STAFF

THE REVEREND PATRICIA MATTHEWS

Co-Executive Director

The Reverend Patricia Matthews is an Episcopal priest living and working in Arkansas. Patricia has a deep love of interfaith dialogue and has integrated it into her 26 years of ministry in the Episcopal Church. She believes that the peacemaking work of The Interfaith Center is an integral part of a functioning and harmonious society. She enjoys reading and writing poetry, and she plays the piano, guitar, and cello (a little). Patricia is also a certified yoga instructor, and she has practiced dream work from a Jungian perspective since 1998. Recently, Patricia hiked the Camino de Santiago and spent time at Christ in the Desert Monastery in New Mexico. She is married to James Matthews and is the mother of Dillon, Zoë, and Louisa. They all share a kitten named Honey Bea.

SOPHIA SAID

Co-Executive Director, Founder

Sophia was born and raised in Pakistan but had a dream to come to America to attend an American University. This dream came to fruition after her husband was accepted to a school in the States. She was living the “American Dream” until 9/11  when the “dream”  became a nightmare full of hate, prejudice and fear. She took it upon herself to do something about this right here in Little Rock where she raised her family. She started by creating an interfaith youth group for high school students and then went on to help a Christian church establish The Interfaith Center of Arkansas. Since then, she has made it her life’s work to move toward building bridges of interfaith understanding through promoting peaceful dialogue and designing interfaith initiatives. She is also the founder and president of Madina Institute and Mosque in Little Rock.

BOARD OF DIRECTORS