Clergy and Staff
REV. DR. PATRICK H. SHEBECK, SENIOR PASTOR
The Rev. Dr. Patrick H. Shebeck has served as the Senior Pastor at St. Paul-Reformation since 2014. He graduated from St. Olaf College with degrees in Liturgics and History, and received his MDiv. at the Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago (LSTC), doing additional work at Trinity Seminary, Columbus Ohio, and Cambridge University in England. Pastor Shebeck completed his vicarage year in San Bernardino California, working and teaching in one of America’s poorest and most violent cities; he completed his Clinical Pastoral Education at Abbott Northwestern Hospital, working specifically in the areas of pastoral care to those suffering with mental illness. Pastor Shebeck holds the Doctor of Ministry degree in Liturgical Theology from the Catholic Theological Union in Chicago where he studied under Ed Foley; his doctoral work (“Rite or Right? ‘Confirmation’ and the ‘Affirmation of Baptism’ in the Minneapolis Area Synod”) studied the liturgical aspects of the Lutheran Rite of Confirmation. Before being ordained, he served as a professional Church musician at Christ Church-Episcopal in Woodbury, and the Church of the Good Shepherd (Roman Catholic) in Golden Valley; he maintains active interest in the world of Church Music, and has served on the Liturgy Planning Team of the Association of Lutheran Church Musicians (ALCM). Prior to returning to the Twin Cities, Pr. Shebeck was the convener of the Synodical Liturgy Team for the Metropolitan Chicago Synod. He has been a contributing writer for Currents in Theology and Mission, the Augsburg Fortress E-newsletter and is a contributor to the 2014, 2015, 2016, and 2021 editions of Sundays and Seasons and Sundaysandseasons.com. In the St. Paul Area Synod, Pr. Shebeck serves as Dean of the South-Central Conference and also as Synodical Ecumenical Officer. Pr. Shebeck was is a Fellow of the Collegeville Institute at St. John's University. Starting in 2020, Pr. Shebeck will be a fellow of the John Templeton Foundation's project on Science and Homiletics, and will serve on the Board of Directors of the ELCA Deaconess Community. Pastor Shebeck loves to cook and loves to travel. You can e-mail Pr. Shebeck at: pastorpatrick@stpaulref.org, or by clicking here.
SR. STACIE LIGHTNER, CANTOR
Sister Stacie Lightner grew up on a farm outside Garden City, Kansas. She started piano lessons when she was five years old, and organ lessons when she was eighteen. She earned bachelor's degrees in organ performance and religious studies from The University of Kansas, and then spent a year studying organ in Germany on a Fulbright Scholarship. She returned to KU to pursue a master's degree in church music, followed by a doctor of music in organ performance at McGill University in Montreal. During her doctoral studies she developed a passion for hymnody and liturgy while simultaneously serving as the chapel organist at a Presbyterian seminary and singing in an Anglo-Catholic church choir that specialized in chant and Renaissance polyphony. She then returned to the Midwest, where she served in several churches in Nebraska. In March 2018, Sister Stacie was consecrated a Deacon in the ELCA. She is a member of the Deaconess Community of the ELCA, and therefore uses the title "Sister." She is excited to return to the middle of the country and hopes that Minnesota winters will stir up fond memories of kittenhood in Montreal for her faithful feline companion Johnny Cashew. You can email Sr. Stacie by clicking here, or at music@stpaulref.org.
REV. ERIK DOUGHTY, AFFILIATED ASSISTANT PASTOR
The Rev. Erik Doughty, Affiliated Assistant Pastor, grew up in rural Central Illinois on a small farm and graduated from Augustana College, Rock Island, with a religion major and a geography minor. For a year following college, Pastor Doughty was part of Lutheran Volunteer Corps, after which he began seminary at Luther Seminary, Saint Paul MN; he graduated in 2013. Pastor Doughty completed 5 units of CPE, most recently a year-long chaplain residency at HealthEast. He works full-time as a long-term care chaplain in Saint Paul, and regularly preaches, presides, and visits SPR members. In his rest and relaxation time you might find Pastor Doughty at the gym, walking labrador Molly around a lake, or traveling; favorite trips include the Holy Land, Denmark/Sweden, Puerto Vallarta, and Grand Marais. You may e-mail Pr. Doughty at: pastorerik@stpaulref.org, or by clicking here.
JENNIFER WALDING, PARISH ADMINISTRATOR
Jennifer Walding has served as Parish Administrator since 2008. Jennifer completed a four year course of theological study, Education for (Lay) Ministry (EFM), through the School of Theology, University of the South, Sewanee, Tennessee. Jennifer is a member of Saints Martha and Mary Episcopal Church, Eagan, MN, where she is a Priest on the Shared Ministry Team, choir member, Confirmation teacher and youth group mentor. She is a proud mother and grandmother to her granddaughters Wednesday and Ella, son Aaron, and daughter-in-law Charity. Jennifer has a B.A from Iowa State University. You can e-mail Jennifer at: office@stpaulref.org, or by clicking here.