Leadership

Bill grew up in Atlanta at St. Anne’s Episcopal Church, majored in Religion at the University of Georgia, and earned a Master in Divinity at Virginia Theological Seminary. After serving churches in the Dioceses of Atlanta and Georgia, he served for 20 years as rector of St. Peter’s, Washington, NC, in the Diocese of East Carolina.
From 2006-2012, he served as rector of Grace, New Bedford; he as Priest in Charge and then rector of All Saints’, Chelmsford, from which he retired in January 2020 after 42 years of full-time ministry.

Since then he has served as bridge priest at St. Andrew’s, Methuen St. James, Groveland; St. Anne’s and St. John’s, Lowell; and St. Stephen’s, Lynn.

Bill and his wife Stephanie, also a priest, were married by Bishop Shaw in 2010. They have lived in Lowell since 2018.

Bill has two married kids: Katie, who leads admissions for St. Mary’s School, a prep school for girls in Raleigh; Andy, a Nurse Practitioner in Chapel Hill, until his untimely death due to illness in May 2025. He has 4 grandkids, ages 16 to 10.

Stephanie is currently Interim Rector of St. Mark’s, Southborough. Her son Duncan lives and works in Baltimore, MD, and her son Jax is taking a year off from Clark University in Worcester.

Bill enjoys reading, movies, podcasts, and playing tennis. He loves to preach, teach, discuss, and investigate the good news of God coming to us in Jesus Christ (instead of us having to climb up to God). He is continuing to learn and serve Triune God revealed in Jesus who, through the Spirit, is “the incarnation of the faithfulness of God.” 

Kathleen is our Church Administrator and a lifelong New Englander with a background in public music education and community arts development. She currently lives with her husband and her daughter, who is a college student, in Methuen. She is a member of the Religious Society of Friends (Quaker) and travels regularly in service and fellowship among New England Quakers. 

After a first career in music education in the public schools, Kathleen currently supports faith organizations and non-profits in their digital communication strategies and day-to-day functions. 

Kathleen also enjoys playing the clarinet, attending to her native pollinator garden at home, watching local hockey games, and fostering a rather large herd of guinea pigs for local rescue organizations.

Dianne has been a member of neighboring church St.Pauls since 2014.  She has worked as a sexton there since 2014. She joined the St James staff as our  sexton in 2017.  She is a proud mother and grandmother to 2 children and 2 grandchildren. Her passions are animals and gardening. We appreciate the care she gives to our church building and fellowship hall.  She is always a friendly face.

Pat Sorenson is an avid amateur musician who enjoys playing bluegrass, folk, and classical guitar. She has led the St James String Band for the last 15 years, and plays bluegrass, folk, and Americana music with various groups in the local area.

Pat continuously attends workshops and classes in bluegrass music, and has studied bluegrass guitar, singing, and composition at the Concord Conservatory of Music, and studies classical guitar at Classical Guitar Corner Academy.

Brian John, pianist/composer, graduated with a BM in Piano Performance from Miami University of Ohio and a MM in Composition from Longy School of Music in Cambridge, MA. During his studies, he discovered a passion for collaborative piano, working with multiple ensembles and accompanying a variety of instrumental and vocal soloists. He also cultivated his singing skills as a long-term member of choirs across educational institutions and churches.

More recently, Brian’s focus has been on classical and sacred piano works, honing his skills as a choral conductor and music partner for churches across the Massachusetts area. He has worked with a number of churches in roles that range from substitute musician to interim music director, including St. John’s Episcopal Church in Jamaica Plain, the Morning Star Catholic Collaborative in Chelsea and Revere, and St. Andrew's Episcopal Church in Framingham. He is currently serving part-time at Saint James, leading the music ministry in collaboration with the Saint James String Band.