Meet Mary
Mary J. Yerkes is a writer, spiritual director, and leadership coach. Mary also offers retreats and sabbatical support for church and marketplace leaders. A seasoned mentor and leader, Mary is passionate about spiritual formation, one-on-one discipleship, and helping others find freedom in Christ.
In her work as a mentor with Leadership Investment Intensives, a nonprofit devoted to providing customized soul-care for leaders in business and ministry, Mary had an opportunity to work with leaders across all walks of life, including pastor’s wives, ministry leaders, missionaries, business leaders, entrepreneurs, and others. She enjoys partnering with established and emerging leaders for spiritual growth and formation.
Mary’s training and certification as a spiritual director is through Sustainable Faith’s School of Spiritual Direction. Sustainable Faith is a collective of spiritual directors and pastors working to create a spiritually healthy culture among leaders and their communities. Mary’s work as a spiritual director is trauma-informed. In addition to incorporating traditional contemplative practices into her sessions, Mary also incorporates healing prayer and redemptive story telling into her work with directors.
She is also a life and leadership coach and trained with the Professional Christian Coaching Institute. She enjoys using various assessments when working with clients, including Myers-Briggs personality assessments and the StrengthFinders assessment. Combined with a biblical foundation and an understanding of the individual’s spiritual gifts, these tools can be helpful in releasing women into the fullness of who God created them to be.
In addition, Mary writes regularly for print and online publications, including Focus on the Family’s flagship website, Christianity Today’s WomenLeaders.com, and AG News, to name a few. You can learn more about Mary’s writing on her writing page.
Mary lives in North Carolina on a hobby farm that she shares with three miniature donkeys, about 30 chickens, and eight collies. She enjoys deep friendships. meaningful conversations, Pilates, and dog shows. Mary has one adult son who lives with his wife in New Jersey. They are both creatives and work in New York City.
