Rev. Dr. Thomas J. Carrico, Jr (please just call him Tommy) grew up in Lynchburg, VA and moved around several times for school before landing back in Virginia. After completing an undergraduate degree in Philosophy and Leadership Studies at Christopher Newport University, Tommy and his wife, Abbey, got married and moved to Atlanta, GA where Tommy completed his seminary training at Columbia Theological Seminary while working as a houseman at a local golf club. Abbey began work towards a PhD in French Literature from Emory University. After seminary, Abbey taught in France for a year while Tommy completed an MA in Middle East and Islamic Studies from the American University of Paris. They then moved back to Atlanta for a year where Tommy taught at area churches and worked full time at the golf club.

 

The next stop on the journey was Tallahassee, FL where Tommy began a PhD program in Religion, Ethics, and Philosophy at Florida State University. Shortly thereafter, Tommy and Abbey welcomed their daughter, Vivian, and Abbey accepted a tenure-track position in the Modern Languages and Cultures Dept at Virginia Military Institute. They moved to the area in 2013 and welcomed a second daughter, Quinn, in 2016. Tommy completed his PhD and Abbey is now tenured and serves as the head of VMI’s Modern Languages and Cultures Dept. When we aren’t dropping Vivian or Quinn off at or picking them up from cheerleading, dance, play rehearsals, gymnastics, or friends’ houses, we are probably taking our dog, Summer, for a walk or making sure our dog-like cat, Lucky, is getting sufficient attention.

 

Tommy has served at Finley since the spring of 2018, is currently the chair of Shenandoah Presbytery’s Committee on Educational Resources, and is active in Better Together: Presbyterians in Action, a recently-formed consortium of local PC(USA) churches seeking to serve our community. He recently contributed a chapter to the book Key Categories in the Study of Religion, published several entries in the Encyclopedia of London’s East End, and will present research at the annual meetings of both the North American Association for the Study of Religion and the North American Victorian Studies Association this fall. He is in the early stages of a book project on the moral dilemmas of nineteenth-century England’s matchstick industry.

 

The ministers of Finley Memorial – all who attend our church – have welcomed the Carricos with open arms as we continue to support each other, grow through worship, education and fellowship, join God’s work in the Stuarts Draft area, and let Christ’s light shine through each of our lives.