Our Rector
The Rev. Christopher Wendell began serving as St. Paul’s rector in the summer of 2011. His ministry includes preaching and leading worship, providing pastoral care to all ages, welcoming newcomers and visitors, and working with the lay leadership in the administration and oversight of the parish. As part of his ministry, Chris also is an active member of the Bedford Interfaith Clergy Network and provides pastoral care to nearby institutions such as MCI-Concord and Carleton Willard Village. He has served in various leadership roles in the Episcopal Diocese of Massachusetts over the past decade, and is currently a General Convention Deputy. Before coming to St. Paul’s, Chris spent four years as an associate rector at St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church in Wellesley. Prior to attending seminary, he worked for a regional theater company as a directing/producing assistant. Chris is a native of San Francisco and a graduate of Princeton University and the Episcopal Divinity School. Chris and his wife, Kristen, an associate professor of engineering education, live in Bedford with their two boys. When not at church, Chris enjoys curling in the winter, the Jersey Shore in the summer, gardening in the spring, apple picking in the fall, and crossword puzzles all year round!
Our Priest Associate
The Rev. Thea Keith-Lucas came to St. Paul’s to serve as a priest associate beginning in September 2022. Thea currently works full time as Chaplain to the Institute at M.I.T. where she leads the Office of Religious, Spiritual, and Ethical Life. Prior to taking on that role, she served as Episcopal Chaplain to M.I.T. and before that was Rector of Calvary Church in Danvers for six years. Rev. Thea lives in Lexington with her spouse, Jake, and their two teenage children. As priest associate, Rev. Thea joins us to lead worship roughly twice a month, preaches regularly, shares in the fellowship life of St. Paul’s and provides clergy support to our women’s group. Please feel free to contact her at: TheaKL [at] mit.edu.
Our Curate
The Rev. Molly Minnerath joined St. Paul’s in the fall of 2023 as the Lay Pastoral Associate, and was promoted to Curate in June 2024. She primarily takes part in children’s formation experiences of the parish, while also preaching and providing pastoral care to parishioners. Born and raised in Minnesota (and very proud of it!), Molly moved to Boston to pursue her M.Div. at Boston College School of Theology and Ministry and, for the last five years, worked at the Cathedral Church of St. Paul with the MANNA Community, a large community of unhoused and unstably housed folks in downtown Boston. Prior to attending divinity school, Molly lived at various Catholic Workers across the country; spent a year as a volunteer with Maryknoll Lay Missioners in Cochabamba, Bolivia, primarily working with women who lived in prison; spent multiple summers as a camp counselor at a summer camp in the mountains of Montana; and studied theology and Hispanic studies at the College of St. Benedict/St. John’s University in central Minnesota. In her free time, Molly loves nothing more than being outside: hiking, biking, kayaking, camping, fishing, walking around her neighborhood . . . she takes any opportunity to get outdoors, especially with her partner, Maryclare. She strives to live by her beloved home state’s motto: “there is no such thing as bad weather, just bad preparation!” You can contact Molly at molly[at]stpaulsbedford.org
Our Vestry
The vestry of St. Paul’s includes the wardens, treasurer, clerk, and several general members with rotating three-year terms. The vestry is a blend of newer and long-time parishioners committed to the responsible stewardship of the church, both practically and spiritually.
Officers
Christine Anderson, Warden (vestry@stpaulsbedford.org)
Chris has been a member of St. Paul’s since she was born, and three generations of her family are currently part of the St. Paul’s community. A geriatric nurse practitioner by vocation, Chris has been involved with many ministries and activities at St. Paul’s over the years. Most recently, she has been the chair of our Haiti Mission Partnerships subcommittee and organizer of two Barn Dance fundraisers. She lives in Bedford and is active in other community organizations, too.
Heath Luedde, Warden has been a member of St. Paul’s since 2013. He serves as a Lay Eucharistic Minister and previously was a Middle School Youth Group leader. Heath has particularly enjoyed helping with the Special Olympics and attending the men’s retreat. He has worked for over 20 years as a senior sales manager at Bunker Hill Sales in Boston.
Carrie Mathews, Treasurer (treasurer@stpaulsbedford.org)
Carrie’s family has a strong history at St. Paul’s – her grandfather helped build the church in 1955! She has been a proud parishioner for more than 40 years and is a member of the Stewardship Committee, co-director of the annual Christmas pageant, altar server, and junior choir “mom”. Carrie especially enjoys watching her two daughters contribute to many different aspects of the St. Paul’s community. Outside of church, Carrie lives in Acton and works at John Hancock as a Director in the Strategy & Transformation group.
Liz Cowles, Clerk
Liz joined St. Paul’s back in 2013. She is active on our Outreach Committee, in particular coordinating our partnership with the B-SAFE program at St. Stephen’s Church in Boston. Liz is a math teacher and lives in Bedford.
Members at Large
Jeanette Rebecchi joined St. Paul’s soon after moving to Bedford in 2016. As a parent with two young children, she has volunteered in various capacities within the children’s ministry including the nursery room, Sunday school, and Vacation Bible School, and more recently as an altar server. In her spare time she enjoys puttering around in her garden (which now includes a flock of 9 chickens!), and planning her next trip to somewhere new. As an urban planner by training, she’s held several roles in municipal government, and currently works as the DPW’s Capital Program Manager.
Jim Clark joined St. Paul’s during the pandemic, first coming to worship with us online for a number of months before appearing in person in 2022. Jim is originally from Montana and is retired from a pharmaceutical research career. He’s active in our Men’s fellowship and has an interest in helping churches (like ours!) become more environmentally sustainable. Jim lives in Acton.
Ron Presti has been a member of St. Paul’s and resident of Bedford for over 20 years. He currently serves as our head usher and a member of our Stewardship Committee. Ron served previously as a warden and in many other capacities — official and unofficial — around the church. He raised his three (now adult) children at St. Paul’s. Outside of St. Paul’s, Ron has worked in Business Development for many years.
Sarita Pillai has been a member of St. Paul’s since she moved to Bedford with her husband and two daughters in 2012. She has contributed to a number of fellowship activities and taught in the Christian Education ministry. In her spare time, she is an avid reader, foodie and consumer of streamed media. She is VP and Chief Equity, Diversity & Inclusion Officer at an education-focused research and development organization.
Patrick Shannon has been part of St. Paul’s for over 10 years now. He’s active on our Green Team and a key member of our videography ministry, making our worship services accessible to those who can’t be here in person. He lives in Billerica and has two elementary-aged daughters. He can fix almost anything (given enough time!) and would love to talk to you about heat pumps!
Armen Zildjian has been a member of St. Paul’s since 2005 shortly after he and his wife Sybil moved to Bedford. Armen has served on the vestry previously and has taken deep interest in the property and grounds of the church along with the fellowship of the men’s retreat. In addition he is active in baking and cooking each year for our Advent Fair, and recently joined his daughter Ani and son Thomas volunteering for Appalachian Service Project. During the day Armen works in sales, and in his free time enjoys cycling, golfing with his son Thomas and enjoying the outdoors especially along the Maine coastline.
Our Staff
Michael Monroe, director of music
Marge Heckman, parish administrator