The Vestry
The 11 members of the vestry are elected by the parish and serve as its board of directors and legal agent, working closely with the rector and wardens. Vestry members serve in a variety of ways to help the church meet both day-to-day and long-term challenges.
2021 Vestry
Senior Warden: Jenn Urso
Junior Warden: Deb Maue
Parish Treasurer: Marty Dunlavey
Associate Treasurers: Priscilla Nied, Eva Pearson, Linda Bolte
Clerk of the Vestry: Adam Baig, Kathy Egan
Class of 2022: Marilyn Huebel, Pam Jacknow, Chris Millsap
Class of 2023: Jonathan Daly, Katie Kearns, Eva Pearson
Class of 2024: Peter Curtin, Thomas Gary, Alyssa Hart
Junior Warden: Deb Maue
Parish Treasurer: Marty Dunlavey
Associate Treasurers: Priscilla Nied, Eva Pearson, Linda Bolte
Clerk of the Vestry: Adam Baig, Kathy Egan
Class of 2022: Marilyn Huebel, Pam Jacknow, Chris Millsap
Class of 2023: Jonathan Daly, Katie Kearns, Eva Pearson
Class of 2024: Peter Curtin, Thomas Gary, Alyssa Hart
Vestry Bios
Jenn Urso
My name is Jennifer Urso and I attend Wiggle Worship with my husband, Bill, and my 3.5 year old daughter, Bria. After trying a few different Episcopal churches in the western suburbs, we began regularly attending St. Christopher's in early 2014, while we were expecting, as it was important to us that we raised out daughter within a strong Christian community of faith and we really felt at home with a smaller, tightly-knit parish. In fact, Bria was Eric's first baptism at St. C's (and I believe ever) - and she didn't even cry! I've never served on a vestry before, but was raised in the Episcopal church, having been baptized, confirmed and insisting my husband and I get married in the Episcopal Church. Most recently, I served on the Stewardship committee, which kicked off with a series of summer fellowship events and concluded with our annual giving campaign. Having a young family, I'm most passionate about engaging young people in the church (I've loved seeing how much Wiggle Worship has exploded over the past several months) and finding ways for them to stay engaged through high school and into early adulthood.
Deb Maue
In January, 1995, I visited St. Christopher's for the very first time, and had the good fortune to sit behind then-office assistant Edith Aldworth, who recruited me to the choir. (No one said "no" to Edith.) Exactly 23 years later, I'm still a member of the choir, and I'm also a chalice bearer and, most recently, an Altar Guild member. This will be my 3rd tour on vestry. The first was during the capital campaign/artchitectural planning for the renovation and addition, and I don't remember much about the second because I had a baby and a toddler at the time. There have been many changes at St. Christopher's over my time here, but it remains a very special place where we all gather not only to worship but to support each other in doing God's work in the world. I'm looking forward to helping to shape the course over the next few years.
Marilyn Huebel
I have been attending St. Christopher’s for 2 years. As a regular at the 8am service, I enjoy the quiet and fellowship, am part of the lector rota and have written an occasional blog in preparation for Sunday worship. Raised a Presbyterian, I discovered liturgy and the Episcopal church during college five decades ago, though I spent most of the intervening years in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, most recently at Good Shepherd, just down the street. I look forward to serving in this new capacity, providing support for the governance and leadership of this growing community of faith, spirituality and social activism that has us being Jesus’ hands, feet and heart in the challenges of every day life.
Christopher Millsap
I am a married software engineer who is originally from South Florida, and I have lived in Seattle and Southern Vermont prior to living in Forest Park. Dan and I have been attending St. Christopher's since Spring, 2013. When I am not working, I enjoy photography, and tinkering with retro computer equipment. I look forward to helping the church continue to succeed as a member of the vestry.
Pamela Jacknow
My name is Pamela Jacknow and I would like to be a member of the vestry at St. Christopher’s Episcopal Church. I’m originally from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where I was an active member at St. Thomas Episcopal Church all my life. As a baby, I was baptized there and later, as a young adult, I was confirmed and welcomed into the Episcopalian diocese. I have always been very active within the church community. For nearly a decade, I served as a counselor at an Episcopal summer camp called Sheldon Calvary Camp in Conneaut, Ohio. I still return to camp each summer with my family because of the connections I have made within that community. In 2004, I moved to Chicago and accepted a position with Chicago Public Schools. Today, I teach 7th grade math on the south-side of Chicago. In 2011, I married Matthew Jacknow, who has lived in Forest Park his entire life. When we began our family and welcomed our oldest son, Lincoln, in September of 2014, we decided to join a church that would best suit our growing family. (We welcomed our second son, Warren, in September 2017.) We spent a few years “church shopping” and have found St. Christopher’s to be the perfect place for our family. Our boys love this church as much as we do. And we deeply appreciate how welcomed our young family is here as well as how respectfully our kids are treated and included in all the activities. Father Eric and the rest of the St. Christopher’s crew have gone above and beyond to teach our children about love and faith in ways they understand. (Until St. Christopher’s, we had never heard of a wiggle worship before! It’s the best!) I would be honored to serve St. Christopher’s as a member of our vestry.
