At their meeting on January 23, the Standing Committee elected as their officers for 2019. Russell Ayres, member of Calvary, East Liberty, was re-elected and will serve a second year as president. Lisa Brown, member of St. Paul’s, Mt. Lebanon, was elected to serve as secretary of the body for the year.
At their meeting on February 12, 2019, the Standing Committee appointed David Bischoff, a member of Christ Church, North Hills, to fill a vacancy on the Board of Trustees. David, a C.P.A. and shareholder at Bronder & Company, P.C., will serve a term ending in 2020.
Effective March 6, 2019, the Rev. Walter J. LaLonde has transferred his canonical residency from the Diocese of Pittsburgh to the Diocese of the Rio Grande, where he serves as Assistant Rector of St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church, Las Cruces, New Mexico.
At their meeting in February, the Board of Trustees of Virginia Theological Seminary voted to award an honorary doctorate to Dr. Joan Gundersen, in recognition of her many achievements. A member of Redeemer, Squirrel Hill, Joan will accept this honor at VTS’s academic convocation on October 8, 2019.
Suzanne DeWalt has stepped down as Disaster Preparedness co-coordinator for the Diocese of Pittsburgh. Peter Balfe will continue as coordinator of this effort to provide guidance and training to the diocese and its parishes on how to prepare for and react to both natural and man-made disasters and incidents.
Bishop Dorsey McConnell has named the Rev. Aidan Smith to be provost of Trinity Cathedral, effective May 1, 2019. Pursuant to this appointment, Fr. Smith has transferred his canonical residency to the Diocese of Pittsburgh from the Diocese of Albany, effective March 20, 2019. He previously served as Dean of Advancement and Church Relations at Trinity School for Ministry and assisting priest at All Saints, Brighton Heights. Aidan and his wife Melanie have a daughter and are expecting their second child in August.
Andy Muhl assumes the newly created full-time position of Executive Assistant / Communication Specialist, effective May 20, 2019. Andy has been with the diocese since October 2008, serving as webmaster along with editing the diocesan newsletter, building social media presence and bringing his creative skills to dozens of diocesan events and projects.
Judi Rogers, Executive Assistant for the Diocese of Pittsburgh, will retire effective May 31, 2019. Judi has served the diocese for ten years, since May 2009. She looks forward to spending more time with Jim, her husband of 39 years, and visiting her daughter Sarah, a writer who lives in Los Angeles. Other future plans include becoming an Instagram influencer, and monetizing that effort as a means to finance her tuition at Rodeo Clown School.