The More Light Presbyterians Staff and National Board of Directors
More Light Staff and Board at our 2018 Spring Board Meeting, on the campus of Union Presbyterian Seminary
More Light Presbyterians is supported by a dynamic staff and board of directors. More Light staff are available to visit your congregation or community group, and for individual consultation about furthering LGBTQIA+ inclusion. Please feel free to contact us if you have questions or just want to say hi!
The More Light Board consists of 15 persons elected by the membership of MLP or appointed to fill vacancies per the requirements in the by-laws.
Nominations to the National Board of Directors are made by a Nominations Committee. The Nominations Committee solicits the MLP membership for suggestions for nominees and considers both within its composition and its proposed slate of nominees the diversity of sexual orientations, differing abilities, racial-ethnic backgrounds, gender identities and expression, ages (in conformity with applicable laws), synod of residence, and MLP membership categories.
If you would like to contact a board member, please contact Alex and he will forward your request to the appropriate board member(s).
More Light Staff
Alex Patchin McNeill
Executive Director
Gender pronouns: he/him/his
Alex Patchin McNeill has served as the Executive Director of More Light Presbyterians since 2013. During his tenure at More Light, he has equipped congregations to live into policy change for inclusion of LGBTQIA+ people and has successfully enacted policies for marriage equality in the Presbyterian Church, USA.…
Jess Cook
Program & Communications Manager
Gender pronouns: they/them/theirs
Jess Cook is a candidate for ordination in the Presbyterian Church (USA). A native of East Texas and lifelong Presbyterian, Jess holds a Master of Divinity from Union Presbyterian Seminary, a Master of Fine Arts in Photography from the University of North Texas, and a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Studio Art from Baylor.…
Susan Robertson
Operations Assistant
Gender pronouns: she/her/hers
Susan Robertson has worked for MLP for almost 15 years as the financial assistant. Being on staff with MLP is important to her because she gets to work with a tremendous group of people and help to create change within the PCUSA.…
National Board of Directors
The More Light Board consists of 15 persons elected by the membership of MLP or appointed to fill vacancies per the requirements in the by-laws.
Nominations to the National Board of Directors are made by a Nominations Committee. The Nominations Committee solicits the MLP membership for suggestions for nominees and considers both within its composition and its proposed slate of nominees the diversity of sexual orientations, differing abilities, racial-ethnic backgrounds, gender identities and expression, ages (in conformity with applicable laws), synod of residence, and MLP membership categories.
If you would like to contact a board member, please contact Alex and he will forward your request to the appropriate board member(s).
Amy Kim Kyremes-Parks
More Light Board Co-Moderator
Gender pronouns: she/her/hers
Amy Kim Kyremes-Parks serves as the Director of Spiritual Formation at Fairmount Presbyterian Church in Cleveland Heights, Ohio. She is an enthusiastic, creative and thoughtful woman always open to new opportunities to support and sustain the life of the Presbyterian Church (USA).…
Rev. Scott Clark
More Light Board Co-Moderator
Gender pronouns: he/him/his
Rev. Scott Clark serves as Chaplain and Associate Dean of Student Life at San Francisco Theological Seminary (SFTS). Scott is a graduate of SFTS, and also has worked with the seminary’s Program in Christian Spirituality. …
Rev Ashley DeTar-Birt
More Light Board Member
Pronouns: she/her/hers
Ashley DeTar Birt is a recent graduate of Union Theological Seminary where she obtained her M.Div. She also holds degrees from Carnegie Mellon University and the University of Pittsburgh.…
Rev Jenny Hardin
More Light Board Member and Secretary
Gender pronouns: she/her/hers
Jenny Hardin is a graduate of the University of Dubuque Theological Seminary and serves as Associate Pastor of First Presbyterian Church in Stillwater, Oklahoma. She enjoys crafting and leading worship and spiritual life retreats, and she is always looking for new adventures.…
Ethel Hornbeck
More Light Board Member
Gender pronouns: she/her, hers
Ethel Hornbeck is the Director of Spiritual Formation and Campus Ministry at Shepherdstown Presbyterian Church, where she has been shaping education and spiritual formation programming for the last 12 years (including a series of events that culminated in SPC formally affiliating with More Light Presbyterians in 2014.) She also works with students at Shepherd University in a campus ministry project called Connections.…
Dr. Mati Moros
More Light Board Member
Gender pronouns: she/her/hers
Matilde Moros, PhD, is a theological social ethicist working in the field of gender, sexuality and women’s studies. The ethics of resistance and subversion of hegemonic world-views and narratives of power lead her teaching and learning toward a counter-narrative “testimonio” method of decolonial, transnational feminist ethics.…
Mark Olson
More Light Board Member
Gender pronouns: he/him/his
Mark Olson is a ruling elder and a member of First & Central Presbyterian Church, a More Light congregation in Wilmington, Delaware. As immediate past moderator of New Castle Presbytery, he currently serves as chair of the presbytery Council and has also served several terms as a trustee of New Castle Presbytery, including as chair of the trustees.…
Tanner Pickett
More Light Board Member
Gender pronouns: he/him/his
Tanner Pickett grew up in Camden, AR where he attended First Presbyterian Church. He received his BA in Psychology from Lyon College and a Masters in Public Administration from Arkansas State University.…
Rev Bruce Reyes-Chow
More Light Board Member
Gender pronouns: he/him/his
Bruce is a pastor, author, consultant, and coach. A 3rd Generation Chinese/Filipino, armchair sociologist, and technology enthusiast Bruce speaks and teaches on faith, race, parenting, and technology in a variety contexts from seminaries to conferences to congregations to pre-schools.…
Andrea Sawyer-Kirksey
More Light Board Member
Gender pronouns: she/her/hers
Andrea Sawyer-Kirksey is the Executive Director of Discovering Opportunities for Outreach and Reflection (DOOR) a faith-based network of cities that provides opportunities for service, learning, and leadership.…
Lydia Tembo
More Light Board Member
Gender pronouns: she/her/hers
My name is. I was born in Lusaka, Zambia and have lived in Queens,NY a majority of my life. Currently I am completing my Master of Divinity at Princeton Theological Seminary, seeking ordination in the PCUSA.…
Rev Kyle Walker
Gender pronouns: he/him/his
Rev. Kyle Walker is a Texan by birth and a gay man by the grace of God. His ordained life in ministry began in 1997 as an Associate Pastor for Youth and Christian Education at Springdale Presbyterian Church in Louisville, Kentucky.…
Rev Floretta Watkins-Barbee
More Light Board Member
Gender pronouns: she/her/hers
The Reverend Floretta L . Watkins graduated from Mercer University in Macon, GA, where she earned a BA in Communications. In 1993, she graduated from Johnson C.…
Audrey White
More Light Board Member
Gender pronouns: they/them/theirs
Audrey is a lifelong Presbyterian writing, praying and dancing in Dallas, TX. You can find their writing all over the web, including, Autostraddle.com, and find carefully curated retweets and occasional passionate rants at @audreywhitetx on Twitter.…
Daniel Williams
More Light Board Member
Gender pronouns: he/him/his
Daniel Williams has been organizing in his communities since he was a teenager in Albuquerque, NM. His organizing experience includes work on student mobilization, worker justice, LGBTQ inclusion, reproductive justice, and numerous electoral campaigns.…