Leadership

The Rev. Winnie Varghese

A national leader in the Episcopal Church, the Rev. Winnie Varghese is known for her inspired writing, teaching and preaching. Before becoming the 23rd rector of St. Luke's, she served as Priest for Ministry and Program Coordination at Trinity Church Wall Street in New York City.

Prior to Trinity, Winnie served as Rector and Priest-in-Charge at St. Mark’s in the Bowery in New York. Winnie was also Chaplain at both Columbia University and University of California Los Angeles. She is a native of Dallas, Texas and is married to Elizabeth Toledo, a public relations executive. They have two grown children.

Winnie serves on the Board of Trustees of Union Theological Seminary, she chaired the General Convention’s Committee on the State of the Church from 2015 to 2018, and she served on the Board of Trustees of the Episcopal Divinity School, 2013-2016. She is also a published author, editor, and podcaster.

Winnie’s parents immigrated to the United States from India, and Winnie spent part of her early childhood years there. She attended Agnes Scott College in Decatur, GA and earned her bachelor’s degree from Southern Methodist University in Dallas. She then attended Union Theological Seminary and graduated with her Master of Divinity degree in 1999. She was ordained to the deaconate in Los Angeles in 1999 and to the priesthood six months later in 2000.

The Rev. Elizabeth Shows Caffey

Elizabeth has served at St. Lukes since February 2015. Elizabeth has a passion for liturgy and a love for all things community. Her focus is around fostering opportunities for spiritual development and growth. Before seminary she developed and subsequently directed the Johnson Intern Program at Chapel of the Cross, an Episcopal Service Corps program in Chapel Hill, NC while also working as the family coordinator for Chatham Habitat for Humanity. She has served at the Church of the Holy Trinity in New York City and All Saints’ Episcopal Church in Atlanta as the priest for outreach, liturgy and pastoral care. The connecting thread through all of Elizabeth’s work has been engaging in compelling questions about God, living as a person of great faith and intellectual inquiry, and responding with action and intention in how we live. She loves camping with her children and dogs, Ana and Fig. Elizabeth is always up for travel and adventure. Having been raised in North Carolina and as an alumni of the University, Elizabeth is an avid Duke basketball fan.

The Rev. Dr. Horace L. Griffin

A graduate of Morehouse College, Boston University, and Vanderbilt in theological studies, Horace came to St. Luke's in July 2017 after a twenty-seven year vocation as a college and seminary professor and hospital chaplain. While he has served on a part-time basis at a number of parishes, currently he has oversight for the pastoral care ministry and provides leadership for the fifteen Community Ministries here at St. Luke’s.

An award-winning author of the groundbreaking, Their Own Receive Them Not: African American Lesbians and Gays in the Black Church, he was ordained to the Episcopal priesthood in 2005 and has passionately devoted his parish ministry to social justice, racial reconciliation and LBGTQ equality in the Church.

His fundamental belief that we are called to love God and treat all humans with love and equal justice is at the heart of his ministry. When he is not working on making the world a better place, he enjoys music, concerts, and film. He is interested in reading books on religion, African American and Gay history, and First Ladies.

The Rev. Nicole Lambelet

Matthew Brown

Matthew Michael Brown was appointed Director of Music at St. Luke’s in February, 2020. At St. Luke’s, he oversees a comprehensive sacred music program and is the Founder and Artistic Director of the Music at St. Luke’s series.

He has concertized throughout the USA and abroad, and several performances have been heard in radio broadcasts of American Public Media’s Pipe Dreams and the nationally syndicated program, With Heart and Voice. As a concert artist, he has performed in Westminster Abbey and St. Paul’s Cathedral, London; Barcelona Cathedral, Spain; Grace Cathedral, San Francisco; Washington National Cathedral; Saint Thomas Church Fifth Avenue, New York; Princeton University Chapel; Assembly Hall of the Mormon Tabernacle; Trinity Church on Copley Square, Boston; Cathedral of St. Philip, Atlanta; Cathedral Church of the Advent, Birmingham; Grace Church Cathedral, Charleston; and Christ Church Cathedral, Nashville. He has premiered works by prominent North Carolina composers, Kenneth Frazelle and Dan Locklair, and has facilitated commissions of new music by Barlow Bradford, David Hurd, Simon Lole, Ned Rorem, and Richard Webster. In 2023, under Matthew's leadership, St. Luke's will endeavor to become a national leader in annually commissioning music by underrepresented composers for traditional liturgies of the Episcopal Church.

