GTU Voices - Foundations for the Future: Marisha Zeffer

Marisha Zeffer (MA ’81) is a GTU alumna, performer, advocate for interfaith education, and lifelong learner. Raised in a Polish Catholic household in Detroit, her deep appreciation for culture and faith began at an early age. After studying theater at the University of Denver and the Catholic University of America, she spent a decade immersed in New York’s theater world before relocating to the San Francisco Bay Area, where she and her husband ran the Rockaway Beach Deli for 20 years. Her passion for theology led her to pursue a master’s degree at the Graduate Theological Union (GTU), where she explored the theme of spiritual change. Zeffer also trained as a chaplain, facilitating grief support and finding profound meaning in helping others navigate loss. Inspired by her desire to support the GTU’s mission for future generations, she has included the institution in her estate planning to ensure its interfaith legacy continues. In a recent conversation, she reflected on her journey through theater, theology, and chaplaincy; her advocacy for accessible education; and her belief that the GTU embodies the open, inclusive dialogue the world urgently needs. This article is based on that conversation. 

Marisha Zeffer’s voice radiates both warmth and humor as she recalls her unexpected journey to the Graduate Theological Union. “I was in the middle of the Saturday deli rush,” she laughs. “Sandwiches out the door, people waiting in line, and I’m standing there on the wall phone, thumbing through the Yellow Pages. Remember those?” She pauses before adding, “I just asked, ‘Is this a school that teaches religions?’ And wouldn’t you know it, I got a guy answering from a phone booth on the GTU campus.” 

For Zeffer, the Graduate Theological Union wasn’t something she planned—but finding her way to Holy Hill felt predestined. Back in New York City, the journey began with a letter she wrote to Yeshiva University out of curiosity and longing for deeper learning. “That was just a waystation,” she says now. “It turns out I was always headed for the GTU.” 

Raised in Detroit in a blue-collar, Polish-speaking household, Zeffer’s early life was enriched by tradition and faith. “We had Polish classes at school, and my grandparents spoke Polish at home,” she recalls fondly. “Even now, when I hear an Eastern European accent, I’m immediately in love with [the person speaking].” Her father worked hard, and on weekends, played music at weddings, bars, and Polish picnics. “Music was always there,” she says. “And so was faith.” 

Her educational path took her from a Catholic girls’ college in Michigan to summer stock in Denver. Eventually, she made her way to Catholic University of America in Washington D.C. for graduate school in theater. It was an era charged with excitement: “We were there during the Kennedy years. We cared about what [the Kennedys] had for breakfast!” 

Then she made her way to New York. “Ten years,” she says, “and I loved every second of it.” She lived in a fifth-floor walk-up, auditioned by day, and worked in the theater by night. “I stood in line with some of the finest actors on Broadway… for unemployment checks,” she laughs. “It was the best.” 

It was during those years in New York that Zeffer first dreamed of owning a diner. “There was this place I used to walk past. I’d say to myself, ‘One day, I’m going to own a diner.’” She shrugs. “I don’t even remember if I went in. But it stuck with me.” 

Zeffer met her husband while traveling in Chicago with an acting troupe, where he was attending baking school. They married and lived in the San Francisco Bay Area, settling in Rockaway Beach, Pacifica. They dreamed of opening a restaurant, and when an old building—formerly a diner—became available, it felt like fate. “Isn’t that too much?” she says. For Marisha, acquiring the diner—eventually renamed Rockaway Deli—felt like just another predestined event. 

In between running the deli and raising a family, Zeffer stumbled upon something else that would change her life: the GTU. “I didn’t even get the name right at first,” she says with a grin. But when she finally made it to Holy Hill, she knew she was home. “I was in heaven,” she says simply. “That’s the only way to describe it.” 

Her studies there led her to write a play about Saint Paul—The Damascus Event. Although the play was declined—"it was not de rigueur for a master's thesis," Zeffer explains—it marked the beginning of her fascination with transformation, both personal and theological. “That’s what I wrote [my thesis] about,” she says. “Transformation. Not just for Paul, but for myself.” Around that time, Zeffer and her husband completed the Erhard Seminars Training, which deepened her understanding of personal evolution. “It changes not just your future,” she says, “but your past.” 

That theme of transformation has been central to her life’s work. From her chaplaincy and grief support work in Santa Rosa to her decades of volunteerism, Zeffer sees every moment as an opportunity to renew and reconnect. “You have to hit refresh,” she says. “You can’t just expect [something to happen]. You have to put in the effort.” 

Zeffer’s deep love for the GTU has led her to include it in her estate plans. “I’m sharing my estate between the GTU, two other nonprofits, and my daughter,” she says. “It’s a no-brainer.” Her reasoning is simple: “For me, it’s about helping the GTU realize what they’re up to. It’s bigger than my little world.” 

Zeffer’s reflections are often punctuated by moments of wonder. She describes the day she realized women could be priests with an awe that still lingers. “I was working at Grace Cathedral when I stopped in at a side chapel. There was a woman at the altar,” she says tearfully. “I wanted to be a priest as a child. And there she was. It was the Reverend Fran  Tornquist.” 

For Zeffer, the GTU remains a living symbol of hope and possibility. “Just saying the [phrase] ‘GTU exists’—it’s so close to ‘not exist,’” she muses. “And I want the GTU to exist. The values they represent. It’s not about tolerance—it’s about embrace.”