Faith Leaders Confront Immigrant Detention in Florida
Rev. Dr. Russell Meyer has dual ministry roles. He is currently a minister at St. John’s Lutheran of Jacksonville, FL. As Executive Director for the Florida Council of Churches, he serves to elevate the faith of churches whose million members anchor communities across Florida. In 2017, the state legislative appointed him to the Dozier Memorial Task Force. He has helped lead to proclamations that the City of St. Petersburg is a City of Compassion and a City of International Peace. He is passionate about realizing a pluralistic democratic society. Rev. Dr. Meyer received his Doctor of Ministry from Wesley Theology Seminary (2013) and a Master of Divinity from Yale Divinity School (1981).
Rev. Dr. Gayle Fisher-Stewart serves as the assistant pastor at Calvary Episcopal Church in Washington, DC. Her area of special interest is the history of policing as it intersects with race in America. She is the founder of the Center for the Study of Faith in Justice at Calvary and is the president for the Washington, DC, chapter of the Union of Black Episcopalians. Rev. Dr. Fisher-Stewart is a graduate of the University of Maryland University College (BS), the University of Maryland (MS, Ph.D), American University (MS), the University of the District of Columbia (MA) and Wesley Theological Seminary (MTS). She was the 2015 recipient of the Director’s Award, Episcopal Evangelism Society. She has recently authored Black and Episcopalian: The Struggle for Inclusion (2022).
Rabbi David Arias of Temple Judea in Fort Myers, a native of Chile, made Aliyah to Jerusalem where he served in the IDF. After his military service, he received his Rabbinical Ordination from the Schechter Rabbinical Seminary, and the Schechter Institutes in December 2019. He served his first position as Rabbi at Moriah Congregation in Haifa. He and his family came to Temple Judea, Fort Myers, in 2024.
Rev. Jenny Scott-Jones, originally of Elmira, New York, is the Rector at Iona-Hope Episcopal Church, Fort Myers, FL. She holds a Master of Sacred Theology degree from the Sewanee School of Theology and a Master of Divinity from Regent College. She has a Bachelor of Science in Psychology from Eastern University. Mother Jenny has done additional training in disaster chaplaincy, marriage preparation, clinical pastoral education, and asset-based community development.
Rev. Arthur Jones, III, is newly appointed minister at Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Fort Myers. He was awarded a Master of Divinity from the Sewanee School of Theology (2018) and has pursued additional graduate programs at Valdosta State University (GA) and Georgia State University. Rev. Arthur was ordained as Minister at New Jerusalem Missionary Baptist Church (Thomasville, GA), served as Deacon and Priest for the Episcopal Diocese of Houston (TX) and Bethlehem (PA), and Hospice Chaplain in hospice care providers in Elmira, NY, and Fort Myers, FL.
Betty Osceola has led numerous public prayer walks and environmental awareness campaigns across South Florida, often focusing on threats to Indigenous land, water quality, and climate justice. Betty is a member of the Miccosukee Tribe of Indians of Florida and the Panther Clan. She has been recognized as a Miccosukee tribal judge and serves on the Everglades Advisory Committee.
Moderator
Sandra Fiedler Viktorova, a former investigative reporter for Miami’s NBC affiliate, anchors WGCU’s Southwest Florida: In Focus weekly show. Sandra received a Gracie Award for her documentary, Dream School: A Journey to Higher Ed. Viktorova won three regional Emmys for her work as an investigative and special projects producer with NBC and TELEMUNDO in Miami. Viktorova has spent decades working as a reporter, anchor and host for local stations in Denver, Orlando, Fort Myers, Miami and Texas covering everything from hurricanes to terrorist trials to leading beat coverage of consumer, health, education and entertainment news. Viktorova’s journalistic skills have also been showcased in Spanish-language TV as she produced for several national news and entertainment programs at both Univision and Telemundo.