Church in the Cliff

Bios

Courtney Pinkerton is a pastor, mama and lover of community. After her undergraduate degree from SMU, Pinkerton experienced living in poverty through an AmeriCorps opportunity at The Rise, a grassroots feminist organization. Leaving The Rise to work with the Peace Corps in Nicaragua, Pinkerton lived on the side of a volcano and was integral in implementing two community banks. Upon her return to the US, Courtney earned a dual Masters in Divinity and Public Policy from Harvard University and completed a series of consulting and internship opportunities. After graduation, Pinkerton’s journey brought her to Dallas and in May 2009 she was called by a unanimous vote of the congregation to serve as lead pastor of Church in the Cliff.  A life-long United Methodist, Pinkerton ministers at the intersection of the mainline and emergent communities, a space she describes as “ecu-mergent.” Courtney is married to her former Peace Corps companion, Richard Amory and they have two young children and live in the Oak Cliff area of Dallas where she hosts and organizes a backyard community garden and Montessori co-op.