Samantha Aupperlee

Samantha is a true Floridan. She was born and raised in West Palm Beach, Florida. She has two sisters. Erin works for Southwest Airlines in Tampa and Alexis works for Iberia Bank and lives with her husband, Chris in West Palm Beach. Her mom, Patti, is also a pastor in the Florida Conference of the United Methodist Church.

She graduated from Florida State University with a BA in Religious Studies and a minor in Anthropology. Between her junior and senior year, she spent 10 weeks volunteering at Bethlehem Bible College in Palestine, working in the English Administration Office and assisting with English classes. She has earned a Master of Divinity degree that includes a concentration in Scripture and Interpretation from the Candler School of Theology.

 

After graduation from FSU, she worked for three years as a preschool teacher before being accepted into the inaugural YAMM (Young Adult Missional Movement) with the Florida Conference. Her two-year mission placement was at Tuskawilla United Methodist Church in Casselberry, serving as the Children’s Director and Office Administrator. She answered the call to ordained ministry in 2016 at the Florida Annual Conference.

 

During her three years at Candler School of Theology from 2017-2020, she interned at a women’s medical prison working with pregnant women and going through chemotherapy. During her first summer, she gained experience in all aspects of pastoral leadership within the local church while serving as a pastoral intern at First UMC in Lakeland.

 

Throughout her second year, her internship with Neighborhood Church UMC in Atlanta, provided experience with a church transitioning from a temporary location in an elementary school auditorium to a newly renovated location that better meet the needs of their local community. Samantha directed a program for teenagers with special needs providing employment and life skills the following summer and during the winter break. Her experience also includes serving four years as a lay delegate to the Florida Annual Conference, and a page for the 2016 and 2019 General Conferences in Portland and St. Louis.

 

Samantha was appointed to Beach United Methodist Church in Ft. Myers Beach in July 2020. She enjoys being on the beach and getting to know the church and the community. She is also involved with the Kiwanis Club and the Beach Ministerial Association.