Staff
A dedicated staff serves the St. Paul's community, along with a host of parish volunteers.
Greta Getlein, Dean and Rector
Welcome to the website of the Cathedral Church of St. Paul! We are glad you found us and pray that you find a warm welcome here, and a place to call home.
I grew up in Connecticut, pursued a B.S. in Nursing, and spent 20 years in that career, mostly in hospice work, first at the bedside and then in administration. In 2006, I entered Yale Divinity School/Berkeley Episcopal Seminary and graduated in 2009. I was ordained to the transitional deaconate in June 2009, and to the priesthood in January of 2010. My first call was to Christ Church in New Haven, CT where I served as curate from 2009 – 2010 when I was called to return to Berkeley Divinity School as Associate Dean for Anglican Studies and Formation. While there, I continued on at Christ Church as a Pastoral Associate. In 2014 I was called to serve as Rector of St. Paul’s in Pawtucket, RI where I remained until April of 2020, when we packed up our house and moved to Vermont so I could serve as the Dean & Rector of this wonderful Cathedral.
I have been a singer all my life (soprano, in case you are wondering) and spent much of my adulthood singing in choirs – city chorales, professional church choirs, and professional chamber choirs. Music and singing has always been my first access to God and God’s deep love for us. In support of that, I have served as chaplain to the Royal School of Church Music’s Newport summer course (Newport, RI) since 2016, thoroughly enjoying talking and working with young singers and adult musicians from all over the country. In addition to music, I love baking, cooking, reading, long walks in the woods, country drives, and quiet evenings with family and friends by the fire inside or outside.
I am married to Wanda Strickland who I met in 1995 while living and working in Northern Virginia. We have three grown children and two beautiful grandchildren. We live in Williston with our shelter dog, Joe, and our rescue kitty Mac, who we bottle raised from one week old.
Two practical things to note: my last name is pronounced Get-line, and it’s fine to call me Greta, though Mother Greta and Dean Greta are also fine, if that is what works best for you.
Greta can be reached at ggetlein@stpaulscathedralvt.org.
I grew up in Connecticut, pursued a B.S. in Nursing, and spent 20 years in that career, mostly in hospice work, first at the bedside and then in administration. In 2006, I entered Yale Divinity School/Berkeley Episcopal Seminary and graduated in 2009. I was ordained to the transitional deaconate in June 2009, and to the priesthood in January of 2010. My first call was to Christ Church in New Haven, CT where I served as curate from 2009 – 2010 when I was called to return to Berkeley Divinity School as Associate Dean for Anglican Studies and Formation. While there, I continued on at Christ Church as a Pastoral Associate. In 2014 I was called to serve as Rector of St. Paul’s in Pawtucket, RI where I remained until April of 2020, when we packed up our house and moved to Vermont so I could serve as the Dean & Rector of this wonderful Cathedral.
I have been a singer all my life (soprano, in case you are wondering) and spent much of my adulthood singing in choirs – city chorales, professional church choirs, and professional chamber choirs. Music and singing has always been my first access to God and God’s deep love for us. In support of that, I have served as chaplain to the Royal School of Church Music’s Newport summer course (Newport, RI) since 2016, thoroughly enjoying talking and working with young singers and adult musicians from all over the country. In addition to music, I love baking, cooking, reading, long walks in the woods, country drives, and quiet evenings with family and friends by the fire inside or outside.
I am married to Wanda Strickland who I met in 1995 while living and working in Northern Virginia. We have three grown children and two beautiful grandchildren. We live in Williston with our shelter dog, Joe, and our rescue kitty Mac, who we bottle raised from one week old.
Two practical things to note: my last name is pronounced Get-line, and it’s fine to call me Greta, though Mother Greta and Dean Greta are also fine, if that is what works best for you.
Greta can be reached at ggetlein@stpaulscathedralvt.org.
Mark Howe, Director of Music and Canon Precentor
Mark Howe has served as Director of Music and Canon Precentor of St. Paul’s Cathedral since 1999. He began singing in a choir of men and boys at the age of 8, and he holds degrees from Westminster Choir College (B. Mus. in Organ and Church Music), Yale University (M. Mus. in Organ, with diplomas in Anglican Studies from Berkeley Divinity School and in Sacred Music from the Institute of Sacred Music), and New York University (Ph.D. in Musicology). Mark has taught at Seabury-Western Theological Seminary, Yale Divinity School, and McGill University. At St. Paul’s, he is responsible for overseeing the musical life of the Cathedral, playing the organ, training and directing the choirs, and consulting on liturgical matters. He has served as Editor of the Journal of the Association of Anglican Musicians, and as a member of the staff of the Royal School of Church Music's Newport (R.I.) Summer Training Course.
Mark says: “Although I am baptized into the Body of Christ, I’m not in Holy Orders. Yet, the longer I’ve served in my capacity as musician here at St. Paul’s Cathedral, the more I have realized the priestly role of my work – the work of “daily lifting life heavenward,” as one of my teachers described priesthood. I have a vocation to offer the sacrifice of sung praise and to lead others in this task.
Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel once wrote that the musician in a synagogue – a cantor – has a mission “to lead in prayer … not as an artist in isolation … He stands before the Ark not as an individual but with a congregation. His task is to represent as well as to inspire a community.”
This is how I see my role at the Cathedral Church of St. Paul: like a priest, I do my best to lift all of life toward heaven, in music; and like a Jewish cantor I understand myself as a leader of prayer."
Mark can be reached at mhowe@stpaulscathedralvt.org.
Mark says: “Although I am baptized into the Body of Christ, I’m not in Holy Orders. Yet, the longer I’ve served in my capacity as musician here at St. Paul’s Cathedral, the more I have realized the priestly role of my work – the work of “daily lifting life heavenward,” as one of my teachers described priesthood. I have a vocation to offer the sacrifice of sung praise and to lead others in this task.
Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel once wrote that the musician in a synagogue – a cantor – has a mission “to lead in prayer … not as an artist in isolation … He stands before the Ark not as an individual but with a congregation. His task is to represent as well as to inspire a community.”
This is how I see my role at the Cathedral Church of St. Paul: like a priest, I do my best to lift all of life toward heaven, in music; and like a Jewish cantor I understand myself as a leader of prayer."
Mark can be reached at mhowe@stpaulscathedralvt.org.
J. Stannard Baker, Deacon
I began my journey at the Cathedral in 1999. This was when my husband, Peter, and I were plaintiffs in the Freedom to Marry lawsuit and, after attending one service here, we knew it was the right place for us – we felt supported and surrounded by friends. I was ordained as a deacon in 2009 and assigned by Bishop Ely to the Cathedral after serving internships at Christ Church Montpelier and Calvary Underhill as well as chaplain training at Fletcher Allen hospital. As Cathedral Deacon my responsibility is to connect our faith to the needs of the world. I love reading the Gospel each Sunday but this diaconal role would be incomplete without attending to the needs all around us in our community. My major focuses are on the Social Justice and outreach activities at the Cathedral and on formation. I am proud that we are a designated Jubilee Center and look forward to our Cathedral’s continued involvement and growth through JUMP, VIA, Migrant Justice, support for the Sudanese Community, and many other ministries. For the Episcopal Church in Vermont, I serve on the Commission on Ministry (COM), the Standing Committee, and I am co-coordinator of our Safe Church training program with Deacon Peggy Mathauer, and Pamela Van de Graaf. I serve the wider Episcopal Church as a member of the Standing Commission on Liturgy and Music (SCLM), and I am a Clergy Deputy to General Convention.
I grew up as a Quaker. Silent worship, with its direct connection to the Holy Spirit, helped me form my early relationship to God, but my spiritual home is here in the liturgy and deep and powerful sacramental worship of the Episcopal Church. My “day job” is as a private practitioner psychotherapist (BTR Psychotherapy). Previously, I worked as Clinical Director for Howard Center Developmental Services, and before that as Mental Health Director for the Counseling Service of Addison County. I have a background in child development and am a child and family therapist as well as Registered Play Therapist – Supervisor. I play the cello and guitar and love music of all kinds. I love to read, take long walks and be by the water. I collect nativities, fountain pens, and books. My husband, Peter Harrigan, is a Professor of Theatre and Chair of the Fine Arts Department at St. Michael’s College.
Stan can be reached at sbaker@stpaulscathedralvt.org.
I grew up as a Quaker. Silent worship, with its direct connection to the Holy Spirit, helped me form my early relationship to God, but my spiritual home is here in the liturgy and deep and powerful sacramental worship of the Episcopal Church. My “day job” is as a private practitioner psychotherapist (BTR Psychotherapy). Previously, I worked as Clinical Director for Howard Center Developmental Services, and before that as Mental Health Director for the Counseling Service of Addison County. I have a background in child development and am a child and family therapist as well as Registered Play Therapist – Supervisor. I play the cello and guitar and love music of all kinds. I love to read, take long walks and be by the water. I collect nativities, fountain pens, and books. My husband, Peter Harrigan, is a Professor of Theatre and Chair of the Fine Arts Department at St. Michael’s College.
Stan can be reached at sbaker@stpaulscathedralvt.org.
Jennifer Sumner, Office Administrator
I joined the staff at St Paul’s Cathedral in 2016, after a few years of searching for a position that would be fulfilling, make a positive difference in my community, and enable me to be present for my very busy family including myself, my husband and our three daughters.
I graduated from Emory University in Atlanta and have held a variety of positions, most recently as an Administrative Assistant in the Burlington School District. I am active in the Burlington Schools as a parent, and enjoy swimming, reading, music, and the fantastic community we’ve come to know here in Burlington.
Jennifer can be reached at (802) 864-0471 or at admin@stpaulscathedralvt.org.
I graduated from Emory University in Atlanta and have held a variety of positions, most recently as an Administrative Assistant in the Burlington School District. I am active in the Burlington Schools as a parent, and enjoy swimming, reading, music, and the fantastic community we’ve come to know here in Burlington.
Jennifer can be reached at (802) 864-0471 or at admin@stpaulscathedralvt.org.
Barbara Comeau, Financial Administrator
I became a member of St. Paul's in 2009 when we moved from Atlanta back to Vermont with our three girls in tow. The girls' grandparents, aunt and uncle, and cousins were already members of the Cathedral and we quickly adopted St. Paul's as our church home. The girls joined the choir, and as a family we jumped right into parish life: hosting start up Sunday, working on the Wreath Project and performing the annual audit.
I graduated from Stonehill College with a degree in accounting and worked for 10 years with IDX Healthcare, managing their revenue budget and sales forecasting process. For the last 14 years, I have worked as a Research Director for KLAS Enterprises conducting healthcare IT research.
Based on my experience with the annual audit and financial background, it was a natural fit to join the Cathedral staff in supporting their financial processes and reporting.
Barbara can be reached at bcomeau@stpaulscathedralvt.org.
I graduated from Stonehill College with a degree in accounting and worked for 10 years with IDX Healthcare, managing their revenue budget and sales forecasting process. For the last 14 years, I have worked as a Research Director for KLAS Enterprises conducting healthcare IT research.
Based on my experience with the annual audit and financial background, it was a natural fit to join the Cathedral staff in supporting their financial processes and reporting.
Barbara can be reached at bcomeau@stpaulscathedralvt.org.
Katie Gonyaw, Children's Formation Coordinator
Katie joined the St. Paul's team in July, 2021.
