Grace Cathedral

Gay Grunfeld is an attorney and serves as the Managing Partner of a 25-lawyer litigation boutique in San Francisco, Rosen Bien Galvan & Grunfeld.  She has an active and diverse litigation practice that currently focuses on class actions involving disability rights for seniors and incarcerated people.  Grunfeld grew up in Waco, Texas, was educated on the East Coast, and has lived in the Bay Area since 1985.  Always an Episcopalian, Grunfeld has been a member of Grace Cathedral since 2013.  Grunfeld and her husband Carl Grunfeld are the parents of three grown children and recently became grandparents. 

Thomas Horst is now an independent economic consultant working from his home office on Russian Hill.  After earning a Ph.D. in Economics from the University of Rochester in 1969, he taught graduate and undergraduate courses in international economics, microeconomics, and econometrics at Harvard University and the Fletcher School at Tufts University, was a research associate at the Brookings Institution in Washington, DC, and directed the International Tax Staff at the U.S. Treasury Department.  In 1988, he founded and for more than thirty years was the senior partner of a small economic consulting firm, Horst Frisch Incorporated, in Washington, DC.  In that capacity, he served as an expert witness and provided economic consulting services for many U.S. and foreign multinational corporations, the U.S. Internal Revenue Service, and other federal, state, and foreign government agencies.  Over the course of his career, he has published more than forty professional articles addressing international tax issues, transfer pricing rules for multinational corporations, oil pipeline tariff issues, and other topics. 

After living in Washington DC for more than forty years, Tom and his wife, Kay, moved in early 2020 to San Francisco to be close to two daughters and five grandchildren. 

Board Experience 

Treasurer and Board President of The In Series, Inc., a music performing arts organization in Washington, DC. 

Vice President and President of the Board for Greenwich Realty, Inc., his San Francisco homeowners’ association. 

Expertise and Interests 

Financial analysis, growing and enriching the Grace Cathedral congregation, and GraceArts. 

Melissa was born and raised in England. Her first career was as a restaurateur and event planner in London. She managed all types of restaurants from a local bistro to Michelin-starred fine dining, culminating in owning and running her own restaurant. She moved to San Francisco in 1999 to return to school to take a master’s in clinical psychology and train to become a psychotherapist. 

Shortly after moving to San Francisco, she met her boyfriend, now husband, Lindsay, who introduced her to Grace Cathedral. She immediately felt welcomed and loved the fact that Grace encourages everyone to always ask questions. Grace quickly became her spiritual and intellectual home. 

Melissa and Lindsay moved to the East Bay in 2004 to raise their children (Zachary and Benjamin, 19, and Olivia, 17). They tried other churches in the East Bay but never found a good fit so remained members of Grace. Melissa most recently served on the Stewardship Committee. 

For the last twenty years, Melissa has been involved in various volunteer roles. As a pioneer parent of a new Mandarin immersion Charter School, for eight years she and other parent volunteers were very involved in growing the school. She had a crash course in School Administration! 

More recently she has been a volunteer at Kaiser Oakland as an in-home hospice volunteer and providing pet therapy in the pediatric department. She loves using her psychotherapy training and her dog Poppy (a very old soul) to provide support to families and their sick children. 

With an empty nest looming, Melissa is looking forward to getting more involved at Grace. She is looking forward to learning more about their outreach programs and putting her organizational and management skills to work wherever needed. 

Growing up, mine was an Episcopal every-Sunday-without-fail family. As I moved on to college and beyond, that connection weakened, and remained so for many years. Even then, at some level, it could still be powerful. When I’d go to a Christmas or Easter service, the hymns would invariably bring me to tears, perhaps partly from nostalgia, but also from something deep within. This tie stayed important enough that my husband Royce and I had an engagement blessing at the Chicago church I grew up in.

Two or three years ago, Royce and I both felt a gentle pull toward some kind of faith community. That led to my doing some church-shopping, which, rather to my surprise, led to Grace. Of course, the sheer grandeur captured me, but it was far more than that. It was an authenticity and a warmth that I felt from both clergy and the handful of congregants I met. Royce did as well. We have now been part of the Grace family since 2022, and we’ve each come to treasure the teachings, the uplifting beauty, and most importantly of all, the people who make up this place of faith and light.

In my working life, I spent several years as an attorney focusing on refugee rights and individual refugees from troubled parts of the Americas. I’ve also been an activist and, in various ways, a leader in the LGBTQ movement and community for going on 40 years. This passion became my profession, and I served at LGBTQ community centers in Los Angeles and Chicago, before returning to San Francisco to become president of Horizons Foundation. Horizons provides grant support to hundreds of LGBTQ and allied organizations and advocates for the community in the Bay Area and well beyond. I’ve now worked there for 22 years, which has been a great privilege.

