Our Leadership and Staff
Meet the Worship Team
The Rev. Tom Crittenden
Intirim Rector
Grace Episcopal Church welcomes the Rev. Tom Crittenden as Interim Rector. Tom brings us 39 years of experience as an ordained clergy, 27 as a rector of three parishes and four full-time interim positions. He lists as his strengths liturgy, music, teaching and administration with a personal heart for outreach.
As a trained and experienced interim rector, Tom will guide us through this period before we call a permanent Rector. Tom will oversee our day-to-day life together and collaborate with our staff and lay leaders during this important transition for Grace Church.
Tom and his wife Christi have four children, three young adults off making their marks on the world and a thirteen-year-old daughter. His family will not be moving to Hinsdale, but Christi loves Chicago and looks forward to many visits.
This is a time of change and hope and great anticipation for our church community. We are grateful for your support and participation as we open ourselves to God’s plans for our future. We offer particular thanks to our staff who are the foundation of everything we do at Grace Church and essential to our daily life during this time of transition.
You are encouraged to contact Tom to introduce yourselves, include him in a family meal or meet him for coffee.
Andrew Paul Fredel
Minister of Music
Andrew Fredel came to Grace Church in August of 2016 to serve as Minister of Music, having previously served an historic Episcopal church in Minneapolis.
The prayer of the Grace community, particularly as shared through music and liturgy, is a source of joy, life, and profound hope for Andrew. Hearing, nurturing, and accompanying the varied voices of the congregation, cantors, and choirs are some of his greatest delights; working with instrumentalists from the community provides a welcome accent.
Andrew heard the organ soon after he was born, fell in love with the instrument as a young boy, and started playing regularly for services while still in eighth grade. Years of formal training and education earned him undergrad (Oberlin Conservatory) and graduate (Valparaiso University) degrees, as well as a few awards for his playing.
Growing up a Lutheran Christian, Mr. Fredel attended seminary at the Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago, where he received an MA in Theology, with concentrations in Liturgy and Sacred Music.
God's voice and the breath of the Spirit have stirred Andrew to discernment about rostered ministry, and he is now an aspirant for the permanent diaconate. With the generous and collegial support of Fr. Tom and the Grace staff, he engages in a collaborative ministry serving the Grace community.
Meet the Vestry
Sara Clary
Senior Warden