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. MERRIMON BOYD

Merrimon Boyd enjoys the smell of coffee in the morning, hearing people’s stories, and finding new purposes for old things. He is an activist theologian who is enthusiastic about helping “Aha!" moments, working for justice, and creating faith communities where everyone is welcome and included. As a teacher of students having special needs, Merrimon achieved a Bachelor of Arts in Religious Education and k-12 certification in Cross -Categorical Disabilities (2000) and a Master of Educational Administration (2003) from Missouri Baptist University.

Ordained in Baptist tradition in 1994 after 22 years in pastoral ministry, Pastor Merrimon pursued his dream of being among God’s most resolute studying Theology, Social Issues, Faith and Family, and the Environment. He received recognition as an authorized minister
through the Privilege of a Call to the United Church of Christ in 2020. Among the few, he holds the treasured Master of Divinity from Eden Theological Seminary (2021).

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.

STEPHEN JONES

Stephen is a composer pianist, organist, choir director and music teacher. He has composed music for solo piano, song cycles for piano and voice, chamber ensemble as well as orchestral pieces. He studied music composition and theory at the University of Massachusetts Boston MA. He went to graduate school in SUNY Fredonia New York. He completed his Masters degree in Composition and Theory and he earned his teaching certificate in Vocal music K-12.

After twenty-five years teaching vocal music in the St. Louis Public Schools he retired from teaching in June 2015. His career as a part-time church musician began when he started student teaching. In St. Louis he was the organist at St. Philips Lutheran Church for ten years and he was the Minister of Music for ten years at Church of the Open Door UCC. His most recent position was Music Director at St. Stephens Protomartyr Catholic church.

He is married to his wonderful wife Dolores, a chiropractor and a fine pianist and organist in her own right. They enjoy playing piano four hand duets as well as organ and piano duets. They have three grown sons Jeremy, Joshua and Matthew and a large family

of pets.

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.