I’ve also had the good fortune to serve on a number of nonprofit boards of directors. Deepest among those commitments was with OutRight Action International, the leading advocate for LGBTQI rights worldwide. I served on that board for 15 years, including time as board chair.

I am grateful and honored to be invited to join Grace’s Congregation Council, and I look forward to being of whatever service I might.

When I first knelt and prayed in Grace, I felt I was at home.

Born, raised, and educated in the former British colony Hong Kong, I was blessed with the privilege of receiving education from Episcopal schools as well as attending and serving in an Episcopal church since adulthood.

Upon graduation from college, I entered the education field and have been staying in the profession until now.  I moved to San Francisco for good in the late 90’s and started working for the School District.  My interests are traveling, practicing different Tai Chi forms, and listening to music.

Serving is a form of worship, a way to express gratitude for what Jesus has done for us, and to share the love and grace we’ve been given.   It is a gift for the purpose of building our church community.

It would be my pleasure and honor to serve on Grace’s Congregation Council.

Walking through the doors of Grace Cathedral in 2021 felt like coming home. The interweaving of faith, service, and community spoke deeply to my soul. After living and working across three continents, I found in Grace a spiritual anchor that celebrates ancient traditions and contemporary innovations and welcomes people from all walks of life.

You might find me at the altar on Sundays, serving as a lector or chalice minister, sharing meals through Dinner with Grace, or working on the Stewardship Committee. These experiences have shown me different facets of Grace, deepening my faith journey and strengthening my bonds with this remarkable community.

My professional journey has led me to serve others through technology that touches millions of lives and as a suicide prevention counselor sitting with individuals in their deepest struggles. Both roles have taught me that true connection transforms lives, and I experience this every time I step into Grace.

I would be honored to serve on the Congregation Council and help nurture the inclusive, supportive community that makes Grace Cathedral such a beacon of hope.

Mr. Spohn is a native San Franciscan and a graduate of St. Ignatius College Preparatory. He holds an AB and a JD from the University of Notre Dame and has practiced trial and appellate law since 1980. He has three grown children and six grandchildren. He is in his third year of Grace Cathedral’s Education for Ministry.

A native New Yorker, Christine relocated to Southern California in 1989, but found her true home in San Francisco in 1994.  Christine lives in Bernal Heights with her husband Grant and their son, Ronan who is an 8th grade chorister in the Choir of Men and Boys.  Ronan has been attending Cathedral School for Boys for the past four years.   

Professionally, Christine is the Owner/Principal of Ben-Her Marketing. As an experienced marketing executive, she brings both domestic and global experience in developing both digital and traditional media strategies that have positively impacted brands. She has worked with clients like LG, Intuit, Visa, L’Oreal, Microsoft, Hewlett Packard, Xbox, Palm and Verizon. Additionally, she has a background in both research and information systems, which fuels her knowledge in database marketing, data modeling and segmentation, reporting and marketing database design. Her career has always included honing, shaping, and interpreting data sets into the information necessary to help companies make informed decisions about their future. She brings this type of decision making to her board appointments and is comfortable blending art and science for the best outcomes. Christine is a solutions-oriented marketer focused on the success of her clients’ efforts and ensuring they pursue the most creative, viable and insightful paths for their brand. 

Board Experience:  

Board Member – YouthNOISE, Inc., 2006 – 2009 

Board Member – Ring Mountain Day School, Marketing Committee Lead/Social Media Lead 

Board Member – Grace Cathedral – 2019 (Ex Officio) 

Board Member – 2020-2023 (Congregational Trustee) 

Expertise and Interests: 

Mentoring, strategic marketing planning, digital media and marketing, agency operations, research and target insights, cross-media integration, measurement and analytics, negotiation, creative integrated media solutions 

Church Specific: 

Ensuring the longevity of the Episcopal faith through thoughtful community programs, serving in as many capacities as I can, and pursuing both financial and congregational development.  We must evolve with the people we serve and put the love of God, Jesus, and our belief in community above all else ahead of the inertia of “what we do now.”

I am excited to run for Deanery Delegate to represent Grace Cathedral in the Diocese. If elected, I will serve with commitment, integrity and discernment.  I have been a member of this Grace Cathedral community since 2004 when I was greeted with what I have come to understand as Radical Hospitality. I immediately became a pledging member and have never looked back.  I want to help everyone find their church home the way that I found mine.

I am a single issue Episcopalian: With God’s help I strive to live out my Baptismal Covenant seeking and serving Christ in all persons, loving my neighbor as myself, striving for justice and peace among people, respecting the dignity of every human being.  From a very young age, I have had a very strong commitment to matters of fairness and equity, which has been a throughline in my professional and volunteer career.  I grew up in a multicultural, first generation American family and know the value of everyone having a seat and voice at the table sharing their experiences.   I bring this understanding to everything that I do.

