Clergy & Staff
Like all Episcopal churches, leadership is provided by members of the church as well as clergy and staff. Members, known as “lay” leaders, offer their time in many different capacities to provide financial oversight, lead ministries, and support worship. The Vestry is the group of lay leaders who oversee the finances of a parish and ensure that the building and grounds are well-kept. The Vestry also joins with the Rector to support and articulate the parish’s mission and vision, while also supporting effective organization and planning.
Clergy and Staff
Our clergy and staff are led by the Rector and focus on representing Christ and his Church by welcoming all people as Christ himself, encouraging spiritual depth and inquiry, proclaiming the Gospel, administering the sacraments, and caring for the marginalized in the community, while overseeing daily operations of the church. St. Andrew’s is fortunate to have dedicated and professional lay staff who join with the clergy in these ministries, while offering special leadership and oversight of particular areas such as Children and Family Ministries, Youth and Young Adulthood, Preschool, Liturgy and Music, Communications and Administration.
The Rev. Catherine Powell
Children's Spirituality and OutreachBeginning mid-August 2024
The Rev. Susan Cushinotto
DeaconI was ordained to the diaconate on May 16, 2009 in the Episcopal Diocese of New Jersey. My focus of ministry was social justice, primarily in helping the congregations I served discern the needs of the marginalized and empowering them to carry out feeding and clothing programs in the local communities. This included opening a clothing thrift store and assisting my last congregation in becoming a Center for Jubilee Ministry. On the diocesan level, I served as a mentor to students at the Diocese of NJ School for deacons where I also co-taught Foundations of the Diaconate.
Judith Nichols
Parish AdministratorJudith Nichols has spent 30+ years working in the corporate laboratory as a microbiologist and analytical chemist. She has contracted as a chemist with the U.S. Secret Service and large corporations like Procter & Gamble.
C. Justin Smith
Organist & ChoirmasterOrganist and church musician C. Justin Smith is an active member of the classical music community of Wilmington, North Carolina, where he serves as Organist & Choirmaster at St. Andrew’s On-the-Sound Episcopal Church. He is also the business operations coordinator at UNCW for Campus Life (student union), working with student organizations and student government on their finances and accounting. Musically, he has previously served as Minister of Music and Organist at Pearsall Memorial Presbyterian Church and as Organist/Choirmaster at St. John’s Episcopal Church. Very active in the American Guild of Organists, he is currently treasurer of the Wilmington chapter, and has served as the District Convener for the state of North Carolina overseeing the state’s chapters, as well as past dean, secretary, newsletter editor, and member-at-large for the Wilmington chapter. He is a graduate of Wake Forest University, having majored in political science and music. At Wake, he studied organ with noted composer and organist Dan Locklair, while being awarded prizes in music and inducted in the political science honor society Pi Sigma Alpha. During college, he directed the music for the Wake Forest Episcopal Student Fellowship and was Chapel Organist for services of University Worship. After college, he moved to Wilmington to take up the full-time Director of Music and Organist post at Little Chapel on the Boardwalk Presbyterian Church in Wrightsville Beach, where he served for five years. In addition, he earned his Master of Public Administration degree in public and nonprofit management from the University of North Carolina Wilmington, graduating as the valedictorian and receiving the MPA Graduate of the Year and MPA Research and Service awards.
Caroline Johnson
Christian Formation DirectorCaroline Johnson is the Director of Children and Family Ministry at St. Andrew’s On-the-Sound. She attended Cape Fear Community College and Lees McRae College in Banner Elk, NC studying Elementary Education. While she organizes both small group Sunday school classes for children and intergenerational large group events throughout the year, Caroline, herself, recently graduated from the Education for Ministry (EFM) program through the School of Theology at Sewanee. She is thankful for the opportunity to foster a love for learning for young people and support their spiritual growth in the church. She is a mother of four, has a love for nature, making art, and having fun with her family.
