Summer Sunday mornings at 9 am​ · Details

  39 East Central Street, Natick, MA 01760  ·   (508) 655-5880  ·     Give

St. Paul's Episcopal Church
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Clergy & Staff

The Rev. Becky Gettel
Rector
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Katy Denning
Lay Associate for Parish Life
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Lynn Farnell
Administrative Assistant
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Shawn Tardif
Facilities Intern
Lucy Prespolis
Bookkeeper
The Rev. Chris Visminas
Priest Associate
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The Rev. Becky Gettel

Rector

The Rev. Becky Gettel joined us in March 2020 as Rector of St. Paul’s. Raised in RI, Becky went to Rhode Island College for her degree in Art Education, but detoured to Togo, West Africa to volunteer with the Peace Corps before launching into her teaching career. When she returned, she taught art for a short time, but ultimately became a Director of Christian Formation which led her to seminary. She attended the Episcopal Divinity School in Cambridge and received her Masters in Divinity in 2012, the same year that she began an eight year long ministry as Associate Rector of Trinity Church in Concord. Becky is delighted to have found St. Paul’s and to live in Natick now, in our rectory, with her trumpet-playing husband, Greg, and their two children. When not on Zoom, the Gettels are having a great time getting to know Natick by bike, foot, and kayak.

Katy Denning

Lay Associate for Parish Life

A native of the beautiful “Big Sky” country of Montana, Katy received her BA in English (with a minor in Geology) from The University of Montana and then, after living and working in both New York City and Denver, Colorado, she moved to New England and earned her Master of Divinity Degree from Weston Jesuit School of Theology in Cambridge (now the School of Theology and Ministry at Boston College) in 2005.

Since then she has served as a Pastoral Associate at a Parish, a High School Theology Teacher, Campus Minister and Director of Mission and Ministry in a variety of parish and educational settings. She was most recently the Director of Admission for a small preschool and elementary school in Newton.

Katy has been married for 13 years to her husband Brian and they have two children, Gavin and Leah. She and her family began attending St. Paul’s on the First Sunday of Advent in 2015 shortly after moving to Natick from Somerville and have enjoyed becoming active members of such a warm and welcoming community. Her interests include nurturing Women’s Spirituality, exploring Trinitarian Theology and Feminist Theology and finding new ways to live as a family through the Liturgical Year/Seasons. In addition, she loves getting out in nature and hiking, traveling with family and friends to new places and the poetry of Mary Oliver!


Lynn Farnell

Administrative Assistant

Since March of 1995 I have been working freelance/consulting in several distinct areas. One is with moving image archives; another is doing research, mostly at the JFK Library and I also worked for a couple of property management companies at affordable housing properties around the Boston area. Before that I worked at public broadcasting station WGBH for 20 years running the production end of things.

Working through some of the wonderful collections I have had the privilege of handling over the past years has been a joy. I have mainly worked on collections in the Boston area. Notable among them is the over 500 reels of kinescopes of "Voice of Firestone" that resided at the New England Conservatory of Music. The Blackside production collection that created a heritage for Henry Hampton, creator of “Eyes on the Prize”, and his view of American democracy was my favorite project. That enormous collection found a permanent home at Washington University in St. Louis.

I was a biology major in college and still love nature and the biological sciences. I also love to work on craft projects. I hook rugs, needlework, knitting and house restoration (of the minor sorts), and garden.

I am a cradle Episcopalian and a long time member of St. Mary’s in Newton Lower Falls although I have been a drop in at St. Paul’s since I moved to Natick. I am very happy to be a part of St. Paul’s.

Shawn Tardif

Facilities Intern

Lucy Prespolis

Bookkeeper

Lucy joined us in the Spring of 2020. She works closely with our Treasurer and takes care of all of our bill payments, payroll, and financial record keeping. We are blessed to have her here among us!

The Rev. Chris Visminas

Priest Associate

Ordained for over thirty years as an Episcopal priest, the Reverend Christine Visminas holds a B. A. in theology from Duquesne University and an M. A. in theology from Pittsburgh Theological Seminary. For 20 years she ran C. E. Visminas Co., Ltd., which sold bulletin covers, stationery and children's books based on traditional Christian images, including icons. After selling the company to Morehouse Publishing, she worked part-time as a conservation agent for the Town of Framingham, a position that included law enforcement, wetlands identification, and inspection.

For the last decade, Chris has served as a Christian adult education consultant and has created classes on a variety of subjects, including the History of Marriage and The Meaning of the Dead Christ. Frequently her courses involve museum visits which is how she became involved with the Museum of Russian Icons and curated “Pondering Mary: Her Story Through Icons” exhibit which ran in the Spring of 2017.

