Rev. Betsy E. Martin Bruaw is a native of Shamokin, PA. She grew up at St. John’s UCC in Shamokin. Her call to ministry was cultivated there, at Hartman Center summer camping and retreat events, Penn Central Conference youth gatherings and National Youth Events of the UCC. Pastor Betsy is a 1983 graduate of Shamokin Area High School and graduated from Lebanon Valley College in 1987 with a dual degree in history and religion. In 1990, she graduated from Eden Theological Seminary in St. Louis, MO with a Master of Divinity degree. She was ordained at St. John’s, Shamokin by the Central Association of the Penn Central Conference of the UCC on July 1, 1990.
Pastor Betsy began her ordained ministry at the Tri-Penn Charge UCC in Spring Mills, Centre County, PA, where she served three congregations, two of which are Union churches with the ELCA. In 1994, Pastor Betsy became minister of Church of the Redeemer UCC in Hershey, where she served until June, 2016. From 2016 until 2018, Pastor Betsy served on the Penn Central Conference staff as Associate Conference Minister for Congregational Discernment, assisting congregations in transition. She has served on numerous boards and committees at the local, Conference and national levels of the UCC. She has led efforts on disaster response and readiness, bullying prevention and the care of survivors, and creating civil discourse in church and community, among others. She has directed camps at Hartman Center since 1991.
Betsy has been married since June 6, 1987 to William H. Bruaw. Bill has been with the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania for nearly 30 years, primarily assisting those with developmental disabilities. Betsy and Bill have two adult children: Joshua and Laura. Josh works in education and entertainment in the Hershey area, and Laura works in IT for PPL Corporation in Allentown. The family has a Schnoodle named Jack. Betsy enjoys genealogy, yarn crafts, travel, and Broadway musicals.