Order of the Ascension

Members of the Order

Susan Latimer, OA

Susan grew up in Southern California, immersed in music, liturgy and the wonders of God’s Creation. Piano, piano accompanying, and singing filled her early years, along with a BA in Music from Yale and a Master’s of Music in performance from the School of Music, USC, Los Angeles. She graduated with an MDiv , Magna Cum Laude, from Candler School of Theology, Emory University and did an Internship and Residency in CPE at Georgia Baptist Hospital in Atlanta before marriage to John Roberts in May of 1992 and ordination in June and December of 1992.  

Michelle Heyne, OA

Michelle is the 8th superior of the Order - Presiding Sister

Michelle Heyne, OA brings empathy, humor, and a solid grounding in ecclesiology and effective organizational dynamics to her work as a trainer and consultant.  She is committed to helping parish leaders bring about effective change by developing the skills they need to make the most of the gifts they already have.  She has worked as a financial services executive for over 25 years and served as a parish lay leader for 15. Michelle lives in Seattle.

Michelle served as part of the training team with the Diocese of Washington and national Shaping the Parish.  She has also done training with and received a certificate from the Church Development Institute. Michelle also has completed NTL's Organization Development Certificate program. She is a consultant in the financial services industry for organization development and compliance issues. Michelle has extensive experience with financial management, interpersonal communications and team dynamics, and developing and implementing organizational change initiatives. She has non-profit experience in the areas of team building, strategic planning, and conflict management. She attends St.Clements, Seattle and is on the parish vestry.  Michelle is a Professed Member of the Order of the Ascension and the 8th superior, Presiding Sister, of the Order.

Writing: In Your Holy Spirit: Traditional Spiritual Practices in Today's Christian Life, Understanding from Within: Working with Religious Systems, OD Practitioner, with Robert Gallagher, January 2015;  “Quality & Empowerment: Organization Development at WomenRising 1992 – 2016.”, OD Practitioner, with Robert Gallagher, Spring 2016. Saint Paul's, Seattle: Growth & Decline, with Robert Gallagher (a related web page). A Wonderful and Sacred Mystery: A Practical Theology of the Parish Church, with Robert Gallagher

Lowell Grisham, OA

Lowell was the 3rd superior, Presiding Brother, of the Order

The Rev. Lowell Grisham retired from full-time ministry in 2018 after nearly 38 years of ordained service, the last 20+ as Rector of St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, Fayetteville, AR. After graduating from the General Theological Seminary in 1980, he served parishes in Mississippi and Arkansas. Lowell was the Presiding Officer of OA 1997-2000. His book "Practicing Prayer: A Handbook" was published by Ascension Press in 2016. For many years Lowell posted an almost daily Morning Reflections blog on the Daily Office Readings which was also picked up by Episcopal Cafe. 

Robert Gallagher, OA 

 Robert was the 1st and 7th superior, Presiding Brother, of the Order

Robert Gallagher, OA has served as the vicar of inner city parishes in Philadelphia and Trenton; been on the staff of an industrial mission that helped lay people apply their faith to issues of justice and compassion in the workplace; and was the Associate Priest for Ascetical and Practical Theology at Trinity Church, Seattle. He was an adjunct faculty in Anglican Studies at Bangor Theological Seminary. He served as chaplain to the Northwest Chapter of the Society of the Companions of the Holy Cross. Robert serves as formation director of the Order of the Ascension.

He brings 48 years of experience in leadership training and parish development. Fr. Robert offers exceptional skills in facilitating shifts and changes in people and organizations. He provides practical methods and vision for a transformed parish. Robert has a masters degree in Organization Development from Goddard College. 

