Who's Who


The Reverend Canon Carl F. Turner, B.A., M.Th.

Rector

Rector Turner
The Rev. Canon Carl Turner

Canon Turner became XIII Rector of Saint Thomas Church in July 2014.

Prior to coming to Saint Thomas, Fr Turner was Canon Precentor of Exeter Cathedral for thirteen years. He led the Department of Liturgy and Music and worked with the 850-year-old Cathedral School. Canon Turner was responsible for all the Cathedral’s worship and music, including Diocesan liturgy, and advised the Bishop and clergy in many areas of pastoral liturgy. He is a former member of the Church of England’s Liturgical Commission and was a Director of the Association of English Cathedrals.

Prior to his time in Exeter, Canon Turner served two curacies in Essex at Leigh-on-Sea and Brentwood. He then became Rector of the Parish of the Divine Compassion, a large urban parish in Plaistow and Canning Town in the East End of London. All of his parishes have been Anglo-Catholic in tradition with a strong love of music and liturgy as well as a strong commitment to the communities that they serve. His parish in East London was part of the revival of the religious life in the Church of England and the first Franciscan Friary since the reformation was founded there.

Canon Turner is a Fellow of Woodard Schools, a member of the Order of Saint John, a Chaplain to the Order of St Lazarus, and a Priest Associate of the Holy House of Our Lady of Walsingham. The Bishop of Exeter made him Canon Emeritus in recognition of his service to the Diocese and the wider Church. In the Spring of 2014, he was elected to the Board of Trustees of Nashotah House but has, since, also formed active links with Berkeley School of Divinity at Yale and the General Theological Seminary.

Canon Turner was born in Kingston upon Hull, East Yorkshire, in the United Kingdom in 1960. By happy coincidence, this was also the hometown of the XI Rector, Father John Andrew who had been Chaplain to Archbishop Michael Ramsey. When retired, Michael Ramsey became Canon Turner’s mentor and friend when he studied at Durham University and then at Oxford and he arranged for two formative years in the United States when he was a seminarian. Canon Turner married his wife, Alison, in 1990. Alison is a teacher and a priest and, until Easter 2015 was Headmistress of Exeter Junior School, a leading independent preparatory school in the Southwest of England. Canon Turner and Alison have three adopted children who are now young adults; they also have a Cairn Terrier called BertiePhoto credit: Ira Lippke.

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The Reverend Matthew Moretz

Vicar and Chief Operating Officer (COO)

The Rev. Matthew Moretz

A native of Augusta, Georgia, Father Moretz was baptized at the Church of the Good Shepherd and attended the Episcopal Day School, a ministry of that parish. While pursuing his studies at Davidson College, Father Moretz discerned a call to the priesthood. After college, his first job was in lay ministry where he served as Director of Youth Formation at Christ Church, Frederica in St. Simon’s Island, Georgia (where Charles Wesley once served). He then received his Masters of Divinity at the General Theological Seminary in New York City and was ordained a priest by the Right Reverend Henry Louttit of the Diocese of Georgia in 2006.

For his first years of ordained ministry, Father Moretz served in Yonkers, New York for multiple parishes there: St. Paul’s and La Iglesia Memorial de San Andres. He was then called to be Curate of Christ’s Church in Rye, New York. In that time, Father Moretz began a light-hearted online video series introducing the life and teaching of the Episcopal Church called “Father Matthew Presents.”
In 2012, Father Moretz returned to New York City to become Associate Rector for Christian Formation at St. Bartholomew’s Church. In 2018, he joined the team of clergy at St. Thomas Church. He was appointed Vicar and Chief Operating Officer in 2021.

He is married to Megan Brandt-Meyer, who works for the financial services company, TP ICAP. They are the loving parents of two sons, Samuel and Gabriel.

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The Reverend Alison Joan Turner

Associate for Children & Family Ministry and School Chaplain

The Rev. Alison Turner

The Rev. Alison Turner became Associate for Children & Family Ministry at Saint Thomas Church in 2018. A life-long educator, her role within the clergy team includes liturgical responsibilities of a parish priest, specific responsibilities for pastoral care of young people and families, hospitality and outreach. She oversees the organization and management of new and creative ministries for the children and young people of our parish, including Catechesis, 9am Mass ministries, and Sunday School and Nursery. After serving as Acting School Chaplain during the pandemic, she was formally commissioned as Choir School Chaplain in 2021, a role she holds concurrent with her parish duties. She chairs the Safeguarding Monitoring Committee of the Vestry at Saint Thomas, which serves both our church and school. Within the Diocese, Mother Turner serves as Dean of the Midtown Manhattan Clericus.

Mother Turner was born in southeast England and has always been immersed in parish life, as both a teacher and priest, with a special focus on education and catechesis, liturgy, and music.

A graduate of St Mary’s University College, Strawberry Hill, Twickenham (University of Surrey) from where she went to teach in Roman Catholic and Anglican multicultural schools in East London, while working towards an MA in Theology and Adult Education (University of Surrey) in preparation for her ordination. Her ministerial training was based in Cambridge.

Her first Head of School position was in a rural setting (age 4-11) in Devon (in the southwest of England) in 2001. In 2006, she became Headmistress of Exeter Junior School, a large independent city school (age 7-18) founded in 1633, and one of the leading co-Ed independent schools in the southwest of England.