Here is a sampling of my church volunteer work, current and past. All of my work is grounded in faith, spirituality, and love of this entire community: Deanery Delegate, Grace Stewardship Committee, Jail Minister, Bishop’s Ranch Philanthropy Committee, Local Discernment Committee, DioCal Board of Directors (aka Executive Council), DioCal Finance Committee, DioCal Executive Compensation Committee, Grace Cathedral Trustee, Congregation Council Member, Acolyte, Godly Play teacher, Docent, Sacred Ground participant.  Pilgrimages: Holy Land, Chartres Labyrinth, and Mexico/US Border.

I respectfully ask for your vote. Thank you.

After joining the Grace Cathedral congregation with my husband in 1999, I have served several times as a Deanery delegate, representing the Cathedral in the Diocesan Convention. Since 2009, I have served as Chancellor (outside general counsel) of the Diocese, advising the Bishop and the Diocese’s senior governing bodies. In that capacity, I serve as the Parliamentarian of the Convention and as chair of the Diocese’s Committee on Canons. I also represent the Diocese as a Deputy to the General Convention of The Episcopal Church, where I have twice co-chaired the legislative committee on clergy discipline. At the churchwide level, I have chaired the Standing Commission on Structure, Governance, Constitution & Canons. I have also served on legislative and policy committees for marriage, safe church, and the place of women in the church (#MeToo). I am a partner at the Ragghianti Freitas LLP law firm in San Rafael, representing individuals, businesses, and churches in litigation, arbitration, and mediation. My practice areas include complex commercial litigation, insurance coverage, and religious and nonprofit organizations. I am admitted to practice law in California, New York, the District of Columbia, all federal courts in California, and the U.S. Supreme Court.

My parents were not churchgoers, but when I was twelve, I began attending the Menlo Park Presbyterian Church on the Peninsula, then under the leadership of Dr. Hall. I loved Sunday School as well as  Dr. Hall’s sermons and became a believer there.

After graduation from high school, I  went east to Smith College, majored in Art History, and attended Smith’s  chapel services regularly. After college, I worked for an art gallery in New York City for several years before settling in San Francisco.

In 1966, I met my future husband, and we were married at St. Marks Lutheran Church. We raised our two daughters in San Francisco’s Forest Hill neighborhood, and during this time we attended the Covenant Church in San Francisco, now renamed Dolores Park Church.

After our daughters left for college, I taught second grade for seventeen years in Daly City until I retired in 2004.

I love traveling to world-renowned cities to see their art exhibits. I also collect art works done on paper from Europe and America, for the most part created between the 16th to 19th centuries, and also Pictorialist photographs.

Due to a very unpleasant congregational split in 2012 at the above-mentioned church, I left. I immediately began to attend Grace Cathedral and soon was pledging and volunteering.

I have always had a heart for the poor and marginalized, and at Grace, I soon started volunteering at the Bayview Mission. However, due to the pandemic and my husband’s compromised immune system, I have stepped back from volunteering there in person (lest I bring home the virus), but still help support them financially.

I believe strongly in exchanging ideas that work in ministry and also in widening outreach. I have been thrilled to belong to the San Francisco Deanery for the past few years.  We work,  collaborating with other Episcopal Deaneries in the Bay Area, to meet the needs of spiritual seekers and also help enable those churches with ideas and financial help for outreach that cannot always be met by a smaller congregation.

Sincerely,
Susan L. Hill

I live in San Francisco with my spouse, our one year old, and our senior rescue dog. I’m coming off a leave of absence due to parenthood, but I work as an attorney for the State of California. I was baptized at Grace’s Easter Vigil in 2009 and married in the Chapel of Grace in 2013. First joining the Deanery in 2020, I have enjoyed participting with folks from other churches in the diocese at deanery events, the quarterly meetings, and the annual convention of the diocese. I think I have a perspective that is hopefully a testament to the inclusivity promised in a space where all are welcome and we all belong – for instance, as someone who despite the grey hair is still in their 30s and did not grow up in the Episcopal (or any) Church. I’ve very much appreciated how much I’ve learned about church governance, am thankful for Regina’s leadership of the deanery, and it would be my pleasure to continue to serve this community.

I have been an active member of Grace Cathedral since 2016 when I arrived in San Francisco from Boston. Immediately, Grace Cathedral felt like my first real church home in many years, and I have been nourished spiritually through the fellowship of so many wonderful brothers and sisters at Grace. My spiritual journey began as a Roman Catholic and then was deepened through a Master of Divinity degree from Harvard Divinity School. I joined this training with my deep commitment to social justice by earning a Doctor of Medicine from the University of Pennsylvania.

