Ann Aarhus
Senior Warden
A Bit About Me:
Ann is a retired RN and a lifelong Episcopalian. She was drawn to St. James 22 years ago to join the choir and continues to sing as a cantor. She has been on the vestry for the past two and a half years and is involved with the acolytes, hospitality committee, and with gardening at St. James.
Ian Winn
Junior/Facilities Warden
A Bit About Me:
The duties of the Junior Warden, often called the People’s Warden, vary from church to church. Here at St James the Junior Warden helps with decisions made by the executive committee and is the leader of the Facilities Team. Ian is a long time member of St James and is married to Ginny (Scholl) who grew up at St James. They have two kids, Carly age 9 and Christopher age 7. Ian is a jack of all trades and currently works in landscape maintenance. He is quickly becoming the “Jerry” of our next generation for St James. Ian also leads the livestream team for Sunday morning worship services.
Matt Bracher
Clerk of the Vestry
A Bit About Me:
Matt was raised at St. James and in Diocesan youth programs. He went other directions at university and following — fundamentalism, primarily — but his spiritual life consistently circled back to the Episcopal Church and St. James. Being on Vestry was never a goal but happened only because he felt he had something to contribute to a Parish that has taught him and helped him to grow so much.
Alisha Figg
Vestry Member
A Bit About Me:
Ali has been attending church at St. James for nearly 7 years. A member of the vestry and a new mother also; in college years she received an RNA certification hoping to become a nurse. Her path ultimately led her to St. James and she’s pleased to be a voice for the congregation. She volunteers in the outreach office answering calls and helping people with food needs. When needed, she also volunteer at the St. James Thrift Shop.
Rebecca Riffle
Vestry Member
A Bit About Me:
Rebecca Riffle moved from Ohio to Kent, WA in 2020. Formerly a high school Latin teacher, she is now pursuing a career in technical writing and programming. She is passionate about education, social justice, and serving the community. She lives with her spouse and two cats in the East Hill neighborhood.
Val Brustad
Vestry Member
A Bit About Me:
Keith Rogers
Vestry Member
A Bit About Me:
Keith grew up in Alabama, graduated from college there and went to work for Boeing right out of college. He married Michele 35 years ago and has two daughters, Amanda and Olivia. He has worked for Boeing for 41 years in Wichita, Huntsville and Puget Sound and is getting ready to retire at the end of this year. He reads voraciously, likes to cook and go wine tasting with friends and family. He has a love-hate relationship with golf and enjoys watching sports. He has been active in each church he has attended, including teaching classes for adults and being in leadership positions in several of them.
Don Richardson
Vestry Member
A Bit About Me:
Don Richardson was born in Boston in 1950, but lived in Richmond VA until age 18 when he went to the University of Virginia in Charlottesville. He met his future wife and partner in life’s journey, Anne, in college, and they moved back to Richmond for medical school, then Seattle for internal medicine residency at the University of Washington, University of Pittsburgh for endocrinology fellowships, and lived in Norfolk where he practiced as an endocrinologist at the Eastern Virginia Medical School and its associated hospitals. Norfolk is where he and Anne raised their two children, Caswell, a lawyer who still resides in Virginia, and Lesley, a physician who lives here in Seattle. They moved to Kent last spring to assist their daughter with childcare and to return to their favorite city.
Although Don grew up in the Presbyterian Church for which his grandfather was a missionary to China, a nationally known theologian, and president of the PCUS, Don became an evangelical atheist at age 12. However, after 10 years of patient re-exposure to Christianity via the Episcopal church by Anne, he underwent a conversion experience and has been a committed Church member at St. Andrews Episcopal and Royster Presbyterian Churches ever since.
While Anne has twice labored on the vestry at their church in Norfolk, Don had not previously had time to serve due to his medical and teaching commitments, and was grateful, now that he’s retired, to be nominated to the Vestry.
Vestry Minutes
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