I'm a simple lay Orthodox Christian in the United States. I converted from Reformed Presbyterianism, becoming a catechumen in October of 2006 at Holy Trinity in State College, PA under the guidance of Fr. John Reeves, who baptized me in July of 2008 upon my college graduation from Penn State University. I have remained Orthodox since then, first traveling to Washington DC and going to Holy Protection/St Mary's Romanian Orthodox Church under the Romanian Patriarchate and the guidance of Fr. David Subu, and now I've been settled in Kansas City Missouri for about 9 years where I attend St. Mary of Egypt Orthodox Church. I'm now under the guidance of Fr. Turbo, receiving occasional guidance additionally from Hieromonk Alexii at Holy Archangel Michael and All Angels Skete just north of here in Weatherby, Missouri. I had lapsed somewhat initially after my move to Kansas City, but God reawakened me and brought me back to my senses about a year ago and I've resumed the struggle to turn the heart towards Christ. I don't presume, here, to contribute much or often to core content, but being a native speaker of English, I would like to improve sentence structure and wording, and correct grammatical errors where appropriate. For some Western Saints, I've noticed some things in the Saint's life may be left out, in such a case I may wish also to suggest an extension with a reference to material which evidences the added event or fact (such as a copy of a liturgical document referencing the fact, or a copy of a recorded life of the Saint).
In the world, I work as a software engineer writing data processing jobs. While my job is not something that I think contributes much to society's real needs, I am thankful that it provides me with the income I need to support my family and that it provides me with a regular enough schedule that it's enabled me to keep a decent prayer life according to the Liturgy of the Hours.
Being in tech, I value the internet for what it was invented for - the spread and ease of access of public information. Wikis are an indispensable manifestation, of that original intention, and I believe that the best kind of information to put out there is information about God's Holy Church and the True Faith. However, given the free nature of the internet, I also understand the caution that needs to be exercised to prevent misinformation from getting out and spreading. Therefore, I would not expect any material I wish to add to be accepted without review and approval from those managing this site, and I'll also take it upon myself to do my own research prior to submitting requests.