It is an honor and a pleasure to announce that the Wardens and Vestry of St. Edmund’s Parish, having formed a broad and deep consensus through discussion, prayer, and the work of the Holy Spirit, have called the Reverend Jenifer MaryAnn Chatfield to be the eighth Rector of St. Edmund’s Parish. She has accepted our call.
Mother Jenifer is a native of Southern California who has served parishes in the Los Angeles area and in New Haven, Connecticut. She comes to St. Edmund’s after serving recently as the Priest-in-Charge at St. Wilfrid of York Church and Pre-school in Huntington Beach. Previous to St. Wilfrid’s she served at St. James’ in the City in Los Angeles as the Interim Rector and formerly the Associate for Liturgy and Formation.
She has extensive creative, academic and administrative experience; before being called to ordained ministry, she had a varied career in the Theatre and Film businesses in both L.A. and New York. Along with a B.A. in drama from UC Irvine and an M.F.A. from the School of Film and Television at UCLA, she has a Master of Divinity degree from Yale Divinity School, received her Diploma in Anglican Studies from Berkeley Divinity School at Yale and is a graduate of the Yale Institute of Sacred Music where she focused on Liturgical Studies and the intersection between art, music and religion.
As a mother, Jenifer is dedicated to the well-being and the education of children and youth: At St. James, she served on the Board of Trustees for the Parish’s K-6 day-school, she continues to serve on the board of Holy Family Services, an Institution of the Diocese of Los Angeles whose mission is to offer affordable adoption and foster care services, and is a member of the ‘Religious Life Committee’ at Campbell Hall, an Episcopal Day School in North Hollywood. With a passion for formation and raising-up leaders, she serves on the Diocese’s Commission on Ministry, which supports the formation of deacons, laypersons and priests for leadership in the Episcopal Church.
