OUR TEAM

Senior Pastor

Brian Ebel

Executive Pastor

Nora Conner

Who Is She?

Nora is a native Lexingtonian who spent a few years away in early adulthood before returning to the Bluegrass, where she has been ever since. She and her husband Todd and adult son Taylor are all nature lovers. Taking a good hike in the woods, camping, and enjoying the great outdoors are high on her list of life’s finer things. She also has her rustic retreat, a tiny cabin in the backyard, which Todd built for her.

What Does She Do?

Nora’s responsibilities as the executive pastor include working with missions, finances, and facilities. When asked what she likes best about working at St. Luke she says: “The people, and the people! St. Lukers are really wonderful to work in ministry with, and they truly care about taking their faith seriously and making a difference in the world.”

Pastor of Discipleship & Formation

Amy Carlson

Who Is She?

The short answer is “a student,” because she’s been one a lot in recent years. She has two bachelor’s degrees (one in studio art and the other in advertising/marketing communications) and she’s currently working on two master’s degrees at Asbury (one in divinity and the other in theology). There is more to Amy than that, though, as she makes time for outdoor activities ranging from biking, hiking and kayaking to gardening with her husband.

What Does She Do?

In her role, she helps adults with their spiritual development, with the main connection point being Bible studies, other classes, curriculum development and research. “I am excited to work with people to discover how they might be encouraged in their studies to help them grow in God,” she says.

Director of Events and Production

Amanda Draughn

Who is She?

Amanda has a strong creative streak. She spends a lot of time doing crafts of all kinds, and especially enjoys sewing and quilting. A theater major in college, she also is very passionate about the performing arts. Among the many musicals and plays she’s seen, “Hamilton,” “The Lion King,” “Something Rotten.” and “Wicked” are some of her favorites. She has lived in Lexington all her life.

What Does She Do?

Amanda works in many areas of the church, including managing the serving and recreational ministries at St. Luke, and coordinating many types of special events. Amanda also helps coordinate volunteers in all areas of the church ranging from greeters and ushers to running the technology in the sanctuary.

Swahili Lead Pastor

David Balondani

Who is He?

After living in a refugee camp in Mozambique for 11 years, David and his wife Magy moved to Lexington in 2013 as part of a United Nations’ resettlement program. Their ministry with the United Methodist Church dates back to the 1990s, as they were both in leadership roles in the Congo and Mozambique. They have one daughter, Suzana Charles.

What Does He Do?

David leads and directs the preaching and teaching ministry for St. Luke’s multicultural worship service and helping guide the Swahili multicultural and multigenerational community. ”My passion and call to ministry is to prepare God’s people for works of service through teaching, equipping, training and modeling, so they can grow in their relationship with Christ and serve Him in their community.”

Children's Pastor

Susan Cutshall

Who is She?

After moving around a lot growing up—her dad was in the Navy—Susan attended high school and college in Clarksville, Tennessee. She and her husband Greg are avid cruisers, especially enjoying the turquoise waters of the Caribbean. Taking cruises also allows Susan to pursue one of her hobbies, surfing on the FlowRider. She and Greg have two grown children, Lance and Lauren, and two grandchildren.

What Does She Do?

Susan is responsible for all of St. Luke’s ministry to children from newborns to 5th graders, including Sunday School and God’s Backyard Worship for Children. She joined the staff in 1994, and so she has seen a lot of kids grow up. “I love seeing when kids ‘get it’—that they are loved by God. It’s been a joy to watch children progress in their faith and become youth/young adults who serve the church.”

Young Adult Pastor

Morgan Vera

Who is she?

Morgan grew up in Brodhead, Kentucky, and she has lived in Lexington the past five years. She loves to hike and enjoys being at coffee shops, reading and talking with friends. “My go-to drink is a cold-brew coffee,” she says. Her dream vacation would be to thru-hike the Appalachian Trail or the Pacific Crest Trail. She is currently at Asbury Seminary working on a Master’s of Divinity degree.

What Does She Do?

In her role as the young adult pastor, Morgan works with St. Luke’s young adults ages 18-30. This community within St. Luke is focused on intentional discipleship, building relationships, and spending time together in fellowship. “I want to create a space where young adults feel welcome, where we put Jesus at the center, and where we can have fun,” says Morgan.

Director of Worship

Mariann Reinke

Who is She?

Mariann is an Ohio native. She and her husband Keith have three grown children living, as she says, on three coasts: California, Washington, D.C., and Cleveland. True to her role as Director of Worship, Mariann enjoys all things musical, from playing her cello and guitar to singing in ensembles. In that realm, her dream is to one day visit Europe to walk in the footsteps of famous composers and see concerts in the great cathedrals.

What Does She Do?

Mariann coordinates the efforts of the other music staff members, leads the planning of the worship service with the pastors, and heads up the worship ministry team. She also works with an extensive group of volunteers, who serve as song leaders, liturgists, and communion servers.

Children's Music Director

Macy Bell

Who is She?

After growing up within the St. Luke community, Macy earned two degrees in music education—a bachelor’s from UK and a master’s from Auburn. She puts those degrees to good use teaching elementary school music in Fayette County, and she is also currently working on her Ph.D. Macy enjoys training for marathons, hiking, and taking care of her backyard farm with her husband. They have four chickens, two ducks, and a black lab named Gunner.