Mother Turner was ordained priest in the Diocese of Chelmsford, at Michaelmas 1998 where, in her early parish ministry, she developed an interest in redevelopment projects and collaborations between church and schools. Her most recent ministerial position in the UK was as Priest Vicar in Exeter Cathedral, where she held various liturgical roles as well as oversight of the nurture and catechesis of children and young people at local and Diocesan level, alongside her full/time role as a Head of School. She served as a member of the Diocesan Board of an Education.

In 2015, she joined her husband, Fr. Turner, and Bertie their Cairn terrier, in New York. She became part of Saint Thomas life and assisted local parishes with services while studying at the General Theological Seminary.

In 2018 and 2019 Turner graduated with a Masters in Sacred Theology and Certificate in Spiritual Direction from the General Theological Seminary in New York City. The focus of her thesis was Children’s ministry in the Episcopal Church. She is now completing a part time D.Min.

Alison is a member of the St. George’s Society, New York, the oldest charity in the city and serves on the benefit committee that works with social workers looking after vulnerable seniors. She is also a very active member of the Order of St. John, and with her husband, has close relationships with the Order of Malta and enjoys fostering ever-deepening relationships between the Roman Catholic and Episcopal Dioceses in New York. She has three grown-up adopted children, and is now a proud grandmother of three.

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The Reverend Mark Daniel Schultz

Associate for Pastoral Care

The Rev. Mark Schultz

Father Schultz discerned his call to the priesthood at Saint Ignatius of Antioch on New York’s Upper West Side. He studied at Berkeley Divinity School and the Institute of Sacred Music at Yale, and he was ordained to the priesthood in 2017 by Bishop Andrew M.L. Dietsche.

While at seminary, Father Schultz was an intern at Saint Luke’s in New Haven, focusing on making pastoral care visits, leading Bible study, and providing seasonal formation opportunities during a time of transition in parish leadership.

Father Schultz comes to Saint Thomas Church from Saint Philip’s in the Hills in Tucson, Arizona, where he served as Curate for Children, Youth, and Family Ministries. In addition to having the oversight of the pastoral care, formation, and liturgical life of the parish’s children and families, leading an international youth pilgrimage and organizing various retreats, Fr. Schultz provided liturgical leadership, studies and classes, pastoral care and spiritual direction for parishioners and members of the wider community as well. He is an enthusiastic proponent of what’s been called the English School of Catholic Spirituality and has an abiding interest in Christian mysticism.

Still an active playwright, Father Schultz is a resident of New Dramatists (class of 2022). His work, which has been produced domestically and internationally, has won him both the Kesselring and Newsday Oppenheimer prizes. He has an MFA in playwriting from Columbia University.

Father Schultz’ husband, Erich, is a Lutheran and a printmaker. A mildly sentimental Arsenal F.C. supporter, Father Schultz is also a pianist and passably proficient at the musical saw. He is a member of the Society of Catholic Priests.

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The Rev. Juyoung Prisca Lee-Pae

Associate Priest for Pan-Asian Ministry

The Rev. Prisca Lee-Pae

Mother Lee-Pae was born and raised in a faithful Anglican family in Korea. Her great-grandfather was among the first generation of Korean priests of the Anglican church of Korea, and he died in North Korea during the Korean War for the sake of his faith in Christ. This significantly influenced Mother Lee-Pae’s identity as a Christian. She obtained Th.M. from Ewha Woman’s University in Korea and worked for faith formation of children, youth, and lay people as a diocesan staff in Seoul. She participated as a young adult delegate in many kinds of Anglican and ecumenical conferences, widening her views on theology and various religious practices. Her experiences of staying in various faith communities like Quaker Study Center and Anglican convents in England, Taizé community in France, and L’abri in Netherland and meeting with North Korean refugees in China and indigenous Africans in Kenya, have been important parts of her spiritual journey.

Volunteering at slum in Korea, Mother Lee-Pae met Anglican priests who dedicated their lives for the poor and they inspired her to devote her life to God. She worked for the Sharing House in Seoul which served migrant workers in the area. She visited a mosque every week to reach out to Muslim migrant workers who were neglected by other Christian agencies because of their religion. She also worked for the Graduate school of Theology at Ewha Woman’s University as an administrator. Before coming to the United States, she worked at Church Mission Society of the UK at their office in Seoul.

In May of 2021, Mother Lee-Pae completed an STM degree from the Episcopal Divinity School at Union Theological Seminary. She was ordained to the priesthood on September 4, 2021. Mother Lee-Pae is married to the Canon Reverend Joseph Pae, an Episcopal priest in the Diocese of Long Island, and she is the mother of two children, Ethan and Evelyn.

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The Rev. Dr. Luigi Gioia

Theologian in Residence

The Rev. Dr. Luigi Gioia

Before coming to Saint Thomas Church in November of 2022, the Revd Dr. Luigi Gioia was Associate Priest and Director of Formation at St Paul’s Knightsbridge, London, and a Research Associate at the Von Hügel Institute at the University of Cambridge (UK). He was a Benedictine monk for 25 years and did his doctoral studies at the University of Oxford. He taught theology for almost 20 years in France and at the Pontifical University of St Anselm in Rome. He discovered the beauty of the liturgical and theological traditions of the Anglican Church during his time in Oxford and eventually became an Anglican a few years later.

