To contact any staff member at the church office, call (512) 476-3523.

Clergy

• Rev. Morgan S. Allen, Rector - About

  Morgan began ministry at Good Shepherd in May of 2009, after serving parishes in Louisiana and Texas, as a priest, deacon, and lay professional. Born in Monroe, Louisiana, and raised in Shreveport, he graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Louisiana State University and received his M.Div from the Seminary of the Southwest, in Austin. Morgan and his wife, the former Missy Boutte, were high school sweethearts and have two children, Michael Stephens and Mary Virginia; an old beagle named Buddy; and several 1972 Buick Gran Sports.

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• Rev. Kelly M. Koonce, Priest for Hospitality & Formation - About

  Kelly first came to Good Shepherd as Assistant Rector after graduating from the Episcopal Theological Seminary of the Southwest (ETSS) in 2002. Two years later he left the parish to pursue doctoral studies in Christian spirituality at the Graduate Theological Union in Berkeley. Kelly, his wife Kimberley and their daughter Callan returned to Good Shepherd in 2007. He was appointed Locum Tenens in March 2008.

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• Rev. Denise Vaughn, Priest for Outreach & Pastoral Care - About

  JDenise has served three congregations in Southwest Florida since 1997, as vocational deacon. In 2005, she moved to Austin to begin studies at the Seminary of the Southwest where she received her M.Div. in May 2008. She is a graduate of the University of South Florida in Tampa where she received a B.A. in 1976. Her daughter Lacy and husband Jacob live in South Carolina with her beautiful granddaughter Taylor.

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• The Rev. Chris Duncan, Curate - About

  Chris began ministry at Good Shepherd in July of 2009, after graduating from Virginia Theological Seminary in Alexandria, Virginia where he served as a seminarian at St. Columba's Episcopal Church in Northwest Washington, DC. Born in Houston, Texas, and raised in Richmond, he graduated from Texas A&M University in 2004. While in college, he worked as the Director of Youth Ministries at St. Thomas Episcopal Church in College Station. After graduation, he worked for a company that provides video, print, and web assistance to churches and other non-profits during capital stewardship campaigns. Chris and his wife, Casey, met at Camp Allen in high school, but did not start dating until college. They were married one month before leaving for seminary in 2006.

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• Rev. Charles James Cook, Assisting Priest - About

  Charlie is a retired Professor of Pastoral Theology at the ETSS. He served as interim rector at Good Shepherd from 1998 to 2000. Earlier, he served churches in the dioceses of Northwest Texas, North Carolina and Missouri. He is a graduate of Drake University and ETSS. His wife, Chris, served 15 years as Head of Good Shepherd School.

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• Rev. Dr. Kurt Gerhard, Assisting Priest - About

  Kurt is the Senior Chaplain at St. Andrew's Episcopal School, a grade 1-12 school founded by Good Shepherd and two other Episcopal parishes in 1952. He received a B.S. from the University of Nebraska at Omaha, a M.Div. from the Seminary of the Southwest, and a D.Min. in Educational Leadership from the Virginia Theological Seminary. He has been an Assisting Priest at Good Shepherd since 2003. He served a church in Nebraska before he returned to Austin to join the full-time faculty of St. Andrew's in 2001.

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• Rev. Dr. Cynthia Briggs Kittredge, Ernest J. Villavaso Professor of New Testament - About

  Cynthia is Assistant Professor of New Testament at the ETSS. A graduate of Williams College, she received her M.Div., Th.M., and Th.D from Harvard. She taught at Harvard and at the College of the Holy Cross. She is the author of Community and Authority: The Rhetoric of Obedience in the Pauline Tradition (1998) and Conversations with Scripture: The Gospel of John (2007). She and husband Frank have three children: Rachel, Emily and Henry.

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• Rev. Robert Terhune, Assisting Priest - About

  Bob served numerous Florida churches before assuming a chaplaincy at Ft. Logan Mental Health Center in Denver and later at St. Luke's Episcopal Hospital in Houston. He was head of the English department at Houston Community College from 1971 until his retirement in 1994. Bob is a graduate of Yale University and the Berkeley Divinity School at Yale. He is married to Lorna Terhune.

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Programming & Music

• Eric Mellenbruch, Director of Music / Organist About

  Eric has been Organist of Good Shepherd since 2000 and was named Interim Director of Music in August 2008. Before coming to Good Shepherd, he studied graphic design at the University of Houston, earned degrees in church music and organ performance from Baylor University, and served as music intern at the Seminary of the Southwest. Eric is also a recitalist, collaborative musician, and typographic designer.

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• Jeane Burks, Coordinator of Children's Ministies - About

  Jeane has been part of Good Shepherd for over 20 years, first singing in the Good Shepherd Choir, then subsequently joining the church. She directs the Primary and Junior Choirs, is Director of Children's Ministries and teaches music for Good Shepherd School.
  Previously, Jeane was a classroom and music teacher at the Hyde Park Baptist CDC, and was for 5 years the Early Childhood Music Coordinator/Opera Program Specialist at the Austin Lyric Opera/Armstrong Community Music School. She has a MM from UT. Jeane is married to Paul and they have a Dalmatian named Pixels.

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Administration

• Nancy Wade, Parish Administrator - About

  Nancy joined the Good Shepherd staff as Parish Administrator in May of 1997. She is a graduate of Agnes Scott College in Atlanta with a BA in Psychology and did graduate work at the University of Texas in Human Resource Development. Nancy served as the Parish Administrator at Holy Spirit Episcopal Church, Houston, from 1987-93. A Fellow of the National Association of Church Business Administrators (NACBA), she has served the Diocese of Texas with two terms each on the Executive Board and the Committee on the Election of the Bishop, and as member of the Finance Committee and Diocesan Council delegate. She has also been a Vestry member, a chalice bearer, a lay reader, and a volunteer in various community organizations.

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• Kathy Jolink, Assistant to the Parish Administrator - About

  Kathy has been a member of Good Shepherd for 20 years. She has served as a Lay Eucharistic Minister, Lay Reader, Adult Christian Education Chair and Sunday School teacher. A UT graduate in Plan II, she has worked as a legal assistant/bookkeeper for her attorney husband, Gray Jolink, for the past two years.

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• Brenda Ransdell, Director of Communications - About

  A native Texan, Brenda has called Austin home since 1971. A graduate of the University of Texas with a Communications degree, her goal at Good Shepherd is to inform the parish and invite their involvement. Her husband Rick is an engineer and together they have three children and two cats. Brenda's interests include family, friends, photography and movies.

  
  
  

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• Miguel Figueroa, Facilities Manager - About

  From El Paso, Miguel's family moved frequently since both his parents were in the Marine Corps, his family moved quite often. Miguel learned from his father how to fix all manner of things as soon as he could drag a hammer. Miguel says that 90% of what he knows came from watching what his dad did wrong and understanding that you do everything the way you would want it done for yourself. Miguel came to Austin to attend the University of Texas and hopes one day to own a contracting company. He enjoys board, computer, and video games.

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