I currently serve as a physician-researcher and professor of medicine at the University of California San Francisco and the San Francisco VA Medical Center. My research is focused on eliminating health and healthcare disparities in health and healthcare for all patients by addressing the social determinants of health (i.e., housing, food, insurance, access to high quality care). I believe Grace Cathedral has a proven and impressive social justice mission.

I would love to continue to serve as a delegate to the deanery on behalf of Grace Cathedral. This year, I was able to meet and work with others from other parishes through out the diocese. I have learned about the strong commitment to justice throughout the diocese. I was also able to participate in the selection of our new Bishop, the Rt. Rev. Austin Rios, who is the first Latino to be elected as a bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of California!

It would be my honor to strengthen and nurture Grace Cathedral’s mission as a home for all people.

I’m Karter Louis, a recording artist, restaurateur, and entrepreneur and a proud member of the Grace Community since 2003 but more actively since my return to San Francisco in 2017.

I began performing professionally in theater at the age of 15 and launched my first production company at age 17. After graduating the Performing Arts school in Louisville KY, I went on to pursue a BFA in musical theater at Alliant University in San Diego (formerly U S International University) After brief success in Hollywood, landing a development deal at Capital Records, various national tv commercials and a tv pilot, I abandoned my artistic passions to pursue a “normal life” I went on to become a general manager at various retail chains. This experience led to a surprising opportunity to co-own and operate a restaurant with one of Chicago’s top chefs.

In 1999 I returned to music, forming my own independent label which resulted in the successful release of 4 studio albums and subsequently touring and performing all over the world. In between touring I turned my focus back to food. Most notably as co-founder of San Francisco’s ultra chic Samovar Tea Lounge, which eventually expanded to four locations in the city. In 2005 I moved to Taiwan and co-founded HHnL Design Group in Taipei, and eventually an independent lighting design firm Uno Lai Design in Shanghai. After an extensive stay in Asia, I returned to my hometown of Louisville Kentucky, where I opened Hillbilly Tea, a farm-to-fork Appalachian & tea themed restaurant. Fueled by the amazing reception to this unique American tea concept, I randomly decided to open a second Hillbilly Tea in Shanghai, China.

In 2017 I returned to San Francisco. Since returning I have continued to work as a restaurant consultant as well I have returned to music with an upcoming release of a new album after a 7 year hiatus. Additionally I work with California Lawyers for the Arts, managing their reentry program for formerly incarcerated individuals who wish to pursue a career in the arts.

I have served on several boards in Louisville Kentucky including Jefferson Community Technical College, The Speed Art Museum and Kentucky College of Art and Design, Brightside and the Major’s Council.

I consider myself a deeply spiritual person with a strong belief in contributing to my communities and using my abilities for the greater good. It would be an honor to serve as part of Grace Cathedrals Deanery Delegation. I can’t imagine a more rewarding opportunity than to contribute to the mission of Grace.

I’m pleased to run for the Grace Cathedral Deanery Delegation this year. Since joining the deanery, I’ve been honored to build lasting, working relationships across our City and DioCal that have allowed me to continue working not just for our congregation community, but for the inclusion and faith of all who encounter our Episcopal Church (TEC). I hope to continue those relationships and the ministries the deanery supports in our City, our diocese, and in TEC across the world. Most of all, I look forward to the prayerful work our delegation does together in deanery meetings and diocesan conventions, and the joyful connections we build in serving together and discussing the ministries and shared events across San Francisco.

Aside from the deanery delegation, I’ve previously served as a greeter, on Congregation Council and the Social Justice Working Group, and sponsored adult baptisands at Grace. In the diocese, I’ve served on the Executive Council, the Commission on Ministry, the Task Force for Disability and Deaf Awareness, and on the General Convention Deputation. Church-wide, I’ve been a delegate of TEC to the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women and on the House of Deputies Committee on the State of the Church. I am currently developing the Disability Caucus with General Convention deputies across TEC.

Outside of Grace, I am the Director of Advocacy with CASE, the Community Alliance for Special Education, and a committed women’s education and disability rights advocate. My husband, Asit, and I are the parents of Sofia (who sings with the Cathedral Choir of Girls) and Axel, both of whom are in Godly Play.

I’ve been a member of the Grace Cathedral congregation since 2009.

I have a B.A. from UCLA and a law degree from UC Law (formerly UC Hastings), but I decided to pursue a different path and moved to South Korea to teach at a university and travel. While there, I also earned a Master’s in International Studies from Ewha Womans University, one of the most prestigious institutions in South Korea.

I moved back to the US in 2009, and I was baptized at Grace Cathedral. I love this church and its community. I’ve been serving as the convener for Grace Cathedral’s Deanery since 2020 and am the current Lay VP for the San Francisco Deanery.

I’m grateful for the opportunity to continue serving as part of Grace Cathedral’s Deanery Delegation, and I hope to contribute to the growth and development of our church and our mission.