Ellen Gravlin is the Director of Adult Faith Formation. She coordinates all areas of adult faith formation activities in addition to the Order of Christian Initiation for Adults (OCIA) program. Her goal is to offer programs and resources that encourage lifelong faith and spiritual development.
Ellen’s professional background is in education, having a bachelor's degree in special education and a master's degree in counseling from Illinois State University. Most of her 35 years in education were at O’Fallon Township High School as a high school counselor. She retired from that position in 2023.
Ellen grew up in Quincy, IL as the 9th of 10 children. A fun fact is that her real name is Mary Ellen but usually goes by Ellen as her parents named all seven daughters Mary. Ellen and her husband, Don, have been married for almost 35 years. They met on a blind date in 1989 while both graduate students at Illinois State University and lived in Bloomington, IL for several years. Moving to the metro east in 1996, they raised their children Lanie and Tom.
Ellen is a former member of the St. Clare School Board, having served when her children attended St. Clare School. She has been active in the parish through leading the retreat program, coordinating welcoming new parishioners to our community, creating women’s spirituality programming, and serving in several liturgical ministries.