Clergy, Staff, & Delegates — St. Mary's by-the-Sea

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Kristine earned a BA in International Affairs from the University of Colorado, and an MA in International Affairs from the George Washington University. She worked for 13 years at NASA doing policy work. When her children were in preschool and elementary school, she taught Music Together part-time.
After discerning a call to the priesthood, Kristine earned a Masters in Divinity degree from Virginia Theological Seminary. In seminary, she served at Christ Church, Washington Parish in Washington, DC, and St. George’s Church, Arlington, VA. After ordination in 2016 she served as Assistant Rector of St. John’s in McLean, VA. Kristine was called as Rector of St. Mary’s in September 2019.
Kristine loves ministering with the people of St. Mary’s, encouraging and empowering them to hear the ways God is calling them to be good news in this community and the world. She is full of holy curiosity about where the Holy Spirit is at work and how we, as individuals and together, might join in that work.

Although she majored in French, Wendy’s early pursuits were writer, events organizer, and partner in a quilt shop. She came to St. Mary’s by-the-Sea with Kevin in 1972, when their daughter Jennifer was baptized there. They soon became very active and enthusiastic members. In 1984, she became Sunday School Coordinator and then Fr. Dwight Edwards asked her to be his administrative assistant.
Fr. Edward’s sermons, deep immersion in the Bible and worship, and the Education for Ministry course, set Wendy on a radical spiritual journey. Eventually she heard God calling her to ordained ministry. She commuted to the Church Divinity School of the Pacific in Berkeley, and in 1997 was ordained transitional Deacon at St. Mary’s and then Priest at St. Dunstan’s. She was assistant and priest-in-charge at St. Dunstan’s, Chaplain at All Saints Day School, and interim or transition priest at St. Luke’s, St. Paul’s, Good Shepherd, and St. George’s.
After retiring, Wendy returned to beloved St. Mary’s, serving as Assisting Priest since 2018. She loves parish ministry in all its parts, and feels blessed to be able to serve as needed.

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Penny Portillo started her career in the software industry, first working in technical support and later in management positions for Santa Cruz Operation and IBM.
Drawn to higher education, the next phase of her career was at the University of California. She initially led the international student and scholar office at the Santa Cruz campus, and later served over 10 years as Assistant Dean for Finance & Administration for the School of Humanities at the Irvine campus, the position from which she retired in 2022. An undergraduate alumna of UCI, she holds two graduate degrees from Stanford — an MA in Education and an MBA.
She and her husband Roni were active in their church in Irvine, where Penny sang in the choir and served on the administration board for several years. Penny and Roni were delighted to move back to the central coast and to live closer to their daughter Sofia.
Penny’s hobbies include singing, knitting, plant-based cooking, and going on walks in beautiful places.

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Nicholas Mourlam has a Masters of Theology, Sacred Music degree from the University of Notre Dame and received his undergraduate degree in Organ Performance and Church Music from the University of Kansas. He studied abroad at Folkwang Universität der Künste in Essen, Germany, gave concerts throughout Europe, and holds the Service Playing Certificate for both the American Guild of Organists and the National Association of Pastoral Musicians. He maintains an active studio of piano and organ students. In his free time, you might run into him on a walk along the water with his wife, Anna, their two spaniels, Wishbone and Clover, and their adorable baby girl.

Lay Delegates and Alternates to Convention

St. Mary’s by-the-Sea is a parish in the Episcopal Diocese of El Camino Real. The delegates attend the annual Diocesan Convention and represent St. Mary’s by-the-Sea.

Don Fennell