Luigi is a writer in theology and spirituality. He gives talks, preaches retreats, leads workshops, and teaches courses as an invited lecturer in universities, theological colleges, and parishes all over the world. He is fluent in English, French and Italian. His books have been translated in five languages. His spiritual meditations have been published by The Tablet, Crux, The America Magazine, The Church Times and broadcast by the BBC.

Besides his academic work on St Augustine, Luigi has written several wide-audience books on spirituality. His book Say It To God. In Search Of Prayer was chosen as the Archbishop of Canterbury Lent Book for 2018.

His latest book, The Wisdom of St Benedict. Monastic Spirituality and the Life of the Church received the First Place in the category of Spirituality Award by the CMA (Catholic Media Association, USA) in 2021.

Luigi is from Matera, in the South of Italy, and has worked in Italy, France, England, and the United States. He is married to Claudio, also Italian from Naples, who works in Digital Marketing. In recent years Luigi has discovered a love for gardening and Claudio, who lived for years in Spain between the Canary Islands and Madrid, loves beach volleyball and goes crazy for sushi (both eating it and making it). Luigi and Claudio share a passion for the Amalfi coast, movies and, of course, ice creams.

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Fr. Preston Gonzalez-Grissom

Assistant Priest for Children and Family Ministry

Fr. Preston Gonzalez-Grissom

Fr. Preston, originally from Chesapeake, Virginia, has spent the past few years serving as a Hospital Chaplain, following his graduation from Princeton Theological Seminary. Prior to his seminary studies, he pursued his passion for justice in roles such as Housing Coordinator for For Kids Inc., where he facilitated stable living conditions for unhoused families, and Director of Operations for Faith for Justice, a nonprofit in St. Louis that provided consulting services to churches, universities, and other organizations on matters of anti-racism and racial equity. Father Preston is deeply committed to spiritual formation and has served as Assistant Youth Director and Spiritual Formation Fellow at a Charlottesville parish, as well as serving as Spiritual Formation Research Assistant at Princeton Seminary and Trinity Episcopal Church, where he was a Graduate Student Minister to Princeton University Ph. D students.

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The Reverend Andrew C. Mead, OBE, DD, Rector Emeritus
Right Reverend Andrew R. St. John, DD, Bishop in Residence
The Reverend Patrick S. Cheng, J.D., Ph.D., Theologian in Residence
The Reverend Mark Brown, Honorary Assistant
The Reverend Gina Gore, Honorary Assistant
The Reverend David F. Mc Neeley, Honorary Assistant
The Reverend Thomas F. Pike, Honorary Assistant

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Jeremy Filsell

Organist and Director of Music

As a U.S. Citizen and a British Citizen, Jeremy is uniquely placed to lead the Saint Thomas Choir of Men and Boys, which owes much of its existence to the great English choral tradition since T. Tertius Noble was invited to found the Saint Thomas Choir School in 1919.

Jeremy Filsell has been hailed as one of only a few virtuoso performers as both pianist and organist. He has appeared as a solo pianist in Russia, Scandinavia, New Zealand and throughout the USA and UK. His concerto repertoire encompasses Bach, Mozart and Beethoven through to Shostakovich, John Ireland and Rachmaninov. He has recorded the solo piano music of Herbert Howells, Bernard Stevens, Eugene Goossens and Johann Eschmann and recently released were discs of Litaize’s organ music, Rachmaninov’s first and second piano concertos and two of French Mélodies accompanying Michael Bundy (baritone). Jeremy is on the international roster of Steinway Piano Artists and has recorded for BBC Radio 3, USA, and Scandinavian radio networks in solo and concerto roles.

His discography comprises more than 35 solo recordings. Gramophone magazine commented on the series of 12 CDs comprising the première recordings of Marcel Dupré’s complete organ works for Guild that it was ‘one of the greatest achievements in organ recording’. In 2005, Signum released a 3-disc set of the six organ symphonies of Louis Vierne, recorded on the 1890 Cavaillé-Coll organ in St. Ouen, Rouen, BBC Radio 3’s Discs of the Week.

He has taught at universities, summer schools, and conventions in both the UK and USA and has served on international competition juries in England and Switzerland. Recent solo engagements have taken him across the USA and UK and to Germany, France, Finland, Sweden, Norway, Australia and New Zealand. In North America, he concertizes under the auspices of Philip Truckenbrod Concert Artists.

Brought up as a chorister in Coventry, England, Jeremy Filsell was charged with the direction of a men & boys choir there while still a High School student. Studying with Nicolas Kynaston and Daniel Roth, he read for a first degree as Organ Scholar of Keble College, Oxford University before completing graduate studies in piano at the Royal College of Music in London and gaining a PhD in Musicology at Birmingham Conservatoire/BCU for research on aesthetic and interpretative issues in the music of Marcel Dupré.

Jeremy was formerly Assistant Organist of Ely Cathedral, Director of Music at St. Luke’s Chelsea and, before moving to the USA in 2008, held Academic and Performance lectureships at the Royal Academy of Music in London and the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester, and was a lay clerk in the Queen’s choir at St. George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle. Immediately before coming to Saint Thomas, he was Artist in Residence at Washington National Cathedral, Director of Music at the Church of the Epiphany in Washington DC, and Professor of Organ at Peabody Conservatory in Baltimore, MD.

