Grace Church Vestry
Our vestry is the governing body of the church. Our members are elected in our Annual Meeting taking place on the fourth Sunday in January. Vestry members serve a three year term, and officers are elected for a one year term.
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Marli Higa, Warden - Marli joined the Grace community in 2020 and serves as a lay eucharistic minister and visitor. She is a graduate of ‘Iolani School in Hawaii, Stanford University, and the graduate program in creative writing at NYU. She has worked in health and fitness media since 2002 and coached track for 14 years at the Spence School in Manhattan. Her personal interests include fitness for longevity, pastoral care, and creative expression as a path to spiritual development. She is currently Group Copy Director for the Men’s Health, Women’s Health, and Oprah brands at Hearst.
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William Taylor, Warden - "Bill" Taylor is the Headmaster of Trinity-Pawling School. He is a graduate of Kenyon College and Yale Divinity School at Yale (MAR). He currently serves on the Board of Trustees of the New York Association of Independent Schools. He has also served on the boards of the Tennessee Association of Independent Schools, The Children's Museum of Memphis, The Melrose School, and Berkeley Divinity School at Yale. He has served on the vestry of Holy Apostles Episcopal Church in Collierville, TN and was a Deputy to the General Convention of the Episcopal Church in 2006.
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Cathy Shanks, Treasurer -
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Molly Hurley - Molly has a Masters In Social Work and before retiring worked as a Hospice Counselor.
She continues to be active raising money for The Breast Cancer Research Foundation/Millbrook Play For Pink event, and is currently on the board of The National Society of the Colonial Dames of America, Vero Beach Town Committee. She is married (Scott) with a grown daughter (Allegra). |
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Matt Latvis - Matt was introduced to Grace as a boy where he attended services with his family. He was confirmed at Grace and served as an acolyte. It is with great pride and deep meaning that Matt has returned to Grace and chooses to serve God, the church, and its people.
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Marian Thompson - Marian is retired from Literacy Connections as a trainer of volunteer teachers and coordinator of student and tutor pairings in Dutchess County. Marian has been singing in Grace choir for 35 years, and was a member of the vestry for 7 years during Doug Fisher’s tenure. She has also been a member of the Boards of Dutchess Outreach and the Clinton Community Library. Marian is married to her husband Gleed. They have one son Fletcher.
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Chris Wilson - Chris Wilson lives with his wife and two children in Dover Plains where they explore the beauty and history of the Harlem River Valley and often frequent story time at the Millbrook Library. Chris Wilson currently works as the Parent Giving and Engagement Officer at Trinity-Pawling and is the co-founder of Cornerstone Consultancy. Prior to that, he served in various fundraising, educational, or service-based roles with Hudson River Housing, NYS Parks Recreation and Historic Preservation, NYC Outward Bound Schools, Teatown Lake Reservation, and Peace Corps Armenia.
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Val LaRobardier - Val was born in Wyoming and raised in Montana. She came to NYC for college at Barnard, Columbia University. Val later moved to Dover Plains where she raised her three sons. She is a professional genealogist, and co-historian of Dover, and serves on several boards and committees. She designed and taught a cultural arts curriculum at Immaculate Conception School grades pre-k through 8.
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William (Will) Cox - Will is the son of a Presbyterian minister from a small valley in West Virginia, and the father of four children. He found the Anglican tradition during Covid-19 through outdoor services at Grace and morning prayers with Dean Robert Willis of Canterbury Cathedral.
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James Prudden - James retired
from a 40-year career in medical publishing, where he was VP of Editorial. He is now a consultant in communications for hospitals and medical companies. He lives in Clinton Corners with his wife, Nina, and dog Pippa. |
