Coleman, Bessie Emily: - Elizabeth (née Bessie) Emily Coleman was born in Anniston, Alabama, in 1951. Seeking equality and opportunity, she left the Deep South to earn her BA degree at Capital University in Ohio, spending her junior year studying at the Sorbonne in Paris, France. After graduating, she taught English in Peace Corps in Senegal, West Africa, and later had a nineteen-year career as an Employment Interviewer with the State of Alabama. Answering the call to ministry, she earned Master of Divinity and Master of Theology degrees from Princeton Theological Seminary. She continues to serve as an ordained Minister of Word and Sacrament in the Presbyterian Church, USA.