Who We Are
Minjoo Bayers and Megan Doner’s paths first crossed at The Seattle School of Theology & Psychology in the fall of 2016. They became instant friends and enjoyed laughing together and having fun. Amidst a myriad of excitement and taking the first steps over the precipice to an unknown destination, the two bonded and found companionship through the peaks and valleys of the journey. When the program intersecting with their own life experiences got intense, they found solace in each other as their stories unfurled. Their friendship further blossomed and flourished over their shared passions for a liberated Christian theology, an increased protection of women and children who are at risk or have faced sexual and other violence, and Korean food. As their graduation neared, they knew they wanted to continue the work they had started together even though their vocations differed. This was when the seeds of Flourishing MaEum began to take root.
Minjoo is a Korean American woman from South Korea and New York. She is a Licensed Mental Health Counselor Associate, in Washington State. She completed her internship at Kentucky Refugee Ministries, in Louisville, Kentucky. Minjoo immigrated to New York when she was 7 years old with her family. Multiculturalism has always been a part of Minjoo’s life. She speaks Korean, English, and some Spanish. She has lived in South Korea and many different parts of the United States. She also spent several months in Mexico and the United Kingdom.
Before becoming a therapist, Minjoo was an award-winning analyst working in federal service. What changed her life was learning from Dr. Dan Allender in various workshops offered by The Allender Center. She wanted more of the life-changing miracles she experienced there, and pursued them at The Seattle School of Theology & Psychology. Some of Minjoo’s favorite courses were theology courses, which helped to liberate her from poor theology and doctrines that had weighed her down. She enjoys walks in the park and food from all over the world with her husband, daughter, and English lab.
Megan lived in Oklahoma for her first 30 years of life, where she very much enjoyed participating in her church and fostering social justice through community work. Her early career was an accounting specialist at a small manufacturing company. She knew there was something more drawing her into the intersection of social justice and the church, so she moved to Seattle to obtain a Masters of Divinity at The Seattle School of Theology & Psychology. Her focus was on women and children who face sexual abuse, as well as the church’s response. While she started with the intention of helping others, she realized the harm and misinformation her evangelical background had created in the communities she was a part of. She also faced her own abuse more deeply in order to seek healing for herself that could then be shared with others. Her goals in life include bringing conversations of abuse and trauma into church leadership (both in individual churches and in broader communities), helping women unpack their spirituality to have a more free relationship with God, and above all, to seek justice, love mercy, and walk humbly with God (Micah 6:8). In her freetime she enjoys quality time with friends, hiking, photography, and all things crafty.
In the summer of 2020, Minjoo completed her Master of Arts in Counseling Psychology and Megan completed her Master of Divinity. They plan to host retreats together that work toward their shared passions & missions. Megan wants to broaden the conversations around sexuality and sexual violence women and children face, both with women and with churches. Minjoo wants to work with people to find freedom in their hearts and spread love & hope through psychotherapy and education.
Flourishing MaEum exists to empower women (although all folks are welcome) to speak their truth, recognize systems of oppression, identify toxic theology, increase their self-understanding, and to find healing from past trauma and abuse. Minjoo offers teletherapy while Megan offers help to churches looking to establish a robust plan of care for anyone who has faced abuse. This blog and our social media accounts (follow here for Facebook or here for Instagram) are tools we use to communicate messages near and dear to our hearts that we believe truly have the power to impact those who receive them.