Jonathan Daly
I am Jonathan Daly. I grew up in the Episcopal Church in Indianapolis and South Bend, Indiana, and attended various Episcopal churches during my college and graduate study in Montréal, Washington, DC, and Cambridge, Massachusetts. For many years I lived in Hyde Park, where my wife, Sofia, and I and our children attended Saint Paul and the Redeemer. When we moved to Oak Park in 2016, we "shopped around" for churches, attending Unity Temple and Saint Giles Catholic church, before settling at Saint Christopher's. This summer we celebrated our 15th wedding anniversary with a renewal of our vows in the lovely sanctuary here. We attend the wiggle worship service, though I often also attend the 10:30 service, when my children, Zoe (9) and Jeremiah (6) and my wife are involved with Sunday school. I am excited to serve on the vestry as a way to take part in the life of Saint Christopher’s.
Katie Kearns
Katie has been a member of St. Christopher’s since January of 2019. She started attending regularly in December of 2018. She is now a member of the Altar Guild and participates in the 8 AM service as a chalice bearer, lector and acolyte. Katie was received by the Episcopal Church in June of 2019 with Eric and George at her side. She was raised Roman Catholic and worked for a Catholic church until September of 2018. Katie lives just a four minute walk away from the church. She says, “Geography brought me here but the church community made me want to stay.”
Eva Pearson
My name is Eva Pearson and my family and I have attended St. Christopher’s 10:30 service since we moved to Oak Park about 12 years ago. My husband, Bill, and I have two children, Jane (12) and Eddie (10), who are active in Sunday school, Treble Choir, and the knitting/crochet group. I am in the adult choir and an assistant treasurer. During the week, I teach accounting at DePaul and UIC. Bill and I have both served on the vestry in the past, and I am happy to be taking my second turn. It’s exciting to see St. C’s thrive, and I’m looking forward to getting to better know and be a part of our growing church family.
Thomas Gary
My name is Thomas Gary. When I’m not called away for Federal service, I am usually in attendance of 1030 High Mass. I live in south Oak Park with my wife, Cristal, and son, Alex. I work in the State Treasurer’s office. I am active in my community, serving with Beyond Hunger and Austin Coming Together. I recently served as a delegate representing St Christopher’s on the Bishopric Search. I am happy to continue my service to my community and Church.
Peter J. Curtin
My name is Pete Curtin, and I’ve attended Saint Christopher’s for several years(the 10:30 service). I moved to Chicago from the D.C. area in October 2012for work, and the family --Susan and our two daughters Katie (now 18) and Leah (now 16) --joined me at the end of June 2013 as we settled in Oak Park. (Susan had spent the previous nine months wrangling two young girls mostly on her own, preparing our house for sale and then selling it.) We checked out Grace Church and Saint C’s and some other suburban churches early on trying to find the right fit. We eventually began attending Saint C’s regularly and became “official” members.
I started becoming more involved in the Parish and our ministries in late 2018 to early 2019. I am now a Lector and a member of the Choir (although I was very new when the pandemic hit). I have served as a chalice-bearer and have written a couple of Lectionary blogs. I was volunteering with Rich Nied and the crew at the Fraternité de Notre Dame Soup Kitchen until the pandemic. You may recognize Leah as active in the Youth Group, on the Nursery staff, and one of the youth who regularly worked at the outdoors services.
I was received into the Episcopal Church on Easter Sundayin2007. I converted from Catholicism because in late 2006 I was asked to run for the Vestry at our former parish, Grace Episcopal Church in Silver Spring, Maryland. Our family had attended services at Grace since 2002, and I was volunteering in the Sunday School and had joined the Accessible Grace Committee (overseeing renovations to improve access for those with physical disabilities). That request made me ask myself whether I was willing to commit.
I served on the Vestry at Grace from 2008-2009 (Chair of the Budget & Finance Committee), and then served two terms as Senior Warden from January 2009-January 2013. The Rector retired in mid-2009 (having announced her plans just after nominations in January). We called an Interim Rector in Fall 2009, went through the required discernment, conducted a national search, and called a permanent Rector in early 2011.
