Robert and Melinda live in Floresville, Texas, on 88 acres Robert inherited from his grandmother in 2006. There, they have restored a Tallgrass Prairie and established a retreat center.

Robert was a pastor for 22 years in Clear Lake, Texas, where he also began to study Bowen family systems theory. He has been a professor of Professor of Christian Ministries and Director of Pastoral Ministries at Truett Seminary at Baylor University for the past 12 years. He has also studied the life and work of Wendell Berry and wrote “A Different Kind of Human: A Way Forward for Leaders of Faith Communities in the Climate Crisis” in Family Systems Forum Volume XXI, Number 2. His presentations at two CSNSF conferences are in The Resource Store under CSNSF Programs. Facts of Life and Being Human.

Melinda was a stay-at-home mom for most of her life, but in 2008, she returned to school, earning a Master’s in Humanities, a PhD in English Literature, and a Master’s in Museum Studies. She identifies as an independent scholar, speaking and publishing about local history. She developed ways to use ….apps for “slow walking” experiences at Creech Prairie and in one’s own environs.