You can read more about Jeremy at his website: www.jeremyfilsell.com.


Nicolas Haigh

Associate Organist

Nicolas Haigh serves as Associate Organist at Saint Thomas Church in New York City where he appears regularly with the Saint Thomas Choir of Men and Boys. Originally from the United Kingdom, Nicolas previously held positions with the multiple Gramophone Award-winning Choir of New College, Oxford, and York Minster. He is a recipient of the coveted Limpus Prize from the Royal College of Organists and held the Sir William McKie Organ Scholarship at Clare College, Cambridge.

Active as a historical keyboardist, continuo performer, and conductor, Nicolas appears regularly with American Bach Soloists, Oxford Bach Soloists, and Bach Akademie Charlotte. He is also the co-founder of early music consort L’Académie du Roi Soleil with which he has performed throughout the United States and the United Kingdom.

Nicolas has been privileged to perform as both a soloist and accompanist to countries including Australia, France, Italy, Hong Kong, The Netherlands, and Israel. He can be heard on numerous CDs including Veni Emmanuel and Imogen Holst: Choral Works (Harmonia Mundi USA) and has performed frequently on radio (BBC Radio 3 and BBC Radio 4). Nicolas’ teachers have included Malcolm Archer, Clive Driskill-Smith, James McVinnie, and Jonathan Moyer.


Maks Adach

Associate for Musical Studies and Assistant Organist

Maks Adach is the Assistant Organist and Associate for Musical Studies at saint Thomas Church and Choir School. He began his musical training as a chorister at the London Oratory under the direction of Lee Ward and Nicholas O’Neill. While still at school, Maks continued his organ studies with Daniel Moult at the Royal College of Music Junior Department before spending a year at Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance where he held the organ scholarship at the Old Royal Naval College.

On leaving Trinity, Maks went up to Oriel College, Oxford, as organ scholar. Upon graduation, Maks remained at Oxford and read for a master’s degree in musicology.

During his time at Oxford, Maks spent four years as Master of Music at Pusey House and served as Director of Chapel Music at St. John’s College. Following organ scholarships at Lichfield and Liverpool Anglican cathedrals, Maks moved to the United States to serve as Assistant Director of Music at St Paul’s Church, Harvard Square, home to the only Roman Catholic boys’ choir school in the United States.

In addition to his work as an organist and choral director, Maks is active as a music editor. His critical edition of Ethel Smyth’s Five Sacred Partsongs has recently been published by Stainer and Bell as part of the Multitude of Voyces series—a project dedicated to promoting music by underrepresented composers.


John Ramseyer

Concert Series Manager

John Ramseyer, tenor, is a New York City-based performer of operatic, concert, and early music. Well-versed in operatic repertoire spanning the eras, Mr. Ramseyer has performed leading roles with The Bronx Opera Company, Apotheosis Opera, Resonanz Opera, Christman Opera Company, LoftOpera, Mannes Opera, and many others. As a concert soloist, John has collaborated with many of New York’s finest ensembles, including the Orchestra of St. Luke’s, the American Classical Orchestra, and Camerata New York.

This season, Ramseyer has performed with Musica Sacra, collaborated with the UK choir Vasari Singers, and sang in the extra chorus of the Metropolitan Opera’s productions of Boris Godunov, Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg, as well as their concerts of Verdi’s Requiem and Mahler’s Symphony No. 2. In previous seasons, Mr. Ramseyer has performed as a soloist with many of New York’s great local choral societies, such as St. George’s Choral Society, the Astoria Choir, and the Forest Hills Choir.

He feels privileged to perform his dual role as Gentlemen of the Choir and Concert Series Manager at Saint Thomas Church.


Rebecca Kellerman-Filsell

Music Associate for Children and Youth
Concerts and Media Coordinator for Music

Rebecca Kellerman-Filsell, joins the music office staff after spending the previous 20+ years singing and teaching music in the Washington, DC metro area. Whilst in Washington, DC, Rebecca frequently appeared as soloist and chorister with The Washington Bach Consort, Opera Lafayette, The Washington National Cathedral and various other choral groups in the DC metro area and beyond.

Most recently, Rebecca served as section leader and Music Associate at Saint Alban’s Church, Washington, DC, where she reignited their children’s music ministry with a RSCM chorister program. She also served as vocal coach for the chorister program at Saint Paul’s K St. from 2014-2019. Her private studio includes students of all ages and abilities, but she specializes in teaching young singers. Rebecca holds both a Bachelor’s and a Master’s degree in Music from Shenandoah University, where she studied voice performance/pedagogy and music education. Rebecca lives in the heart of Manhattan with her husband, two sons and a spotted gecko.


Margaret Carpenter Haigh

Music Office Manager

Soprano Margaret Carpenter Haigh appears as a soloist and chamber musician throughout North America. Recent highlights include appearances with Memphis, Winston-Salem, and Portland Symphonies; Messiah Festival of the Arts; Bach Akademie Charlotte; National Sawdust; Arizona MusicFest; and Evansville Philharmonic. She can be heard regularly with the nation’s premier ensembles including The Choir of Trinity Wall Street, Handel and Haydn Society, and GRAMMY©-winning Apollo’s Fire. She is co-artistic director of L’Académie du Roi Soleil, with which she has performed across the United States and the United Kingdom.

