MEET OUR STAFF

REV. VICTORIA HAMPTON

Pastor Vicki has served four churches in the St. Louis area, three in the UCC and one in the Presbyterian Church (USA).  An Eden Seminary graduate with an MDiv, she also has a BSBA in accounting with a minor in law and a BA in Radio/TV/Film production with a minor in theater.  She’s knocked around a bit, living in the San Francisco Bay area as well as Columbia and Jefferson City, MO with shorter stints in Peru and Guatemala.  A St. Louis native, she was confirmed at St. Lucas in 1971 (see if you can find her in the downstairs hallway).  She and her husband Keith are the parents of two twenty-something young men, Ben and Jon who also live in the St. Louis area.

REV. DR. CAROLE BARNER

Cradle UCC, Pastor Carole has served United Church of Christ congregations in Columbia, Jefferson City and St. Louis, with a stint in Christian Education in a United Methodist Church in Little Rock. She graduated Eden Theological Seminary twice, with an M. Div. and then a D. Min. Undergraduate study at the University of Missouri-Columbia (M-I-Z-Z-O-U!) yielded a B.A. in Psychology and a journey in music where she met her husband Biff. They have always shared their love of music with their daughters – Erin, who resides in St. Louis, and Kristen who lives in Corpus Christi with husband Robert, son Bobby and daughter Lindee.

Pastor Carole believes ministry calls us to creative collaboration, bravery in moving forward, and the openness to God’s question, “What if?”

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Her first connection to St. Lucas UCC was through the UCC softball and volleyball programs and other St. Louis Association activities hosted by St. Lucas UCC.   

JEFF WAGENER

Jeff was born and raised in South County and is a graduate of Lindbergh High School. He received a bachelor’s degree in Business from the University of Missouri St. Louis and his law degree from Saint Louis University School of Law. Jeff was baptized at and a member of Bethesda United Church of Christ (k/n/a Bethesda Evangelical Church) until 2003 when he joined Samuel United Church of Christ. He has been a member of St. Lucas UCC since 2018.  

Jeff has practiced law for most of his career. In 1996, Jeff was elected to the St. Louis County Council where he served from 1997-2001. He also served as Director of Intergovernmental Relations for the St. Louis County Executive from 2001-2002 and Chief of Policy from 2015-2019. In addition, Jeff served as Program Manager for Eden Seminary’s Walker Leadership Institute. During his career, Jeff has served on numerous boards including as the inaugural president of the Great Rivers Greenway Board, the St. Louis Economic Development Partnership Board and the Howard Bend and Monarch Levy District Boards. He taught courses in both law and government as an adjunct professor at Maryville University.

Jeff has three children, (Elise, John and Beckett), two stepchildren (Maggie and Patrick). Jeff enjoys music, current events, the outdoors and his 140-pound dog Leroy. But mostly, he loves spending time with his wife, St. Lucas UCC member, Julie Murphy, and their family.

MICHELE OTTINGER

Michele has over 30 years of experience in the field of Early Childhood Education. Throughout her career, she served as the executive director for several large child development centers, as a consultant for the state of Missouri Bureau of Child Care and Head Start programs.

AMY BUSH

Amy served on the program staff at Camp MoVal for 2 years after attending camp as both a camper and a counselor for 11 years. She has been a member of Job’s Daughters International for 9 years where she has served in various leadership roles, at both the local and state level, and currently serves as an adult volunteer. Amy earned her Bachelor's in Secondary Education from SEMO.

LYNN FEY

Lynn grew up at St. Lucas UCC and is a life long member of the United Church of Christ. She was baptized and confirmed at St. Lucas UCC. Lynn was an active member of the youth group at St. Lucas UCC. She attended 5 mission trips while in school. She also attended Camp MoVal over her summers.

SETH CARRUTHERS

Seth Carruthers is serving at St. Lucas UCC as the Director of Music. Seth received a Bachelor of Music in 2009 and a Master of Arts in Counseling in 2015, both from Missouri Baptist University. Since moving to St.Louis in 2002, he has been a part of worship ministry in several churches, leading worship, choirs, worship teams and providing accompaniment. Seth is a Principle Singer with the Bach Society of St. Louis and works full-time for Fontbonne University in Student Registration and Financial Services.

DAVID KUHNS

David is an Honor Graduate of South County Technical High School. He has been the organist for the Saturday evening worship service at St. Lucas UCC since 1994. He began organ lessons at the age of 10 and has concentrated on classical organ for much of the last 22 years.

DEBBIE HEAGLE

Debbie mans the front desk; her cheerful and helpful personality evident when she answers the phone or when you walk in the office. Debbie is knowledgeable in all facets of the office operations and is ready to drop whatever she is doing when a congregant or visitor comes in.

DENEE BOWERS

Denee helps shape the message of the church both within our membership and the community around us. She is a graduate of Greenville University with degrees in religion and communication. Previously, she worked in a number of roles at a United Methodist Church and at Washington University. 

KELLY BLESSING

Kelly Blessing has been a part of St Lucas Preschool since 2011.  She has a Bachelors degree in Elementary Education with an emphasis in Early Childhood Education.  Kelly is married and has 3 boys, all of which attended St Lucas Preschool. In her spare time, she likes to spend time with her family, go to her boys hockey games, root for the St Louis Blues, and read. She loves the dedication of the staff and the long standing traditions that makes St Lucas Preschool such a wonderful place to work.