He’s been a consultant and trainer in religious systems, non-profit organizations and small businesses since 1970. Robert has worked on the staff of, and as a consultant to, ecumenical training organizations, an industrial mission, and metropolitan and state councils of churches. He served as the congregational development officer for the Episcopal Diocese of Connecticut from 1981 - 88. He has consulted with hundreds of congregations. He has served as adjunct faculty in congregational development at Hartford Seminary and Seabury-Western Theological Seminary and was Director of the Church Development Institute at the General Theological Seminary from 1985 - 2000 and continued as the Director of the CDI- Seattle until in 2011. In recent years Robert served as a priest associate at Saint Paul's Church and Saint Clement's Church, Seattle. He's "somewhat retired" and now attends attends St.Clements, Seattle.  He is a Professed Member of the Order of the Ascension. Fr. Robert was the 1st and 7th superior, Presiding Brother, of the Order.

Writing: Fill All Things: The Dynamics of Spirituality in the Parish Church, Ascension Press, 2008. Parish Assessment Workbook, Coauthor, a manual for conducting a self-study, Ascension Press, 1988; Faith Sharing, Coauthor, exercises for groups exploring life histories and spirituality. Ascension Press, 1989; Conformed to Christ: Structures and Standards for Parish Life, Coauthor, guidelines and samples of job descriptions for staff and committees. Ascension Press, 1983, revised 1988 and 2004 as a CD; Power from on High: A Model for Parish Life and Development, Ascension Press, 1982; Stay in the City, A strategy for dioceses in regard to urban parishes. Forward Movement, 1981; The Ministry of the Laity as Agents of Institutional Change, Audenshaw Documents, 1972 and a shorter version in Asian Focus, East Asian Christian Conference, 1971. In Your Holy Spirit: Shaping the Parish Through Spiritual Practices, 2011. Understanding from Within: Working with Religious Systems, OD Practitioner, with Michelle Heyne, January 2015.  “Quality & Empowerment: Organization Development at WomenRising 1992 – 2016.”, with Michelle Heyne, Spring 2016 OD Practitioner. Saint Paul's, Seattle: Growth & Decline, with Michelle Heyne (a related web page), A Wonderful and Sacred Mystery: A Practical Theology of the Parish Church, with Robert Gallagher. Book in process include:  Eucharistic Spirituality: From Audience to Congregation.  PDF Robert Gallagher, OA

Scott Benhase, OA

 Scott was the 2nd and 6th superior, Presiding Brother of the Order

My wife, Kelly, and I both semi-retired in May 2020, she as a professor of English at Georgia Southern University and me as the 10th Bishop of Georgia. My 10+ years as a Diocesan Bishop along with the 27 years I spent in parish ministry prior, has been a blessing. Now serving as Assisting Bishop, Diocese of Florida.  All three of my children are fully grown and on their own (as much as any of us are). My oldest, John, is a chef in Savannah with his wife (Sarah) who is a Nurse Practitioner with a Palliative Care Unit. Charley works for a company doing compliance work in DC. His wife Charlotte works in educational software development. Mary Grace works in Communications for No Kid Hungry, a non-profit in DC, whose goal is to end childhood hunger in America. My sisters and brothers in OA continue to be a source of wisdom, love, and support for me. I am so thankful to God for the companionship.

 

 

Royster Hedgepeth, OA 

Throughout his career as a university administrator, fundraiser, independent consultant and volunteer, Royster was dedicated to increasing organizational capacity for service by helping organizations create dynamic, mission-driven strategic plans, increase their fundraising capacity, and cultivate strong, performance-based boards of directors and volunteer advocates.

His approach to organization development was, and is, based on the conviction that people act positively on behalf of that which they help create.  As a volunteer, he continues to use interactive methods to engage organizational and community leaders to help create a high level of motivation and ownership.  In the process, he emphasizes effective teambuilding, heightened performance expectations, and challenging yet attainable organizational goals. 

 During his professional career, Royster had twenty-six years of executive level educational fundraising management and sixteen years of independent consulting, primarily for smaller, faith-based organizations.  He directed successful first-time campaigns for the Universities of Illinois, Colorado, and Massachusetts and led strategic planning and fundraising programs for Meredith College, Marquette University, and the Basketball Hall of Fame.  He was a Senior Fellow at the Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges.  With the support of philanthropist Harold Grinspoon, he co-founded The Grinspoon Institute for Jewish Philanthropy.  J-Camp 180, as it is known today, assists nearly 100 Jewish summer camps across North America in developing their boards and increasing their fundraising capacity – particularly fundraising for capital gifts. 