Margaret holds the DMA in Historical Performance Practice from Case Western Reserve University; the M.Mus in Choral Studies from the University of Cambridge, where she was a Gates Cambridge Scholar; and degrees in Voice and Organ from UNC-Greensboro. Scholarship includes work on physical gesture in the madrigal repertoire of the concerto delle donne in late sixteenth-century Ferrara, and she is active as a conductor and educator, teaching voice privately and leading workshops around the country on physical gesture for singers. Margaret is a member of the Choir of Trinity Wall Street. For more information, visit www.margaretcarpenterhaigh.com.


Padraic Costello

Music Librarian Associate

Padraic Costello has been singing in choirs his whole life, from his time as a young chorister in the Madison Boy Choir to his current position as a Gent in the Saint Thomas Choir of Men and Boys. He is active throughout New York City as a countertenor and arts administrator, although he considers Saint Thomas to be his musical home in the city. Padraic received a graduate degree in Ethnomusicology from the University of Hawaii at Manoa, where he specialized in both newly-composed and classical Japanese music. His eclectic tastes in music have served him well in the library at Saint Thomas, where he gleefully loses himself in over a century’s worth of collected scores.


Bruce Smith

Chief Advancement Officer

Bruce Smith has been a professional fundraiser for over twenty years, having led the development function at four organizations: The General Theological Seminary in New York City, Walnut Hill School for the Arts in Natick, MA, deCordova Sculpture Park and Museum in Lincoln, MA, and The Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum in Ridgefield, CT.

He earned his A.B. with Honors from University College, Cork, Ireland in English and History and subsequently received an MFA in Theater from the University of California, San Diego. He was an actor, writer, and director in New York prior to beginning his development career.

Bruce is married to an Episcopal priest, the Rev. Kate Malin, Rector of Christ’s Church, Rye, NY. They have three college-age children: twins Emerson and Murphy, and Owen. All three are pursuing careers as theater artists.

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Adam MacDonald

Director of Development

Adam MacDonald has been a freelance singer and actor in NYC for nearly two decades, performing off-broadway, regionally, and in national tours. He has been a tenor section-leader in the choir at the Church of the Heavenly Rest since 2002, where he also serves on the Vestry, produces their summertime Jazz Vespers service, and works on the Stewardship Committee. At CHR, Adam created the community organizing platform Block90 – an energetic and experiential way to engage the neighborhood and greater NYC with music, food, and art. Originally hailing from Buffalo, NY, Adam obtained degrees in Voice and Music Education from SUNY Fredonia, and a Master of Arts and Humanities from the University at Buffalo. He currently lives in northern Manhattan with his wife Kristin, and their two daughters Ellery & Delaney.

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Blake Martin

Director of Communications and Digital Production

Growing up in the Baptist church in Richmond, Virginia, Blake relished the weekly ritual of church-going. The familiar hymns washing over him, neighbors dressed up in their Sunday best, and the dulcet cadence of a sermon are all fond memories from those times. So it’s no great surprise that he has found a creative and professional home at Saint Thomas Church, where he feels privileged to train his camera’s lens on the sacred services held in this venerable.

Blake’s contribution to Saint Thomas as Director of Communications is most readily seen in the webcasts and live streams enjoyed the world over, but he also oversees the filming of concerts and special events, social media, and press outreach. Blake brings 10+ years of creative, production, and brand experience to Saint Thomas. He holds a B.A. in creative writing from the University of Pennsylvania where he graduated summe cum laude and an M.F.A. in directing from Columbia University. His personal passions include swimming at the master’s level, film photography, and being a dog dad.


David Bryan

Head Verger
Originally from Durham, North Carolina, David Bryan grew up in the Episcopal Church and has lived in New York City for 22 years. David holds degrees in music and religious studies, including an MA in theology from Union Theological Seminary, and he has taught at Hunter College and the College of New Rochelle. As a church musician, he has sung with many notable ensembles in town, including the New York Philharmonic, American Symphony Orchestra, and Early Music New York.

David sang in the professional choir at Saint Bartholomew’s Church in New York City for twenty years. Over that time, he also served as Choral Librarian, Communications Associate, Director of Welcome, and, most recently, as Liturgy Coordinator. For much of this year, he has served as Youth Director for an ecumenical group of churches in Irvington, NY.


Joshilyn Hoisington

Second Verger

As the daughter of a pastor, Joshilyn has been supporting clergy her whole life. Growing up in suburban Chicago, and later, Grand Rapids, Michigan, Joshilyn has taken a winding road through life to find herself at St. Thomas. Originally, the plan was to be a professional composer, but when that didn’t work out, Joshilyn took an undergraduate degree in Latin and Greek, a Juris Doctor, and studied Information Science for an MS degree. While studying, she worked as a musician, a bookshop manager, legal researcher, and software analyst. Joshilyn moved to Brooklyn in 2019, and immediately found a spiritual home at St. Thomas, serving as a chantry acolyte until the pandemic changed things. Joshilyn continued to worship virtually at St. Thomas throughout the pandemic, having temporarily moved back to Michigan, where she rejoined several church choirs. When the opportunity to work as a verger at St. Thomas came up, she immediately felt like it was the right opportunity to come back to New York and to serve the Church.