Over the past few decades, Chris has worn many different hats at St. Paul’s including joining our staff during various seasons of need. Currently, she is a non-stipendiary priest associate and teaches our 8:45am Sunday morning adult education class, as well as several diocesan classes (all on Zoom).

Chris has been married for over forty years to Steven Clark, a software engineer. She has two sons, both of whom work in the computer field. The eldest is married and has two lovely daughters. Her hobbies include gardening, needlework, and geology.

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39 East Central Street · Natick, MA 01760
(508) 655-5880
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Service Times

9:00 a.m. In-person & Live-Streamed Service:

Join with the community of St. Paul's Natick as we gather for our Sunday morning Eucharistic Liturgy. During the months of July and August we gather at 9:00 a.m. in our lower church Sherrill Hall space - where it's cooler! This service runs about an hour long. Masks are currently required. As an added bonus, we are able to sing together because we are masked.


Our in-person service is available to attend virtually as a Zoom webinar and is also live-streamed to both our YouTube and Facebook pages so that you have a choice of platforms!

Location

St. Paul's Episcopal Church
39 East Central Street
Natick, MA 01760

Contact Us
(508) 655-5880

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Welcome in Love I'm New Life Events Leadership What is The Episcopal Church?

Whoever you are, wherever you come from, and wherever you’ve been, we welcome you. Whatever your race, ethnicity, gender identity, sexual orientation, marital status, we celebrate you.

Whether you wonder what an “Episcopalian” is, or have been one since birth, there is a place for you here. In this place, there is room for your questions, your stories, your laughter, your doubt, your grief, and your most authentic self.

You’ll find kindred spirits here and people who think differently and still love you. We’re here for your spiritual shelter to help you on your journey. There is forgiveness here. And Grace. And Joy. And Love. And God.

You are welcome here. Come as you are.

Welcome Covid Protocols

St. Paul’s Episcopal Church is a dynamic and growing community located in Natick, a western suburb of Boston (also known as Metrowest). We are a diverse group of people, united by a common purpose: seeking to live out lives that respond wholeheartedly to the love that God has for us in Jesus Christ.

You do not have to be a member of the Episcopal Church to participate in worship and ministry at St. Paul’s.

Learn More

Baptism. Communion. Marriage. Funerals. At these special times, we celebrate them as sacraments. According to the Book of Common Prayer, sacraments are "outward and visible signs of inward and spiritual grace, given by Christ as sure and certain means by which we receive that grace." We look forward to sharing with you in these special sacramental moments.

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Our clergy and staff love and serve the people of our parish and our community. They help all to Welcome in Love, Worship with Joy, Grow in Faith, Work for Justice, Seek and Serve Christ in All Persons.

The vestry is comprised of nine members, three of whom are elected every three years to three-year terms. Additionally, there is a junior and senior warden, a treasurer and assistant treasurer, and a clerk. Vestry members provide leadership and guidance for all of our ministries.

Clergy & Staff Vestry Directory

We Episcopalians believe in a loving, liberating, and life-giving God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. We believe in following the teachings of Jesus Christ, whose life, death, and resurrection saved the world. We have a legacy of inclusion, aspiring to tell and exemplify God’s love for every human being; women and men serve as bishops, priests, and deacons in our church. Laypeople and clergy cooperate as leaders at all levels of our church. Leadership is a gift from God, and can be expressed by all people in our church, regardless of sexual identity or orientation.

We believe that God loves you – no exceptions.

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Donate Stewardship 2022 Pledge Altar Flowers

Thank you for your support of the mission and ministry of St. Paul's Episcopal Church.

You can make an online donation via ACH Bank Transfer, Credit/Debit Card or PayPal account by clicking the button below!

Please note, you may direct your contributions to a variety of funds through the online link.

Donate Now

This year we started discussing how Stewardship is about more than money. It’s about giving our time, talent and treasure to take care of the world that God has created for us.

As God’s people we are stewards of God's creation.

Consider Stewardship as giving back to God that which God has already given to us.


Find out more about our 2022 Stewardship campaign

Episcopal churches are self-funded. St. Paul’s relies on Stewardship pledges to fund nearly 80% of the operations of our church life.Your pledge allows the Vestry and Finance Committee to prepare a sound, realistic budget. Thank you for your commitment to St. Paul's. To learn more, visit our Stewardship page as well.

Make your Pledge Online

Altar flowers beautify the Church and are an excellent way to give in memory of, or in honor of a family member or a friend. Currently the cost of Altar flowers are $35 per vase. There are slots available for two vases per Sunday, except on Palm Sunday when there are only palms and on Easter and Christmas Eve when there are multiple donors. After the services, the flowers are given to those who are sick or shut-in, unless otherwise requested by the donor.

Sign up to Donate Altar Flowers