Grace was greatly blessed during that18-month transition. Parish membership increased, finances stabilized, the music ministry grew, and the Accessible Grace project successfully concluded by adding an elevator to the church building. All of this was due to the hard work of an outstanding Interim Rector with remarkable management and diplomatic skills, a fine parish staff, and the efforts of many dedicated Vestry members, Search Committee members,and other volunteers.By the end of my second term, Grace was preparing to launch another capital campaign to address other renovations and the deferred maintenance issues so common in old church buildings.
I would like to serve on the Vestry at Saint Christopher’s because I have come to care about this church community and would like to be of service.
My name is Jennifer Urso and I attend Wiggle Worship with my husband, Bill, and my 3.5 year old daughter, Bria. After trying a few different Episcopal churches in the western suburbs, we began regularly attending St. Christopher's in early 2014, while we were expecting, as it was important to us that we raised out daughter within a strong Christian community of faith and we really felt at home with a smaller, tightly-knit parish. In fact, Bria was Eric's first baptism at St. C's (and I believe ever) - and she didn't even cry! I've never served on a vestry before, but was raised in the Episcopal church, having been baptized, confirmed and insisting my husband and I get married in the Episcopal Church. Most recently, I served on the Stewardship committee, which kicked off with a series of summer fellowship events and concluded with our annual giving campaign. Having a young family, I'm most passionate about engaging young people in the church (I've loved seeing how much Wiggle Worship has exploded over the past several months) and finding ways for them to stay engaged through high school and into early adulthood.
Deb Maue
In January, 1995, I visited St. Christopher's for the very first time, and had the good fortune to sit behind then-office assistant Edith Aldworth, who recruited me to the choir. (No one said "no" to Edith.) Exactly 23 years later, I'm still a member of the choir, and I'm also a chalice bearer and, most recently, an Altar Guild member. This will be my 3rd tour on vestry. The first was during the capital campaign/artchitectural planning for the renovation and addition, and I don't remember much about the second because I had a baby and a toddler at the time. There have been many changes at St. Christopher's over my time here, but it remains a very special place where we all gather not only to worship but to support each other in doing God's work in the world. I'm looking forward to helping to shape the course over the next few years.
Marilyn Huebel
I have been attending St. Christopher’s for 2 years. As a regular at the 8am service, I enjoy the quiet and fellowship, am part of the lector rota and have written an occasional blog in preparation for Sunday worship. Raised a Presbyterian, I discovered liturgy and the Episcopal church during college five decades ago, though I spent most of the intervening years in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, most recently at Good Shepherd, just down the street. I look forward to serving in this new capacity, providing support for the governance and leadership of this growing community of faith, spirituality and social activism that has us being Jesus’ hands, feet and heart in the challenges of every day life.
Christopher Millsap
I am a married software engineer who is originally from South Florida, and I have lived in Seattle and Southern Vermont prior to living in Forest Park. Dan and I have been attending St. Christopher's since Spring, 2013. When I am not working, I enjoy photography, and tinkering with retro computer equipment. I look forward to helping the church continue to succeed as a member of the vestry.
Pamela Jacknow
My name is Pamela Jacknow and I would like to be a member of the vestry at St. Christopher’s Episcopal Church. I’m originally from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where I was an active member at St. Thomas Episcopal Church all my life. As a baby, I was baptized there and later, as a young adult, I was confirmed and welcomed into the Episcopalian diocese. I have always been very active within the church community. For nearly a decade, I served as a counselor at an Episcopal summer camp called Sheldon Calvary Camp in Conneaut, Ohio. I still return to camp each summer with my family because of the connections I have made within that community. In 2004, I moved to Chicago and accepted a position with Chicago Public Schools. Today, I teach 7th grade math on the south-side of Chicago. In 2011, I married Matthew Jacknow, who has lived in Forest Park his entire life. When we began our family and welcomed our oldest son, Lincoln, in September of 2014, we decided to join a church that would best suit our growing family. (We welcomed our second son, Warren, in September 2017.) We spent a few years “church shopping” and have found St. Christopher’s to be the perfect place for our family. Our boys love this church as much as we do. And we deeply appreciate how welcomed our young family is here as well as how respectfully our kids are treated and included in all the activities. Father Eric and the rest of the St. Christopher’s crew have gone above and beyond to teach our children about love and faith in ways they understand. (Until St. Christopher’s, we had never heard of a wiggle worship before! It’s the best!) I would be honored to serve St. Christopher’s as a member of our vestry.
Jonathan Daly
I am Jonathan Daly. I grew up in the Episcopal Church in Indianapolis and South Bend, Indiana, and attended various Episcopal churches during my college and graduate study in Montréal, Washington, DC, and Cambridge, Massachusetts. For many years I lived in Hyde Park, where my wife, Sofia, and I and our children attended Saint Paul and the Redeemer. When we moved to Oak Park in 2016, we "shopped around" for churches, attending Unity Temple and Saint Giles Catholic church, before settling at Saint Christopher's. This summer we celebrated our 15th wedding anniversary with a renewal of our vows in the lovely sanctuary here. We attend the wiggle worship service, though I often also attend the 10:30 service, when my children, Zoe (9) and Jeremiah (6) and my wife are involved with Sunday school. I am excited to serve on the vestry as a way to take part in the life of Saint Christopher’s.
