Jeanine Bonaventure is a Middlebury native and has been a part of the Church since she was baptized as a baby and a member since she was confirmed in eighth grade. She attended New England Aeronautical Institute in Nashua, New Hampshire and Metropolitan State College in Denver, Colorado majoring in Aviation Administration. She served for 4 years in the US Air Force as an Air Traffic Controller. She has been in the secretarial/administrative field for almost 30 years, 12 of which have been here at MCC. She shares a home in Middlebury with Paul, her husband of 24 years, son Brendan and her daughter Jessie who is a student at Fordham University; who are high school students, two wonderful cats, a very soft chinchilla & a leopard gecko.

Valerie Beard
Christian Education Coordinator

vgiannini@middleburyucc.org

Valerie Beard has been a member of the Middlebury Congregational Church since 2001, when she moved to Connecticut with her family. She graduated magna cum laude from Marist College in Poughkeepsie, NY in 2009, with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology, specializing in Elementary and Special Education. She is certified to teach elementary and special education in both New York and Connecticut. Valerie is married to Len Beard and They reside in Southbury.

Mary Brown
Youth Group Coordinator

mbrown@middleburyucc.org

Mary Brown has been a member of the Church since 2008. She resides in Beacon Falls, CT with her husband Steve. Mary and Steve have been blessed with three children, Krystal, Stephany and Jacob. Mary and Steve both work for Ring�s End Lumber, where Mary holds the position of purchasing agent. Mary graduated from the Barbara Brennan School of Healing and has an energy healing practice working out of her home. Mary has enjoyed running youth groups in a previous church from since 1998 when her daughters were in them. Mary and Steve enjoy their two horses, rescued dogs, cats, and whoever else comes to their door.

Amelia Nagoski
Music Director

anagoski@middleburyucc.org

Amelia Nagoski, Minister of Music, studies the influence of a conductor's mind on the body at the University of Connecticut, where she is a doctoral student in conducting. Her singers there describe her as "passionate, positive, and boundlessly enthusiastic." Her interest in the brain-body relationship in artists began when she participated in the intriguing spirit of communal music making at Westminster Choir College while she was earning her Master of Music in choral conducting there. Amelia is a contributing author to the Choral Journal, Teaching Music Through Performance in Choir Vols. II and III, and James Jordan's Evoking Sound: The Choral Rehearsal, Vol. I. She lives in Naugatuck with her husband and two dogs.

Howie Gay
Sexton

Howie Gay has been a sexton for MCC since 2000. He has faithfully worked on Sundays since then and at other times the Church has needed him. He currently is enjoying retirement with his wife and dog in Watertown.