{"id":3616,"date":"2025-11-02T17:42:49","date_gmt":"2025-11-02T22:42:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pleasantvillepress.com\/?p=3616"},"modified":"2025-11-03T09:46:03","modified_gmt":"2025-11-03T14:46:03","slug":"people-of-pleasantville-kevin-o-hara","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pleasantvillepress.com\/index.php\/2025\/11\/02\/people-of-pleasantville-kevin-o-hara\/","title":{"rendered":"People of Pleasantville: Kevin O’ Hara"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Reverend Kevin O\u2019Hara never planned to be a pastor.<\/p>\n

O\u2019 Hara, who has served as pastor of Emanuel Lutheran Church since 2021, said he originally wanted to be an educator. But in college, his mentor told him that education was not the right path for him.<\/p>\n

O\u2019 Hara said he grew up rebellious. He read the Bible seeking to disprove it. Instead, he found his faith and ended up being encouraged by his mother to join the ministry.<\/p>\n

As an openly gay man, O\u2019Hara said he has faced struggles in his career. One supervisor did not want him to become a pastor because of his sexuality.<\/p>\n

O\u2019 Hara encouraged anyone thinking about the ministry to \u201cfind the voices that affirm that. There are voices out there. It doesn\u2019t take much to just feel that sense of belonging.\u201d<\/p>\n

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A post shared by Pleasantville Press (@pleasantvillepress)<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n