Trent goes from FPS to Christ Covenant
Karen Trent, Christ Covenant’s new Children’s Ministry director, greets Caroline Hackett, 7, left, and sisters, Emma Hackett, 8, and Lauren Hackett, 5, as they arrive for Sunday School May 19.
Trent is retiring from teaching kindergarten at Farragut Primary School and taking on the new role at Christ Covenant June 3.
“We are beyond ecstatic. We are enthused,” said Seth Hammond, Christ Covenant lead pastor. “Karen brings so much to the table — not only with her great experience working with children, but also families — and just her presence in the community has been remarkable.
“I love the fact that she is well-entrenched in Farragut,” he added. “She has made a significant mark on many at Farragut (Primary School). We are beyond thrilled.
“People know her; they are comfortable around her; she’s very engaging with families, so it’s only going to be a plus for us.”
“I am humbled and excited to serve the families and children at Christ Covenant,” Trent said. “I had no idea this would become my calling a few months ago, but God placed this wonderful and divine opportunity in my path.”
In a letter to the congregation, she promised to “serve with positive energy and passion while allowing God’s divine spirit to lead me.”
In her new role, Trent will oversee all the programming for the children’s ministry for infants through fifth grade.
That includes activities on Sunday mornings and Wednesday nights; summer programming; special events; recruiting, praying and training volunteers; and helping to build relationships with families and their children.
The activities also include developing the church’s new weekday program, SonLight Academy, for ages 1 through 5, which starts Aug. 14.
Before teaching at FPS for 10 years, Trent was a preschool teacher at Cokesbury Children’s Center under Ginger Forbes, who has retired as Christ Covenant’s children’s ministry director.. “I have followed and used her as a mentor,” Trent said of Forbes. “This past fall, she contacted me about this job.”
“Farragut Primary was a wonderful place to be, so I wasn’t looking to leave,” she added.
Trent has been married to Danny Trent, Knox County Schools supervisor of Secondary Education, for more than 29 years. They have three daughters: Danyelle, Lauren and Madison Trent.
“I always saw myself, when I retired, going back to a preschool … and then the door opened to this job …I felt that was what God was tugging at my heart to do,” she said. “And, God has grown us and prepared us for this next phase of our lives.”
