Beginning in a family of six,
including five brothers, Doris Hess went through high school in
her hometown of Hughesville, Pennsylvania. There she began what
she thought would be a lifetime career in journalism. She worked
on local weeklies for two years and later on a daily newspaper.
Her first college experience was at Syracuse University for a
special short journalism program which later translated into a
year’s credit when she entered Asbury College. During
college she was on the staff of the weekly paper and the
yearbook. Her call to mission came during this period and before
she graduated she knew that she was to go to the Philippines for
missionary journalism.Doris’ experience in the Philippines was to work in the church headquarters office in Manila. Prior to going to that country she took graduate work at Syracuse and missionary training at Hartford Seminary. In the Philippines she was soon affiliated with women’s work, literacy and ecumenical programs. As field correspondent with the Woman’s Division she prepared reports, articles and photography on mission events. Locally, she was a member of a church with young people and Filipino families who continue to count her as part of their family.
In the 1960's, the Woman’s Division was part of ecumenical literature and literacy programs. Doris was asked to come to New York and work in these areas with Methodist churches around the world. The former Evangelical United Brethren Church became part of this program with unification. Doris had visited their areas of work in Sierra Leone and Nigeria preparatory to this move.
Her work began in India and at an All-Africa Literature Consultation in Zambia. The involvement included consultations with church leaders and committees on needs for developing Christian literature and literacy programs. Budgets, training and inter-church and ecumenical phases were chosen as activities to enlarge the witness locally and regionally. The primary emphasis was for Doris to assist leaders in their work. This provided opportunity for scholarships for staff in publishing, editing, art and distribution.
Doris completed further graduate study at Syracuse University and went on her first trip to Latin America where she met and worked with key publishing and literature personnel in Argentina and Brazil. The pattern of establishing programs was to revisit each area within every two years. During these trips she met with staff of UNESCO and related agencies working in the same fields and sharing expertise.
In 1965 a global ecumenical agency, the Christian Literature Fund, was organized. Doris was named as a member for the Board. She served with this group in annual project and program relations through 1975, when the agency became part of a new World Association for Christian Communication (WACC) and served on its central and other committees until retirement in 1990. She was also on the Christian Education Committee of the World Council of Churches in the 1980's.
Through these organizations as part of The United Methodist Church and the overseas programs, Doris had opportunity to work and consult in more than fifty countries. Ecumenical advances through the cooperative efforts resulted in opening such new programs in the Pacific and areas of Africa.
She retired from the Board in 1990 and went to Australia to assist the National Council of Churches in their planning for the next World Council Assembly. Her next volunteer assignment was with the WACC in London in women’s media, which led to an international women’s conference in Thailand in 1994. During her time in London she was asked to go to Russia for a short term while the church was being organized there. On her return to the U.S., she resided in New York City and Hughesville, Pennsylvania and served with the International Language Center in New York, where she was a partner with students and professionals from overseas learning English.
Her home church is in Hughesville, Pennsylvania, and as an associate in The Riverside Church in New York City.