Stephanie Rieman
Director of Youth FormationStephanie Rieman is the Director of Episcopal Youth Community (EYC) Ministry of St. Andrew’s on the Sound. Stephanie leads and coordinates our youth activities and programs for youth in grades 6th to 12th grade. Stephanie is a graduate of Mount Olive University, where she received her bachelor’s degree in Early Childhood Education and Elementary Education. She also is a public school teacher for New Hanover Public Schools. Stephanie is also head coach for her school’s Science Olympiad team. When Stephanie is not working with our youths at church or teaching students in a public school classroom, she likes to spend time with her family. This includes her husband, two adult sons, and her two spoiled beagle dogs
Tracy Hanson
Preschool DirectorTracy was born and raised in Hudson, New York and is a graduate of Siena College. After her husband Ken completed his service in the Navy, Tracy and Ken moved to Wilmington where they have lived for the past 25 years raising their two now adult sons, Nathanial and Kellen. The Hansons were invited by a friend to attend St Andrew’s On-the-Sound 19 years ago and have been here ever since. Tracy had served as a Sunday school teacher before being asked in 2005 to join the preschool staff as a teacher in the 2-year-old classroom. In 2017, she accepted the position of preschool director. Together with her amazing and creative team of teachers, she is committed to providing families with a loving and developmentally sound foundation for a lifetime of learning.
An invitation for Sunday mornings, from our Interim Rector
Dear friends,
I'm writing to invite you to a series of presentations in the Sunday Forum (9:10 - 10:00). Each Sunday, I am enjoying engaging with parishioners about deepening our approach to the spiritual life, and on September 29, October 6, 13, and 27, I am going to be giving special attention to the richness of Anglican traditions and why I find The Episcopal Church to be…
An invitation from our interim rector: Sunday Forum
Dear friends,
I'm writing to invite you to a series of presentations in the Sunday Forum (9:10 - 10:00). Each Sunday, I am enjoying engaging with parishioners about deepening our approach to the spiritual life, and on September 29, October 6, 13, and 27, I am going to be giving special attention to the richness of Anglican traditions and why I find The Episcopal Church to be suc…
An Invitation: A new year of spiritual exploration
Overall, church membership in the United States has been declining steadily for decades, with precipitous decline in the last twenty years. And unfortunately, The Episcopal Church is no exception.
However, over this same period, meditation practices have soared in popularity around the globe. Mindfulness Meditation, Yoga, Tai Chi, and Qigong, for example, have attracted more peo…
Reflections from the Interim Rector
Hopes and expectations
What a warm welcome Cherry and I have received from parishioners and staff at St. Andrew's On-the-Sound. We cannot thank you enough, and it's hard for me to express the joy I feel about joining with you for this interim time. We are giving thanks for all the beautiful things God has done among you, with faithful leaders like Richard Elliott, and we look forw…
Sunday Adult Forum: “Beyond Bellhops of History”
A famous educator once remarked that many of us are like "bellhops of history." We are dutifully carrying the luggage of previous generations and delivering it to the next generation. But instead of being "bellhops," our role is to unpack that luggage and clothe ourselves with the treasures we find there.
In the church, the metaphor could not be more apt - instead of just duti…
Think about THESE things!
"Whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things." (Paul to the Philippians, 4:8)
There's a lot to think about nowadays, but I really like Paul's advice to think about those things that bring a bit more life, pe…
Read More »Welcoming a Wilmington Treasure: The Rev. Catherine Powell
Welcoming a Wilmington Treasure:
It is a pleasure and privilege to announce that we will welcome the Rev. Catherine Powell as a very part-time assisting priest (10-15 hours/week) at St. Andrew's On-the-Sound in mid-August. Our interim rector, Gary Jones, could not be happier. When we learned of Catherine's availability, vestry members determined that …
Read More »Relearning what your soul already knows
Relearning what your soul already know
"The glory and freshness of a dream"
One of my favorite poems is William Wordsworth's "Ode: Intimations of Immortality," which speaks of our Divine origins, God as our Source and our Homeland. The poet recalls that in his infancy, the whole world, "meadow, grove, and stream, / The earth and every common sight, / To me did seem / Apparell'd in …
Read More »