Royster served on the Vestry at St Paul’s Episcopal Church in Wilmington, NC and chaired the Stewardship Committee.  He is the convener for the Adult Formation Committee, a lay Eucharistic minister, convener for the Friday mens’group and a member of the Community of Hope.  With his wife, Kathryn, he conducted (pre COVID) third, fourth and fifth Sunday Worship Services at The Kempton, an assisted living center in Wilmington. He is involved in community conversations about social justice and affordable housing and initiated the Wilmington Initiative for Light, Hope and Justice – a program dedicated to promoting interfaith and multicultural communication.  He currently serves on the Board of Governors for Trinity Center, the Episcopal Diocese of East Carolina’s Camp and Conference Center and as an Environmental Ambassador and volunteer capital gifts consultant for the North Carolina Coastal Land Trust.

Royster received his BA in religion from Wake Forest University, his MEd in student personnel services (guidance and counseling) from the University of Florida, and his PhD in educational administration from Cornell University.  Among over 100 publications and invited presentations, Royster edited Organizational Culture and Fundraising Success, a volume in the New Directions in Fundraising Series published by Jossey-Bass and was principal researcher and author of How Public College and University Foundation Boards Contribute to Campaign Success published by the Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges.   Royster is a veteran, having served in the US Army, 1969-1971.

He has two adult children, four grandchildren and enjoys cooking, travel, art, jazz, bridge and golf.  He is also a stained-glass hobbyist.

 

 

 

Gawain de Leeuw, OA   

 

Fr. Gawain de Leeuw took his first promise in 2012. He was raised in Rochester, New York. There, he was baptized, confirmed, and in 1996, was ordained at Christ Church by The Rt. Rev. William Burrill on the feast day of Evelyn Underhill. 

Fr. Gawain has served churches in Seoul, Korea and White Plains, including 20 years at St. Bartholomew's. There he began dinner church, partnered with a multicultural pre-school, and started a Spanish Speaking service. He was active in county-wide interfaith initiatives, helping build an association of almost forty churches. 

In September 2021, he began serving as a priest-in-charge for a church redevelopment initiated in Manhattan, NY at Holy Trinity in Inwood. It is the first new building in the diocese in thirty years. 

He was graduated from Oberlin College with a first degree in philosophy. He received his M.Div. from The Divinity School of the University of Chicago, and his Anglican Studies Certificate at General Theological Seminary. He received his Doctorate in Congregational Development from Seabury-Western in 2011. 

He has served on several boards, including the boards of Meals on Wheels, the Housing Action Council, and the National Clergy Advisory Board of Planned Parenthood. In 2011, he founded Westchester United, an IAF affiliate, with three Rabbis and a priest. He now serves as a leader of Manhattan Together. Currently he is serving his second term as a Trustee of the Diocese of New York and his first on the Church Pension Fund.

He has continued his training in organization development at the Tavistock Institute, The Center for Emotional Intelligence and Human Relations and CDI. 

His book The Body of Christ in a Market Economy, seeks to identify relevant concepts in economic thinking into the theological anthropology of the church. It unpacks the relationship of rivalry and debt to the use of money, highlighting the way church administration and governance could impact market decisions. He is writing a workbook to help congregations think about their own economic choices. 

Fr. Gawain is a credentialed sommelier, longtime salsero, and weightlifter. He cheers for the Bills, Tottenham, and the Dutch national soccer team. 