Lizette Hernandez

Executive Assistant to the Rector

Lizette began working at Saint Thomas Church in September, 2019 as a temp.  She has since been hired as a permanent employee as the Executive Assistant to the Rector.  Prior to Saint Thomas, Lizette worked was freelancing as a temp working as an Executive Assistant in various industries, most recently, the Finance industry.  Lizette is a very organized and detail oriented person.  Among her primary duties, she is responsible for overseeing and maintaining the Rector’s very busy calendar.  She is the gatekeeper to the Rector’s office and ensures that the Rector is on time and well-prepared for his meetings.

In her free time, Lizette likes to spend time at home with her partner, Paul, listening to vinyl records from her extensive collection.  She enjoys cooking and baking for her family and friends.  She also has three rescue cats: Carlito, and twins, Max and Luna.


Amy Cheresnowski

Database Manager

Amy came to the staff of Saint Thomas in the summer of 2016 as Executive Assistant to the Rector. In 2020, she began the new position as Database Manager and Parish House Administrator.  She began her church administration career at The Riverside Church as their Mission and Social Justice Coordinator and then moved to Fifth Avenue Presbyterian Church as their Administrative Assistant for Congregational Care and Outreach. She is quite excited to begin this new role at Saint Thomas in the Institutional Advancement Office.

Amy graduated from the University of Pittsburgh with a BA in Political Science and Urban Studies, concentrating in Latin America. She received her MS in Nonprofit Leadership from Fordham University in August 2015.

She and her husband Mike are avid sports fans and enjoy a good Mets or Rangers game. They are also seasoned travelers and enjoy exploring (or escaping) the city whenever they can. In October 2017, they welcomed their son Nathaniel, and in September 2019, they welcomed their son Owen, completing their family. They live in the Spuyten Duyvil neighborhood of the Bronx along with their cat, Buddy.


Linda Morfi

Pastoral Care Coordinator

Linda has worked at Saint Thomas Church since May of 1998. Prior to that she worked for the non-profit, Catholic Medical Mission Board where she oversaw donated medicines to third world countries. During that time she served on the board of Ayudamos, a non-profit humanitarian organization.

Linda is a founding member of our Ecumenical Outreach Program (EOP). This collaboration between Saint Thomas Church, Saint Patrick’s cathedral and Fifth Avenue Presbyterian Church s spent years volunteering as a class representative at P.S. 41, the Greenwich Village Public School, Girl Scout leader, Lab School parent volunteer, and was an active member of the Mother’s Club at St. Francis Xavier High School in Manhattan.

Linda assists the clergy by incorporating the social work element of the needs of the parishioners. She assists our parishioners facing difficult times. She leads the Prayer Shawl Ministry and the Rector’s ministry for the seniors of the parish. Linda organizes and implements our various community outreach programs geared to children and the homebound. This includes our Easter outreach, Back to School drive, our Angel Tree at Christmas, and other outreach projects.

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Lloyd G. Stanford

Warden

Lloyd Gregory Stanford made Saint Thomas Church Fifth Avenue his spiritual home in 1992. Since 2005, Lloyd has served as a high altar acolyte, chalice bearer, lay subdeacon and bishop’s chaplain. First elected to the Vestry in 2014 and Warden in 2021, Lloyd serves as a member of the Standing Committee, the Building Committee, the Finance and Budget Committee, the Audit Committee, and the Personnel Committee. He served as chair of the 2022 Vestry Nominating Committee. Lloyd also serves on the board of directors of Project Guardianship and is a member of that organization’s Finance and Audit Committee.

Lloyd served for many years as CEO of a large academic medical and surgical practice. He recently founded a healthcare company that provides physician and surgical practices with advisory and consultancy services. Lloyd earned an MBA and certification as a medical practice executive (CMPE). His expertise is in leadership, building a successful organizational and operational culture, Lean Six Sigma, and employing effective strategies to manage human capital. He is a member of the American College of Healthcare Executives, Healthcare Leaders of New York, the Medical Group Management Association, the Healthcare Financial Management Association and the Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem.

Lloyd and his wife Andrea were married at Saint Thomas Church in a ceremony officiated by the Reverend Canon Carl F. Turner and attended by many members of the Saint Thomas Church family. Andrea is a Foreign Service Officer and member of the United States diplomatic corps. She has served on the Saint Thomas Annual Appeal Committee.

The couple enjoys extensive travel around the globe and reside in New Jersey.

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Gregory Zaffiro

Warden

Greg has been a parishioner at Saint Thomas Church since 2011.

He is Assistant Treasurer of the Vestry and is also a Trustee for the Saint Thomas Choir School. On the Vestry, Greg is a member of the Standing, Audit, and Investment committees. Greg also serves as an high altar acolyte and lector.
In the past, he has been co-chair of the Annual Appeal, Development Committee, Finance Task Force, and the Strategic Planning Working Group.

He is a member of the keystone society, friends of music, and both the Duffie and Noble legacy giving guilds.

Greg is a Partner at the investment firm, Electron Capital, where he leads business development and investor relations. Greg has spent nearly his entire career as a marketing professional within the alternative asset industry. Prior to that, he was a public equity research analyst.

