Clergy & Staff

The Rev. Scott Claassen is the husband of Maribeth—a Certified Nurse Midwife and Women’s Health Nurse Practitioner—and father of Henry (9), Jimmy (7), and Amos (4). Scott is a fifth generation Californian who was raised in Monterey County but spent his high school years at Cate in Carpinteria. After studying Spanish Literature and Philosophy at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Scott worked as a musician alongside artists ranging from Willie Nelson to the Nelly. A renewed call to ministry brought Scott to Yale Divinity School, where he investigated the relationship between religion and ecology. Those studies led to a Carbon Sabbath in which Scott spent one year without flying or driving. During that time, he cycled over 11,500 miles around the country while engaging Christian communities in dialogue about climate change. Prior to his arrival in Isla Vista, Scott was the associate priest at an emergent Episcopal church in Santa Monica called Thad’s. He was ordained to the Episcopal diaconate during Thad’s monthly Laundry Love ministry and to the priesthood in 2014. Scott came to St. Mike's in the fall of 2015. When not working or with his family, Scott is usually surfing, exploring wilderness, playing music, or dreaming of new ways to make a love-spreading difference in the world.

To read Scott’s blog about his Carbon Sabbath, click here: http://amovingstillness.com/. To learn about Laundry Love, click here: http://laundrylove.org/. For info on Surfing and Spirituality, click HERE.

For more on Scott’s music, go to iTunes, Spotify, or wherever you like to hear music.

Tim is a PhD candidate the department of Religious Studies at UCSB, specializing in philosophy of religion. He also reads avidly in the areas of psychoanalysis, political theology, black studies, and non-philosophy. He joined the St. Mike's staff in late summer of 2022.

Marty grew up in the Midwest (St. Louis & Indianapolis) and graduated from Indiana University in Psychology with a Math minor. After graduating, she felt free to seek warmer climates and moved to Florida, then St. Lucia and St. Thomas. While in the islands, she enjoyed sailing, SCUBA diving and working various jobs. She moved to Santa Barbara to attend Brooks Institute and after the first year, realized it was time for serious work. She worked at the Coral Casino for 2 years which is where she started learning bookkeeping. After taking classes at night, she then went to work for a manufacturing firm. She worked over 20 years there, as bookkeeper, office manager and finally general manager. When the company was sold and relocated, she decided to pursue bookkeeping. She is happy to be part of the staff at St. Michael's. She enjoys swimming, biking and hiking in her free time. She lives in Goleta with her 2 cats and feels California is definitely home now.

You may contact Marty at [email protected]. She generally keeps office hours on Tuesday afternoons, Wednesday mornings and by appointment.

The Bishop's Advisory Committee (BAC) is a beloved group of parishioners who have been elected to help lead our congregation. Most Episcopal churches have a body known as a vestry. The basic responsibilities of the vestry are to help define and articulate the mission of the congregation, to support the church's mission by word and deed, to help select the rector, to ensure effective organization and planning, and to manage resources and finances. As a mission church, our Bishop's Advisory Committee (BAC) is comparable to a vestry. It is led by our vicar, and its members are nominated and elected each year at our annual meeting. The bishop's warden is the most senior member of the BAC besides the vicar and supports the vicar in their decision-making. The people's warden helps to support the congregation and is junior only to the bishop's warden and vicar on the BAC.

The following are current members of the BAC at St. Mike's:

• Scott Claassen, Vicar and Chaplain
• Kathie Moore, Bishop's Warden
• Lillian Palermo, People's Warden
• Nathan Sigler, Treasurer
• Casey Jones, Secretary
• Ali Bjerke
• Roberto Strongman
• Nicole De Silva
• Wesley Jacks

the Standing Committee for Campus Ministry (SCCM) is made up of representatives from local congregations in our deanery who are interested in supporting the work we do a St. Mike's.

The following are current members of the SCCM

David Boyd, All Saints
Frances and Randy Hahn, Trinity
Sarah Thomas, Trinity and The Way Collective