Jesse Garner

Rev. Jesse Garner was born in Memphis, Tennessee, and attended high school there. He received his undergraduate education at Yale University and his seminary training at Harvard Divinity School.  An ordained minister in the Presbyterian Church (USA), Rev. Garner served churches in Tennessee and Alabama before moving in 2001 to First Presbyterian Church in Philadelphia where he was pastor until his retirement in 2018.

Jesse joined the board of Interfaith Philadelphia in 2009, and during his tenure has served as board secretary, treasurer, and chair.  He has also served on the boards of the Christian Association at the University of Pennsylvania and Penn’s Village and is currently “theologian in residence” at Trinity Presbyterian Church in Berwyn. His wife Allen is a retired schoolteacher. They have two daughters, Allen and Lela, who work for schools in California and Virginia.