Our Clergy
The Rev. Dr. Edward E. B. Thompson, Rector |
Fr. Ted Thompson
Mary, Ted and William Thompson
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The Rev. Dr. Edward E. B. Thompson (“Ted”) joined Trinity in September, 2018, as Rector. He grew up near Rockville, Maryland and was a priest in the Diocese of California for over twenty years. In 2009, with an Episcopal Church Foundation fellowship and the blessing of his bishop, Ted gave up his position as rector of Christ Episcopal Church, in Alameda, California, to pursue advanced studies and training in religion and conflict resolution. He undertook to grow the capacity of The Episcopal Church for the mission of reconciliation, convinced the Episcopal Church had both more to give and learn as a global partner for peace. While completing his Ph.D. in Conflict Analysis and Resolution with a focus on religions and discernment, Ted worked as consultant and short-term staff with congregations on the east and west coasts and for the Diocese of California. On behalf of the Presiding Bishop’s Office of Ecumenical and Inter-Religious Affairs, Ted represents the Episcopal Church in Muslim-Christian, Hindu-Christian and Buddhist-Christian Dialogues hosted by the National Council of Churches. He and his wife Mary have a 13 year old son, William, whose next love after their dog “Bella” is baseball.
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Our Clergy Associates |
Trinity is delighted to welcome The Rev. Bill North and The Rev. Paula Lawrence-Wehmiller in their new role as Clergy Associates, effective March 24, 2019! Clergy Associates, sometimes called Assisting Clergy, are ordained clergy formally attached to a parish in a non-stipendiary capacity. Since clergy cannot officially be part of regular membership of a congregation, this is a way of giving them a parish to call “home”. With this, they can participate fully in Diocesan Convention, and may also serve in various capacities within the parish, such as occasionally preaching, presiding, teaching, or offering pastoral care. Thank you, Bill+ and Paula+, and God bless you among us!
The Rev. Canon William North, Clergy Associate |
The Rev. Paula Lawrence-Wehmiller, Clergy Associate |
The Rev. Bill North, Clergy Associate
Clergy Associate Bill North was ordained in 1965 at the First Presbyterian Church in the City of New York and began parish ministry the week of the Newark Riots. Then, for nearly 25 years he was the Executive Director of a pastoral counseling center in St. Louis. Returning to parish ministry in 1993, he was ordained in The Episcopal Church and served churches in St. Louis, Phoenix, Houston and Portland OR, and was a member of Cathedral Staff and Canon Chaplain to the Clergy in the Diocese of Arizona. In 2012, Bill and his wife, Mary, moved to Swarthmore in 2012 to be near their children and grandchildren. Bill keeps his hands busy cooking - his new avocation - digging in the garden and playing a good hand of bridge.
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Clergy Associate Paula Lawrence-Wehmiller had a long and distinguished career in education before her “inclination to give the bread away” led her to her ordination as a priest in the Episcopal Church in 1998. She now combines her teaching and priestly vocations – consulting, speaking, writing, offering retreats, conferences, and workshops, supporting and nourishing the work of educators, clergy, community leaders and the people they serve. She served as Pastoral Associate on the diocesan staff in the Episcopal Diocese of Pennsylvania, overseeing the ordination process and liturgical planning and providing pastoral care for the diocesan staff and for clergy throughout the diocese. In 2007, she received “The Ecumenical Award in Recognition of Dialogue and Bridge Building” from the Benedictine Women of Madison [Wisconsin,] an ecumenical monastic community on whose founding board she served for nine years. Paula served on the advisory board of “Different and the Same, Helping Children Identify and Prevent Prejudice,” a video project of Family Communications, Inc., the parent company of Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood, and she authored a chapter in Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood: Children, Television and Mr. Rogers. For more information about Paula, please visit her website here.
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