What Does She Do?

Macy works with Kindergarten through 5th grade students and helps them develop music skills. She is working to establish a brand new way to help the children learn by integrating an Orff Schulwerk approach to music education, the foundations of which are singing, playing instruments, and movement. “I believe the church plays an important role in supporting musical development, and I am excited to provide music-making experiences for the St. Luke children,” she says.

Director of Communication & Technology

Mark Walz, Jr.

Who is He?

Mark is a man of many interests, including painting, rollerblading, puppetry, and building websites. He is fascinated with the parks of the North American West, noting: “I love the Grand Tetons and Yellowstone but i really would like to visit Banff National Park in Canada.”

What Does He Do?

Mark directs the church’s internal and external marketing, which includes newsletters, announcements, social media, video production, graphic design, and developing promotions for events, classes, ministries and other programming. He also manages and maintains the church’s computer network and runs all of the technology, audio, visual, and projection systems in the sanctuary, and classrooms.

Choir Director

Brent Merritt

Who is He?

Since he serves as the choir director, you know he is all about music, but Brent also enjoys gardening, home projects, traveling, and doing most anything related to swimming. His wife Tonya is a USA Swim Official, and both of their sons are part of local swim teams. Brent is a pastor’s kid, who grew up in central Illinois, where he attended college. He met Tonya when he moved to Frankfort to teach music in 1995.

What Does He Do?

Brent primarily serves as the St. Luke Choir Director. In addition, he also heads up the recently launched St. Luke Choral Scholars Program and helps with worship planning. “The folks in the choir are such a fun group to work with,” Brent says. “Our Wednesday rehearsals are a mid-week shot of the Holy Spirit, and I often come out with much more energy and inspiration than I had when I arrived.”

Pastor of Encouragement

Bob Ockerman

Who is He?

If you ever are curious about the early days of St. Luke UMC, Bob is your guy. He and his wife Bettie attended the first service in September 1976, and they are charter members of the church. Family plays a very big role in Bob’s life. He and Bettie have been married 60-plus years and they have four daughters and four granddaughters. Plus, the first two members of the next generation arrived in early 2020—two great-grandsons.

What Does He Do?

In his role as the Pastor of Encouragement, Bob ministers to those members of the St. Luke community that don’t get out much. He does home visits, sees people at hospitals and rehab facilities, makes phone calls, and sends cards and notes. One of his favorite things is serving communion and praying with the people he visits. “I love the spirit of our St. Luke family, who consistently demonstrate the love of God to others,” says Bob.

Handbell Choir Director

Bethany Watt

Who is She?

A native of Alexandria, Louisiana, Bethany found her way to Lexington in 2001 after she married her husband Lyle. They met while attending Vanderbilt University, and Tennessee remains a favorite vacation spot. They typically head to the Smoky Mountains once a year, which allows Bethany to do two of her favorite things: hiking and spending time in the mountains.

What Does She Do?

Bethany works with the musicians who play both the handbells and handchimes. The choir also does community outreach by providing music at local nursing homes. Both her husband Lyle and their daughter Evie play in the handbell choir, and she says it is fun to work with them.

Contemporary Worship Leader

Wes Wilcox

Who is He?

Wes lives in Versailles with his wife Heidi. He likes drawing, playing tennis, and, of course, music. A native of Maysville, he comes by his love of music naturally. His mom played organ at church, his grandmother was a pianist and led the choir, and his aunt and sister also played piano. “I had a pastor growing up who played guitar, and I had always been fascinated by that instrument because of him. In high school I finally started playing, and I have played for more than 16 years now.”

What Does He Do?

Wes leads the music team for our Contemporary Worship Service. In addition to song selection, he also does the musical arrangements for the songs, schedules and leads the practice times for the praise band. “I love working with the band. We have very gifted musicians who work hard, and practicing with them is one of the things I enjoy most in my week.”

Bookkeeper

Debbie Beidleman

Who Is She?

Debbie is a longtime Lexingtonian who attended and played basketball at Lafayette High School before heading to the University of Kentucky for college. She remains an avid Wildcat basketball fan. Another one of her passions is needlepointing; she is active in the Central Kentucky American Needlepoint Guild. In October of 2018, Debbie retired after a 33-year career in accounting and human resources. Since retiring, she’s been volunteering at God’s Pantry at St. Luke, which is how she heard about the bookkeeping job. “I’d begun to miss some of my financial work, so I feel this is an answer to my prayers.”

What Does She Do?

Debbie takes care of paying the bills, processing contributions, handling biweekly payroll, and maintaining the accounting records at the church.

Youth Pastor

Ben Porter

Who Is He?

A Lexington native, Ben grew up at St. Luke, and is excited to be the youth pastor. He and his fiance Grace both attended Asbury University, and they will get married in late 2021. An avid sports fan, Ben has traveled extensively around the United States, and he hopes someday to head overseas to explore places such as Italy and the Holy Land.

What Does He Do?

Ben is in charge of St. Luke’s ministry for 6th- to 12th-grade students. This includes working with the youth to help them explore the Bible and grow in their faith, as well as enjoying fellowship together. Additionally, he works with the ministry team overseeing youth activities, directs their summer activities, helps with adult studies, and preaches occasionally.