Meet Our Team
The Meetinghouse is a place for people of all ages who are committed to the land, creative expression, and sustainability.
Meet the special people who make it possible.
Community
Deborah Rundlett
Director, Pastor, and Coach
Deborah Rundlett is director of the Meetinghouse and pastor of Ridgebury Congregational Church. Debbie is passionate about the spiritual formation of people of all ages and committed to reclaiming the Commons for Ridgebury. When not at the Meetinghouse, she is either facilitating strategic planning for purpose-driven organizations, coaching cohorts or leading global conversations toward the flourishing of people and planet.
Jim Pelgrift
Storyteller
Jim Pelgrift is the Meetinghouse storyteller, who loves people and their stories. He has always had a passion for community and in particular the arts. He believes that the arts—music, literature, and visual—are essential not only for the care of soul, but also as an intentional social practice for our times. The act of creating bears witness to our shared humanity and need for prophetic imagination.
Farm & Food
Heather Cochrane
Farm & Food
Heather Cochrane is a Biology teacher with a passion for the environment. This passion led her to develop a hands-on curriculum for children and youth to connect with the earth and learn how to grow things. The Farm at Ridgebury is committed to permaculture: that is integrating land, resources, people and the environment through mutually beneficial synergies. She also is our Moderator!
Wellness
Lessley Burke
Wellness
Lessley Burke is an artist and goldsmith. She is founder of the Gilded Lynx, a jewelry and metal arts studio and school in Ridgefield, Connecticut. She is also a certified yoga instructor whose journey through heart surgery led her on a life-changing experience of healing. It is this journey that informs The Meetinghouse vision for wholeness of body, mind and soul.
Arts
B. Fulton (Barb) Jennes
Poet in Residence
Read more about Barb on the Arts page!
Clarice M Shirvell
Artist in Residence
Read more about Clarice on the Arts page!
Rori Shapiro
Artist in Residence
Read more about Rori on the Arts page!
RCC
Sara Vokes
Music Director
Sara Vokes, Music director, found her way to The Meetinghouse through serendipitous grace. From singing opera to teaching voice, to directing choirs, she creates the space for people to bring their whole selves: in worship, in fellowship, in healing, in service. Whether at concert, in
worship, as a student, or on retreat, Sara engages the whole person in the journey!
Charlotte Camillos
Office Manager