 

David Andrews, OA

 

I have been a member of the Order of the Ascension since 2011 when I took the first promise.  I was ordained to the Diaconate in December of 1990 and ordained a Priest the following fall in September of 1991.  For the first six years of ordained ministry I was bi-vocational as I split my time between working towards my MSW from Marywood College in Scranton, PA and being a Sunday supply priest.  I was the quarter time vicar of the Church of the Good Shepherd of the Onondaga outside of Syracuse New York from February 1992 to September of 1994.  In 1997 I began my move to full time parish ministry when I was called to be the vicar of St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Chittenango, New York.  I still split my time between parish and social work.  In the fall of 1998 I began as part time vicar at Trinity Episcopal Church in Camden, NY and split my time between the two parishes until 2001 when I began at St. Paul’s full time.  I remained at St. Paul’s until 1996 when I was called to be the first full time Rector of Trinity Episcopal Church in Castine Maine.  Emily and I were in Maine until the end of 2009 when i was called to be the Rector of the Episcopal Church of Saints Andrew and Matthew in Wilmington, Delaware.  I have been at SsAM for nine and a half years.

My other interests besides parish ministry are serving on the boards of Planned Parenthood of Delaware where I convene a clergy for choice group that meets monthly and I am on the board of a local Peace not for profit, Pacem en Terris.  I also co-chair the congregational vitality committee of the Episcopal Church in Delaware.  My other interests include reading, working out and travel when we have the money.  Emily and I will be married thirty-five years this year.

Life is full and good. 

 

LIZ SCHELLINGERHOUDT, OA

I'm the rector at St. Clare’s Episcopal Church in the beautiful north Georgia mountains. I have served at large urban parishes and small rural parishes. I am thoroughly enjoying the joy and challenge of a small, rural parish during a particularly challenging time in our nation’s history. The political divide in our country – one that is also found in most small, diverse congregations – has caused me to look inward at my own beliefs about what it means to be a priest, how to preach the Good News, and to learn to listen deeply to differing points of view. The Church is the one place that may be able to show the world around us how to live together amidst deep differences, practicing that what binds us together is the Body and Blood of Christ, not our agreement or political allegiances.

My husband Kees and I have been married for 29 years. He is the president of Selit, N.A., a German company that makes foam underlayment for flooring. We are grateful that he is able to work out of our home full time.

Kees and I have two college-age children. Our daughter Annelies is 26. Our son Whitner is 23 years old.

 

Richard Proctor, OA

Richard has served as the Rector of Christ the King Episcopal Church in Santa Rosa Beach, FL since the Summer of 2015. He is married to the Rev’d Emily Rose Proctor, who serves as the Director of Outreach of Caring & Sharing of South Walton. They have two children – Julian Thomas and Madeleine Rose.

 Richard was born and raised in Tallahassee, FL and received his early childhood and young adult faith formation as a member of St. John’s Episcopal Church. He received his formal education at the University of the South (Sewanee), Florida State University, Columbia Theological Seminary, and the General Theological Seminary. He made his life profession with the Order of the Ascension in 2023 and is currently pursuing a DMin in Anglican Ascetical Theology at Nashotah House Theological Seminary.

Prior to becoming an Episcopal priest, Richard was a professional musician (drummer and songwriter), touring the United States and Europe with the band Tishamingo. He still plays drums with various local bands and musicians, and loves collecting records.

 

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Poulson Reed, OA

Ordained a deacon in June of 2002, Poulson served at Saint John’s Episcopal Cathedral in Denver, Colorado (where he was ordained a priest in January of 2003) for more than seven years as Curate, Canon, and eventually as Sub-Dean. Poulson began serving as Rector of All Saints’ Episcopal Church and Day School in Phoenix, Arizona in August of 2009. As Rector, he was the spiritual leader of both a large church and a day school of over 500 students in pre-K through 8^th grade.

On December 14^th, 2019, Poulson was elected the sixth bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Oklahoma. He was consecrated as Bishop Coadjutor on May 30^th, 2020 at a small ceremony in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic, and was seated as the Bishop Diocesan on August 8^th, 2020 (the Feast of Saint Dominic). As Bishop of Oklahoma, he oversees a diocese that includes 68 congregations, 5 Episcopal Schools, 2 college chaplaincies, 2 senior care centers, and a camp and conference center. Brother Poulson first took the Promise of stability, obedience and conversion of life during the pandemic, on June 17 at a Zoom gathering of the Order. He made his life profession on April 30, 2024.

