Vera Gould is the ministry assistant at St. Luke's Episcopal Church, where she runs the church's daily operations for the oft-traveling Reverend Henry Welles. Some say that Reverend Welles travels so much because Ms. Gould is such a capable caretaker. Others say that he travels so much to get away from Ms. Gould. I'll keep my own counsel on that question.
One thing that cannot be denied is Vera's faith. She reads the Bible daily and has memorized long passages, which she recites at the slightest provocation. She comes from a very wealthy family in Buffalo and lets everyone know that she sacrificed riches, society, and an easy life for a simple one in the service of God. Well-educated and well-read, Ms. Gould could do well in any number of professions or teach at the
school or even the
Academy if she had a mind to, but she says her devotion to her religion is all that she needs. Despite all this apparent humility, Vera wields her knowledge of literature, history, and philosophy as if it were a club, drowning any conversation with her vast reservoirs of information with a tone suggesting that such details were common knowledge--or perhaps ought to be.
Despite being arrogant, condescending, and a wee bit pretentious, more than a few people look up to her and see her as their moral and intellectual superior. Indeed, many say she holds greater sway over the Episcopalian church goers than the reverend does, and I wouldn't argue that point one bit. She acts as though she always knows best and, to the chagrin of many, it does seem to be often the case that she does.
History
They don't see eye to eye with Religion. Grover doesn't really care if you are religious but she is so religious it bothers him. To her, I imagine, he is unwieldly and unrespectable. While he usually admires people who speak their mind, she is too much.
History
Vera is more of a rival/nuisance than an actual adversary. Tommy first became aware of Cleveland's loud mouth when he blabbed about how he was looking into supernatural incidents to Vera, who immediately lectured him about the sinfulness of his interests. Tommy resents Vera for being everything he's not, being a religious, well-educated, and wealthy woman, and considers her rather condescending. Tommy would rather just avoid her if possible, and dreads the possibility that she may spread the word about his business in Munson. That said, he doesn't necessarily consider her an enemy, more so an annoyance, since she's literally the second person he met in town.
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