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Clergy and Staff of St. Thomas

St. Thomas' Church Office is open Monday through Friday from 9:00 am to 2:00 pm.
The Reverend Herbert Jones
Rector

Herbert Jones currently serves as rector of St. Thomas Episcopal church in the Ginter Park area of Richmond, where he has been since 2017. Baptized in the Methodist Church, his earliest memories of church are from the Episcopal Church of the Redeemer in Richmond where his parents joined when he was a child. As a youth, he was very active at St. James’s in the Fan District of Richmond. As a young adult, Herbert worked as a counselor at St George’s Camp at Shrine Mont as well as the Shrine Mont kitchen staff. His first professional career was as a lawyer in Richmond, where his practice primarily focused on cases that originated in the Juvenile and Domestic Relations courts of Richmond and the surrounding counties. His main focus was on criminal defense cases. Later in life, Herbert re-embraced an earlier call to ordained ministry. He attended Union Presbyterian Seminary where he received a Masters of Divinity followed by a year at Virginia Theological Seminary in the Anglican Studies program there. Herbert was ordained as a priest in 2011 and served as vicar at Church of Our Saviour in Montpelier before coming to St. Thomas.

Ashley Braxton
Sexton

Ashley Braxton became the sexton on April 1, 2022. Her role is to keep the building clean and smelling fresh!  She also work in the day school with some Amazing Ladies! In her free time, she likes to party plan and work on her upcoming business. Fun Fact: She's the 6th child out of 9.

Katie Cosby
Minister for Children & Youth
 

As the Youth Minister, Katie has as her ongoing goal to continue to create a fun and welcoming youth group. Her mind and heart are set on this as she knows that a church is a vehicle for outreach, and this has always been at the forefront of her mission in life.

Kristin Cummings
Food Pantry Director
 

Kristin has been a part of the Food Pantry since 2013, taking on the role of Volunteer Coordinator in 2020 and Director in 2022. She’s a licensed clinical social worker with a Masters in Social Work, lives in Bellevue with her husband and three children and has been a member of St. Thomas for nearly 20 years. Kristin enjoys spending time with her family, looking up at the stars, making homemade pizza and, of course, Stevie Wonder. She’s passionate about economic and food justice and is crazy about the fabulous food pantry team at St. T’s!

Jimmy Hicks
Organist & Choirmaster
 

Jimmy Hicks joined us as our Organist/Choirmaster in January 2018. Jimmy previously served Immanuel Episcopal church in the same capacity for 25 years. As a long-time resident of the Bellevue neighborhood, being at St. Thomas is like "coming home."  We are delighted to have him as our organist and a part of our church family.

Christi McFadden
Financial Administrator
 

Christi has been with St. Thomas staff since 2012. As our old-timer, she has enjoyed working with the staff and parishioners on many different projects.  She is currently the financial administrator and enjoys racking her brain to keep the accounting and bills straight!

Abby Outlaw
Parish Administrator

Abby joined St. Thomas staff as Parish Administrator in late 2018.  She is a classically-trained soprano who performs regularly as a soloist and with professional ensembles including The Virginia Chorale, the Piedmont Singers of Central Virginia, the Schola Cantorum of the Cathedral of the Sacred Heart, and Sanctuary, St. Stephen's compline choir. In her free time, she loves to travel, bake, and spend time with her husband, daughter, and hound dogs. Visit her in the office during the week and there's a good chance you will get some baby time with her daughter Lizzie! 

Cyndi Schulte
Food Pantry Volunteer Coordinator

Cyndi Schulte joined the St. Thomas Food Pantry team as a volunteer in late 2020 during the height of the Covid pandemic.  New to Richmond, she was looking forward to getting out into the community, getting to know people and especially to help others, which has always given her the most satisfaction in ways to spend time.  Cyndi is a former elementary school teacher on the West Coast and is a mother of three grown children.  In her spare time, Cyndi enjoys meeting new people, playing tennis and Pickleball, hiking, bike riding, and being an active and engaged member of the Museum District neighborhood community.  She is so excited to be joining the St. Thomas team and is hoping to help further the important mission of the St. Thomas Food Pantry!  

R. Dale Smith
Seminary Intern

Dale grew up in Cumberland County, Virginia, where he was raised in the Methodist Church. He became an Episcopalian by way of the parish of St. Mark’s, on the Boulevard, where he discerned a call to ordination. As part of the path toward Holy Orders, Dale is completing a Certificate in Anglican Studies via a low-residency program at Church Divinity School of the Pacific (an Episcopal seminary in Berkeley, CA), as well as contextual educational experiences. He arrives at St. Thomas after 7 months at All Saints Episcopal on River Road, and looks forward to learning within this community. Before pursuing ordination, Dale was a member of the VCU Department of English, where he taught literature and creative writing courses, in addition to advising many students. A longtime resident of Richmond, he lives near Carytown with his husband John, a retired nurse practitioner.

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