In addition to his work at Saint Thomas Church, Greg is a member of the Order of St. John of Jerusalem. Greg was previously a trustee at the Metropolitan Museum of Art representing the New York City Council Speaker and was President of the board of directors for the LGBT Community Center in New York.

Greg is from Yorktown Heights, New York, and graduated from Fordham University. He was married at Saint Thomas Church in 2019 and lives between Manhattan and Palm Beach, Florida.

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Karen Duncan

Born on the island of Jamaica and raised in New York City, Karen Duncan is a life-long Anglican and a member of Saint Thomas Church Fifth Avenue for over 10 years. She is currently the co-head of the Usher Corps at Saint Thomas Church.

Upon graduation from law school, Karen chose to focus in the area of Regulatory Compliance. She has gained significant experience in regulatory compliance oversight of public work infrastructure, defense contracting and homeland security.

Karen is currently Compliance Director at the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) where she is a leading advisor in ensuring the MTA’s business— including its subsidiary agencies—adhere to a strict code of ethics and all applicable laws. With primary focus on corporate governance and whistleblowing programs, her team has compliance oversight of the agency’s legal integrity programs, and internal investigations of MTA Construction and Development, the operations of its subways, buses and railroads, as well as the authority’s bridges and tunnels.

Prior to joining the MTA, Karen was the chief compliance officer for Dragados, a leading Madrid based Design and Construction engineering company within the Actividades de Construcción y Servicios (ACS) group of companies. She had compliance oversight of the Company’s activities covering large scale public works infrastructure projects such as California High Speed Rail, the Second Avenue Subway and The expansion of Grand Central Madison.

Karen has also covered homeland security and FAA compliance with Lockheed Martin in protection of the nation’s airports and airspace.

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Christopher M. Haley

Clerk

Chris Haley has been a parishioner of Saint Thomas Church since 2015 and serves on the Grant Study Committee and Safeguarding Monitoring Committee. He is also Director of the Altar Guild, a delegate to Diocesan Convention, and is Vice Chair of the Choir School Board of Trustees. Chris chaired the Institutional Advancement Task Force and the search for a Chief Advancement Officer and served on the Strategic Planning Working Group. He is passionate about implementing our strategic plan to ensure the continued vitality of Saint Thomas for the next century.

Chris has been a leader in the nonprofit sector for over two decades, serving numerous organizations and causes, including independent schools, higher education, social services, and substance abuse treatment.

He is a member of the Fellowship of Saint John and has volunteered for a number of Episcopal causes, including the National Episcopal AIDS Coalition, where he served as Chair of the Board, and Episcopal Relief & Development, for which he served as the diocesan representative for the Diocese of Minnesota.

Originally from Tennessee, Chris was confirmed at Christ Church Cathedral in Nashville and holds an MSSW degree from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. He and his husband live on the Upper East Side.

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Winnie Kung

Winnie Kung has been attending St Thomas regularly for four and a half years and was received as a member in 2017. She decided to make it her spiritual home because of the inspirational liturgy of the worship service and the intellectually stimulating and spiritually nourishing Theology Class. Her Christian faith is central to her, which she tries to incorporate in all aspects of her life, professionally, socially and as a global citizen. She is into spirituality and strives to draw close to God to live out a life that she is called to live. Winnie is interested in spiritual directing which she hopes to integrate with her training in psychotherapy. At St Thomas she has served in the Annual Appeal Committee for two years.

Winnie got her Bachelors in Social Work and Sociology from the University of Hong Kong, Masters in Social Work from Washington University in St Louis, and her doctorate from the University of Chicago. She had been a direct practitioner and an administrator in a social service agency for 9 years before entering academia. She has taught at the University of Southern California, University of Hong Kong and has been at Fordham University Graduate School of Social Service for the past 16 years. She is currently a full professor. In addition to her teaching, she is an active researcher in areas of mental health, family and cultural diversity issues. She was actively involved as volunteer at the New York Coalition of Asian American Mental Health and the Chinese American Mental Health Alliance as executive committee member.

She would like to contribute to the growth of St Thomas especially at this strategic time of envisioning new possibilities both in its outreach to the community and in strengthening the parishioners in their journey spiritually and otherwise.

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Samyel Lee

Samyel Lee has been a parishioner of Saint Thomas Church since he first arrived in New York in 2018. Originally born and raised in a Presbyterian home, he was first introduced to Anglicanism by ocassionally attending services with his mother, a pianist and organist, at the Seoul Anglican Cathedral of St. Mary and St. Nicholas.

Samyel and his wife, Patricia Jo, were married at Saint Thomas in a ceremony officiated by the Reverend Juyoung Prisca Lee-Pae. Both Samyel and Patricia were also baptized at Saint Thomas by the Rector, Reverend Canon Carl F. Turner. It is customary for Korean Anglicans to be given a baptismal name and Samyel’s baptismal name is Lazarus. Samyel and Patricia currently live in Manhattan with their two dogs, Elmo and Nala.

Samyel is an associate at Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP and holds a JD from Harvard Law School. Prior to attending law school, he spent time fulfilling his mandatory military service duties as a Lieutenant in the Republic of Korea Air Force, serving as the interpreting officer to the Chief of Staff. He studied political science, Russian literature and philosophy at Duke University. Samyel was born in Strasbourg, France, and spent many years abroad with his family, in Washington DC, Brussels and Paris where his father was serving as a diplomat.

