Mariann Budde

Imagine a captain of a ship, but instead of a ship, Mariann Budde is a leader for a big group of churches called the Episcopal Diocese of Washington. She's like the main helper who makes sure everyone is doing okay and following the right path. She's also the very first woman to be a leader like this in her area! It's like being the first girl to be captain of the school bus, which is super cool.

Mariann Budde started her journey to help people a long, long time ago, in 1988. First, she became a deacon, which is like a helper for the church. Then, in 1989, she became a priest, which is a bigger leadership role.

For many years, she was the main leader at a church called St. John's in a city called Minneapolis. Then, in 2011, she was chosen to be the bishop, the top leader, for the whole Washington area.

That's a big promotion!

One really interesting thing Mariann Budde did was help change some big windows in a very famous church called Washington National Cathedral. These windows used to have pictures of generals from a long time ago who fought against each other. Mariann thought it was important to have windows that showed things like the fight for civil rights, which is about everyone being treated fairly.

So, they replaced the old windows with new ones that celebrate fairness for everyone. She also helped welcome the ashes of a young man named Matthew Shepard, who was treated unfairly because he was gay.

Mariann Budde has also spoken at important events, like a big meeting called the Democratic National Convention. She gave a special speech where she talked about being kind and caring for everyone, especially people who might feel left out. Sometimes, when people say important things, not everyone agrees, but Mariann's message was about compassion, which means understanding and helping others.

She believes in treating everyone with love and respect, which is a wonderful thing to do.