Earlham School of Religion has received a transformative $2 million gift from Patricia Thomas, Class of 1990, to establish the Patricia Thomas Lonnie Valentine Peace and Justice Endowed Chair.
This new endowed faculty position honors the legacy of Lonnie Valentine, a longtime ESR faculty member known for his unwavering dedication to peace, justice, and integrity. The inaugural holder of the chair is Colleen Wessel-McCoy, assistant professor of peace and justice studies and director of the Master of Arts in Peace and Social Transformation program.
This is the largest gift in ESR’s history and marks a milestone in the School’s commitment to educating future leaders grounded in Quaker values.
“Patricia Thomas has been a beloved member of the ESR community for decades, and her generosity is nothing short of extraordinary,” said Tom Decker, ESR’s director of institutional advancement. “It is a remarkable act of vision and commitment. She’s full of energy and humility — and always a joy to talk with. This gift will advance our mission for generations to come.”
Thomas graduated from ESR with a Master of Ministry after what she describes as an unexpected but life-changing call to ministry. A lifelong Quaker, she has pastored at Chester Friends Meeting — an historic congregation known for its role in the Underground Railroad — and served as the campus minister at Wilmington College. She was a member of the ESR Board of Advisors for 19 years holding the role of clerk for one term.
Thomas is the author of the Pastor and Professor Quaker Mystery series. She currently serves as clerk of Wilmington Yearly Meeting and is active in the meeting on the campus at Wilmington College. She lives in Wilmington, Ohio, with her husband, Douglas Woodmansee, a retired biology professor.
Her philanthropy reflects her family’s commitment to education and the testimonies of peace, equality, and, integrity. Inspired by her father, a conscientious objector during World War II, and her mother’s work in fair housing in Ann Arbor, Michigan, Thomas is delighted by the opportunity to endow an academic chair.
“This money came out of the blue,” Thomas said. “I always dreamed of endowing a chair, but I never thought it would be possible. It feels like a dream come true — to support institutions I love and believe in.” She recently endowed the campus minister position at Wilmington College.
“I wanted to make sure that this chair not only honored Lonnie Valentine’s legacy, but also ensured that the peace testimony — so central to Quaker faith and practice — remains alive and well in our world.”
Including this recent gift, Thomas has contributed more than $2.3 million to Earlham College and ESR over the years.
“This extraordinary gift from Patricia Thomas not only honors the legacy of Lonnie Valentine but also empowers us to prepare new generations of peacebuilders and justice seekers,” said Gretchen Castle, dean of the Earlham School of Religion. “It reinforces ESR’s Quaker foundation and our ongoing commitment to transformative education rooted in spiritual depth and social action.”
Earlham President Paul Sniegowski noted the strategic impact of such transformative giving: “Endowed gifts like Patricia’s not only sustain our programs, they also free up vital resources that can be directed toward emerging needs. This is how institutions like ours grow stronger and more responsive, year after year.”