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Darren Littlejohn

Darren has been a parishioner of Saint Thomas Church since 2010. He is a lifelong Anglican and, in addition to Saint Thomas, has been a member at different times of parishes in Canada (where he grew up) and in England (where he has both worked and attended university). Darren is a partner of Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson LLP, where he practices in the firm’s asset management group. Prior to Fried Frank, Darren was a partner in the financial services group of an international law firm and was a managing director and senior counsel in the legal department of Goldman Sachs in both New York and London.

Originally from St. John’s, Newfoundland in Canada, Darren holds a BA in Political Studies from Queen’s University in Kingston, Ontario. He met his wife Liane while attending Queen’s. Darren also holds a BA (Jurisprudence) and a BCL from the University of Oxford, where he studied as a Rhodes Scholar and was a member of Magdalen College.

Darren and Liane have a son William who is 14 and a daughter Tatum who is 10, both of whom have been actively involved in the Children and Families ministry at Saint Thomas. Tatum was baptized at Saint Thomas in 2011 and William was confirmed at Saint Thomas in 2019. Darren and his family live on the Upper East Side.

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John Oghia

Drawn by its unique mission of nurturing faith through music, John first discovered Saint Thomas Church in 2008 through its Concert Series and has been attending services ever since. He joined as a pledging parishioner in 2012 and was received into the Episcopal Church in 2016. Shortly thereafter John began serving as a High Altar Acolyte and has been a member of the Young Adults & Middlers Groups.

Born in Brooklyn, NY and raised in Metuchen, New Jersey, John studied Economics at Loyola University in Maryland where he received his BA with honors, and subsequently earned his MBA from Baruch College in New York City. He is a Vice President at Shutterstock, a global content licensing company, where he leads operations strategy for its E-commerce business. Previously, he held corporate financial planning & analysis and general management positions.

John has a particular interest in liturgical music and hymnody. A part-time organist in the New York City area, he substitutes at churches across several denominations. He is an avid operagoer, has a passion for architectural photography, and enjoys travel.

He currently resides in Hoboken, NJ.

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Benita Potters

A New Yorker for fifth years, Benita is originally from California where she is an enrolled member of the Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians. She is married to Stephen Potters, who was also born in California. They have two daughters, two sons-in-law, and six grandchildren. All six grandchildren were baptized at Saint Thomas, one a year from 2011 through 2017.

Benita continues to be involved with the family real estate business in California. Her volunteer commitments include service on the New York board of the Smithsonian Institute National Museum of the American Indian, where her positions included vice chair. Concurrently she served on the board of the Agua Caliente Cultural Museum on her reservation in Palm Springs, California, the first Smithsonian satellite museum on Native land. She was on the board of the National Society of Colonial Dames and was the co-chair of the Fellows of the Library of America. She actively supports the work of contemporary Native artists by acquiring works of art, especially from indigenous women artists.

Benita is an avid traveler and visits England frequently to visit her family. She has followed her father’s lifelong attendance in the Anglican/Episcopal Church.

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Inge Reist

Inge has been a parishioner at Saint Thomas Church Fifth Avenue since 2004 and served on the Vestry from 2012 to 2017, chairing the building committee and choir school committees during those years. Inge and her husband Rob Freeman were married by Father Mead in 2013. For Inge, the mission of Saint Thomas and its service to the community resonates with her earlier experiences as a leading member of the parent committee of The Buckley School, parent association of Phillips Academy Andover, and board member of the LCU Foundation. An art historian by training, Inge has also presented several lectures about the building and the art in the Church. Holding a Ph. D. from Columbia University, her career has largely been at the Frick Collection and Frick Art Reference Library, serving as Chief of Research Collections and Programs, Head of the Photoarchive, and founding Director of the Center for the History of Collecting. She has published widely on subjects of the history of collecting and Italian Renaissance and Baroque art. Inge has served on many academic and not-for-profit boards and, from 2006 to 2011 was Chair of the Association of Research Institutes in Art History.

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Karl C. Saunders

Treasurer

Karl C. Saunders became a member of Saint Thomas Church in 2004. He has served twelve years on the Vestry previously. He has served as the Chairman of the Music Committee, Co-Chairman of the Organ Committee, and as a member of the Audit Committee and the Investment Committee. He is currently Treasurer of Saint Thomas Church and a member of the Standing Committee. Karl is a member of the Order of Saint John.

Karl has served as a director of various public and private corporations as well as nonprofit organizations. He chaired the Audit Committee of Unizan Financial Corporation for eight years and served as a financial expert. He is a former member of the Board of The Madeira School in McLean, Virginia, where he served on the Executive Committee and chaired the Finance Committee.

Karl holds a B.A. with honors from Duke University and an M.D. from The Ohio State University. He received an M.B.A. from the Kellogg School of Management and graduated first in his class.

Karl is Managing Director of Saunix Investment Management, LLC, a registered investment advisory firm.

His interests include music and fitness. He continues to study piano and organ performance. He is a martial arts and self-defense instructor and holds a Black Belt in Kachido Aiki Jitsu. He is a Renzo Gracie Black Belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu.

Karl is married to the former Barbara Jean Graham. They have two grown children who have lived and worked in Manhattan.

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You may contact the Wardens using this address: [email protected].
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