We were established in April 2015 when our teacher, Shojo Joy Brennan, came to Mount Vernon to join the faculty at nearby Kenyon College. As a longtime practitioner and a Soto Zen priest-in-training, Joy saw the need for a local Buddhist community.

The First Congregational United Church of Christ (FCUCC) has generously given us space to hold our meetings from our founding. We have maintained a steady presence since that time, including weekly meetings, celebrations of major Buddhist holidays, and outreach to local interfaith events, including the FCUCC hosted Peace Village for kids held in the summers of 2017, 2018, and 2019.

Our teacher is Shojo Joy Brennan. Joy began formal Soto Zen training in January of 2008 with Sojun Diane Martin at Udumbara Zen Center in Evanston, IL.

Joy received lay ordination from Diane in 2009, priest ordination in July 2017 and dharma transmission in August 2022.

Joy received a PhD in Buddhist philosophy from the University of Chicago and now teaches Buddhism and the religions of East Asia at Kenyon College in Mount Vernon, Ohio.

Our sangha is comprised of local community members including retirees, students, and everyone in between.

Our sangha members participate in the practice of dana, which means generosity. This is a Buddhist practice of acting with generosity through donation of money or volunteer work or both, in support of the sangha community. This practice allows us to sustain our work. Our overhead is low because the FCUCC grants us our space rent-free.