Katie Kearns
Katie has been a member of St. Christopher’s since January of 2019. She started attending regularly in December of 2018. She is now a member of the Altar Guild and participates in the 8 AM service as a chalice bearer, lector and acolyte. Katie was received by the Episcopal Church in June of 2019 with Eric and George at her side. She was raised Roman Catholic and worked for a Catholic church until September of 2018. Katie lives just a four minute walk away from the church. She says, “Geography brought me here but the church community made me want to stay.”
Eva Pearson
My name is Eva Pearson and my family and I have attended St. Christopher’s 10:30 service since we moved to Oak Park about 12 years ago. My husband, Bill, and I have two children, Jane (12) and Eddie (10), who are active in Sunday school, Treble Choir, and the knitting/crochet group. I am in the adult choir and an assistant treasurer. During the week, I teach accounting at DePaul and UIC. Bill and I have both served on the vestry in the past, and I am happy to be taking my second turn. It’s exciting to see St. C’s thrive, and I’m looking forward to getting to better know and be a part of our growing church family.
Thomas Gary
My name is Thomas Gary. When I’m not called away for Federal service, I am usually in attendance of 1030 High Mass. I live in south Oak Park with my wife, Cristal, and son, Alex. I work in the State Treasurer’s office. I am active in my community, serving with Beyond Hunger and Austin Coming Together. I recently served as a delegate representing St Christopher’s on the Bishopric Search. I am happy to continue my service to my community and Church.
Peter J. Curtin
My name is Pete Curtin, and I’ve attended Saint Christopher’s for several years(the 10:30 service). I moved to Chicago from the D.C. area in October 2012for work, and the family --Susan and our two daughters Katie (now 18) and Leah (now 16) --joined me at the end of June 2013 as we settled in Oak Park. (Susan had spent the previous nine months wrangling two young girls mostly on her own, preparing our house for sale and then selling it.) We checked out Grace Church and Saint C’s and some other suburban churches early on trying to find the right fit. We eventually began attending Saint C’s regularly and became “official” members.
I started becoming more involved in the Parish and our ministries in late 2018 to early 2019. I am now a Lector and a member of the Choir (although I was very new when the pandemic hit). I have served as a chalice-bearer and have written a couple of Lectionary blogs. I was volunteering with Rich Nied and the crew at the Fraternité de Notre Dame Soup Kitchen until the pandemic. You may recognize Leah as active in the Youth Group, on the Nursery staff, and one of the youth who regularly worked at the outdoors services.
I was received into the Episcopal Church on Easter Sundayin2007. I converted from Catholicism because in late 2006 I was asked to run for the Vestry at our former parish, Grace Episcopal Church in Silver Spring, Maryland. Our family had attended services at Grace since 2002, and I was volunteering in the Sunday School and had joined the Accessible Grace Committee (overseeing renovations to improve access for those with physical disabilities). That request made me ask myself whether I was willing to commit.
I served on the Vestry at Grace from 2008-2009 (Chair of the Budget & Finance Committee), and then served two terms as Senior Warden from January 2009-January 2013. The Rector retired in mid-2009 (having announced her plans just after nominations in January). We called an Interim Rector in Fall 2009, went through the required discernment, conducted a national search, and called a permanent Rector in early 2011.
Grace was greatly blessed during that18-month transition. Parish membership increased, finances stabilized, the music ministry grew, and the Accessible Grace project successfully concluded by adding an elevator to the church building. All of this was due to the hard work of an outstanding Interim Rector with remarkable management and diplomatic skills, a fine parish staff, and the efforts of many dedicated Vestry members, Search Committee members,and other volunteers.By the end of my second term, Grace was preparing to launch another capital campaign to address other renovations and the deferred maintenance issues so common in old church buildings.
I would like to serve on the Vestry at Saint Christopher’s because I have come to care about this church community and would like to be of service.
Vestry Nominations
Every year, St. Christopher’s promotes nominations for Vestry, seeking 3 new members to serve 3-year terms beginning in January. Also needed to fill are one vacancy left by the retiring Senior Warden, who is succeeded by the Junior Warden.
For more information on vestry nominations, and to fill out a Vestry Nomination Form, please download the PDF file below.
For more information on vestry nominations, and to fill out a Vestry Nomination Form, please download the PDF file below.
| vestry_nomination_form.pdf |