He earned degrees in organ performance from the North Carolina School of the Arts and the Eastman School of Music. He also holds the Sacred Music Diploma from Eastman's Institute of Music Leadership. As a grant recipient from the Thomas S. Kenan Institute for the Arts and The Robert Carwithen Foundation, he pursued two years of post-graduate organ studies with Dame Gillian Weir. Other major teachers included David Higgs, Jack Mitchener, and Wayne Leupold. Earlier in his career, he benefited from master classes with Marie-Claire Alain, Michel Bouvard, David Craighead, and Ewald Kooiman.

He is professionally affiliated with the Association of Anglican Musicians, American Guild of Organists, American Choral Director’s Association, and the Maurice and Marie-Madeleine Duruflé Association. He currently serves on the boards of The Leupold Foundation, Atlanta's Taylor National Organ Playing Competition, and chairs the Nominating Committee for the Southeast region of the American Guild of Organists. Each summer, he manages the Royal School of Church Music in America’s Carolina Summer Choral Residency at Duke University.

​Valerie Isobel Freer

Valerie has served St. Luke’s as a receptionist and administrative assistant since 2006. In her life before St. Luke’s, Valerie home-schooled her two children, toyed with blogs and indie design, kept a daily journal and became a voluminous correspondent. Although she is an introvert and a high sensitive, Valerie has formed and led Scout troops, taught Christian Ed classes, and served in leadership positions in church, community, and writers groups. Valerie is a poet and novelist, though much of her work remains unread.

Abiding interests in many things keep Valerie busy, though she readily admits to mere dabbling in this creation filled with wonder. In her work at St. Luke’s, however, Valerie is almost always ready to stop to chat with guests and wayfarers.

Valerie joined St. Luke’s, after serving here for a very long while, because the affection and devotion of its wonderful parishioners drew her in to wanting to worship God at their side. And if she could be reduced to three words at St. Luke’s, Valerie would choose, “Bright, Playful, Laughing!”

David Hendee

David is a graduate of Vanderbilt University and holds a Master’s degree in business from Georgia State University. David brings over 30 years of finance experience to the job. Beginning his career with Lanier Worldwide Inc., David ultimately reached the position of Vice President of International Mergers and Acquisitions, before branching out and establishing his own consulting practice. As a consultant David has worked with a wide variety of organizations including a number of projects for The Episcopal Diocese. “While I have been fortunate and have had the opportunity to work on projects all around the world, I have learned that there is nothing as satisfying as making a difference in your own backyard. That is what excites me about St. Luke’s, the opportunity to use my talents to support all the many good works St. Luke’s does for the community. David has two children, Mary Catherine and Virginia.

Brian Hummel

Brian knows more about the "bones" of the St. Luke's campus than any of us can imagine. The church has been blessed to have him on our team keeping our campus and buildings in top shape for two decades.

Brian was born in Bowling Green, Ohio. He and his family moved to Odessa, Texas when he was a young boy. While Odessa is known for the true story, “Friday Night Lights,” Brian could be found quite often on the baseball field. His family moved to Houma, Louisiana during his high school years, where he would later attend Nicholls State University. Summers saw him in Texas, however, working as a plumber’s helper.

After college, Brian worked in the oil fields off Louisiana, where he analyzed drilling fluids for oil companies. He reconnected with one of his high school friends, Bridget, and they were married in 1982. When the price of oil hit bottom, upending the economy, Brian and Bridget left Houma and headed to the Peach State. Brian managed convenience stores for several years before taking a position with the Gwinnett Hospital System.

Michelle Jemmott

Bio is not available at this time.

Colleen Kingston

Mark Simmons

Megan Wyman

Megan serves on staff as the Executive Assistant to the Rector. She comes to St. Luke's with parish administration experience and a degree in Comparative Religious Studies from The Ohio State University. She enjoys her place of ministry in the "behind the scenes" work and is looking forward to being part of the team at St. Luke's.

Away from work, Megan enjoys neighborhood walks in East Lake with her husband, John, baby Calder, and two rescue pups. Always excited by the goodness of sharing a meal, you can often find her scanning new vegan cookbooks for inspiration.

Elizabeth McKinnon

Ben Weaver

Wesley Boutilier

Tori Moore

Greg McRae