those in attendance.
Her mother’s mother was Unitarian/Universalist. Sylvia’s father worked on the Christmas Tree Farm that took up much of the acreage in Susquehanna County. Love of nature has a long history in her family.
“As I grew up and over the years, my mother and I had continuing conversations about the nature of God and the universe,” she reminisced.
Sylvia began working as a reference librarian at Elizabethtown College in the late 80’s. That’s where she met her husband, Dan.
“He was a grants-writer, and I was a librarian. He had questions and I had answers!” she said with a laugh.
The couple wed in the fall of 1990. They adopted their daughter, Sierra, in 1994 and their son, Jalen, in 1996. Dan stayed home with the kids, enriching their lives in so many different ways. Sierra works as an audio engineer at Pro Sounds in Harrisburg and Jalen is currently bartending in Louisville, Kentucky and getting certified as a drone operator. Jalen has a son, Kallum, who is 4 years old and attends Half-Day Play.
Sylvia found Colonial Park UCC in the early 1990’s. She was drawn to the theology and the music during the service. Her love of words and liturgies led her to her favorite committee to serve on at the church. The Worship and the Arts Committee.
“I love our brainstorming sessions; especially Deb Glorius’ fertile imagination for adding sparks of inspiration to the service (butterfly cannons and silk fire flames),” she said.
She also co-teaches the library Sunday School class with Sharon Clark, where they have studied Adam Hamilton, Amy Jill Levine, and Marcus Borg to name a few. The teachings have helped her to learn so much from the material and from the struggles and shared experiences.
Personally, Sylvia is inspired by the writings and meditations of Franciscan monk, Richard Rohr, founder of the Center for Action and Contemplation.
“I enjoy contemplating the Franciscan point of view. I was introduced to this writer by fellow pilgrims as I traveled to Iona, Scotland with Oasis Ministries and our own Pastor Cindy (before she became a pastor here!),” she said.
Sylvia enjoys her time to a knitting group at the Leader Center in Hershey and get to play with her love of color and textures making hats for the homeless and for food bank patrons. She also knits and crochets prayer shawls for our congregation.
Anyone who attends Colonial Park UCC knows that they can count on a smile and warm welcome when they see Sylvia Morra. Her enthusiasm is infectious.
March 2025
Meet other members of Colonial Park United Church of Christ by clicking HERE.