Poulson is an avid, life-long learner. In addition to his formal degrees, he has studied congregational and organization development over many years.

 

Tom Early, OA

I grew up on the Iowa side of the Missouri River valley. My heart and vocation are deeply connected to rural and agrarian communities. I spent two years after college with Green Iowa AmeriCorps, weatherizing low-income housing and facilitating energy education for youth and adults. I chose to attend Sewanee for seminary because it felt like the perfect combination of the rural setting I felt called to serve and the Anglican formation hub I craved. My first call was to a lovely lake town, far away from anything resembling a city. I currently serve as rector of St. John’s by the Campus in Ames, IA. Here I feel connected to the young people who often come from rural and remote places and the discourse around sustainable agriculture and shrinking communities.

As institutions deteriorate, I have found myself increasingly drawn to the Benedictine Promise. I delight when inviting stability, obedience, and conversion of life to those in my parish but also to any who are feeling wearied by the increasing changes and chances of our current times.

My wife Sara and I are often coaxed outside by our Golden Retriever, Alleluia “Allie” Early. Together we love walking in our local state parks and trying not to kill the lovely garden we inherited in our backyard. 

 

Departed

Jeremy Bond, OA 

Born July 9, 1938, I grew up near the Village of Yorktown Heights, New York, about forty miles north of NYC and about ten miles east of the Hudson River. I enjoyed life in our rural setting three miles south of the village. I had two brothers, James, thirteen months older than me and Brian, four years younger. I spent twelve years (no kindergarten) in thee same school building and graduated from high school in 1955 at age sixteen. The only difficult part of growing up came when our mother died at age forty-four from cancer in March 1950. I had to learn to cook and clean house as a pre-teen.

My father married my step-mother in 1952 and she took over some of my chores. In high school I participated in several sports and especially enjoyed track which I did my last two years. The fall of 1955 I began studies at Kenyon College in Gambier, Ohio. I majored in English and about half way through chose to go on to seminary. I graduated from Kenyon June of 1960 and attended the General Theological Seminary in New York City. I finished GTS in June of 1962 at age 23, got ordained deacon June 9th of that year and began ministry at the Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine July 1st. 

The fall of 1960, at a classmates birthday party, I met Kathy Bartlett, a student at Bellevue School of Nursing across town from us. We started dating and married September 29th 1962. I then got ordained a priest December 22nd 1962. Then in the spring of 1964, with my time at St. John's due to end I accepted an offer to  serve at St. Stephen's Cathedral in Harrisburg, PA. at St. Stephen's, basically a parish church, I learned parish ministry. I stayed there as Assistant Minister until March of 1968 when I took on the position of Rector of St. Paul's, Harrisburg; a blue collar racially mixed congregation. 

I have three children: Angela, Catharine and Michael. After eleven years at St. Paul's and going through fire in 1970, and flood in 1972, I served as Rector of St. Matthew's parish from 79 to 2003. There we chose our own house to live in and bought a pleasant 1950's home on the hill.  In 1989, I also took on the small congregation of  St. Mark's, two miles away in Northumberland. From then on, each Sunday morning at celebrated Holy Eucharist at 8:00 and 10;30 in Sunbury and 9:00 across the river in Northumberland. I retired August 1st. 2003 and Kathy and I moved west to our current home in Grover Beach, California in June 2004. I enjoy retirement life here.

I attended a clergy workshop in New Jersey in 1992. Robert Gallagher led the event and from him I got information on the Order of the Ascension. I soon began the process of membership and finished the entry stages in 1995 to become a regular member. Now that I soon turn 81 I'm slowing down but continue my disciplines of prayer and praise and hope to see one and all of the Order each year, wherever we meet.

Brother Jeremy died on April 8, 2022. A page on Jeremy is HERE