Our Team

The current UniteBoston team is a tight-knit group of people that is committed to one another and to joining God in His work in this city. If you believe in Christian unity and want to be a part of a community that is working to make the unity we share in Christ visible, please prayerfully consider joining our team!

We also have two cohorts that are developing curriculum around addressing barriers to Christian Unity and being ambassadors of reconciliation and repair.

If you are interested in joining our team, click here to learn how you can Help UB!

UniteBoston Staff

Rev. Kelly Fassett

What is her role for UniteBoston?
UniteBoston Executive Director

Home Church
Neighborhood Church of Dorchester

How did she get involved with UniteBoston?
She was visiting different churches and noticed the disconnectedness between different Christian groups. There were so many amazing events taking place and yet no one knew what else was happening; people were not connected to the events that best matched their interests and passions. She felt the need to create an infrastructure for communication which would use today’s technology to connect the Christian community in new ways. She and Mike Lloyd initiated the UniteBoston weekly email newsletter in the fall of 2011, which was the beginning of UniteBoston.

What does she like most about UniteBoston?
Kelly loves visiting Christian pastors and leaders throughout the city, learning what they do and the beauty of God’s work within each individual Christian community. She considers it a joy to understand how God is working corporately throughout the city, to see the function and purpose of each part of the body of Christ coming together as one.

About Rev. Kelly:
Kelly has served as the Executive Director for UniteBoston since 2012 and has been the catalyst for UniteBoston’s bridge-building work throughout Christians in the region. She has a certificate in Christian Foundations from Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary. She also graduated with her Masters of Divinity in Global and Community Engagement at Boston University in 2019, with certificates in Religion and Conflict Transformation as well as International Mission and Ecumenism. She has also worked as a consultant to organize the New England City Forum and has spoken at conferences around concepts related to evangelism, mission, Christian unity, and conflict transformation. Kelly and her husband Andrew are both ordained ministers with the American Baptist Churches of Massachusetts and live in an intentional Christian community in the Dorchester area. They have two daughters named Abigail and Elyse enjoy spending time outdoors.

Rev. Devlin Scott

What is his role for UniteBoston?
UniteBoston Managing Director

Home Church
NewCity Church

How did he get involved with UniteBoston?
Devlin was first introduced to UniteBoston while following one of our summer worship nights at Boston Common. As a community leader and pastor in Newton, He wanted to connect to organizations to expand the church’s network and strengthen its influence in their city. Wanting to get more involved with UniteBoston, Devlin reached out to our Executive Director, Rev. Kelly Fassett.

What does he like most about UniteBoston?
Devlin loves that there seems to be a shared calling to advance the Kingdom of God in the Boston area. The diversity of Boston and its Christian population is a gift to the church. He is excited to join the heart of Christian Unity that UniteBoston radiates.

About Rev. Devlin:
Devlin Scott is a relationship leader dedicated to Christianity, committed to diversity and inclusion and passionate about people. As a cultural driver, he seeks to be active in the significant cultural conversations of our day. As a justice seeker, he speaks to the injustices in our society through charitable dialogue and courageous action. As a Gospel Bearer, he seeks to exegete the social climate to find the relevant point to apply the message of hope. Devlin has a Bachelor of Arts in Communication from Trinity International University, a Master of Arts in Biblical Studies from Midwest Theological Seminary, Master of Divinity from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School and Master of Arts in Bioethics from Trinity Graduate School. Devlin serves as Senior Pastor of NewCity Church, a church plant in Newton, MA. He owes all he does to the unending support of his wife Katie, two sons; Iain (9) and Aldin (6) and their two “fur-babies” Coach (Boston Terrier, 12) and Louis (Mountain Cur, 11). You can watch a video that Devlin created to introduce himself to our community here!

UniteBoston Consultants

Varnel Antoine

What is his role for UniteBoston?
He is the Director of Finance / Accountant for UniteBoston. He is also on the UniteBoston Board of Directors.

What does he like most about UniteBoston?
Varnel resonates with UB’s mission of bridge-building and connecting Christians from diverse backgrounds. He believes that, “by unity and faith we can move mountains.”

About Varnel:
Varnel is an ordained minister of the Gospel and a member of Grace Chapel. He has been married to his wife Berthonia since August of 1992 and he is a proud father to three young adult children. He has over twenty-five years of experience serving For-Profit and Not-For-Profit entities with financial needs, including accounting and taxation. He has also served as a board member within various philanthropic organizations, and he is proud of his service in missionary organizations for over thirty-five years here in the U.S and abroad.

Shelton Oakley-Hersey

Home Church
Reservoir Church

What is her role for UniteBoston?
Shelton is consulting with UniteBoston on “kingdom conversations,” which is a structured conversation model to help churches, individual Christians and communities to engage in conversations across deep divides with greater courage, equity, healing, and fruitfulness.

About Shelton:
Shelton has sought out, participated, and facilitated spaces working toward holistic development of people and systems over the past decade. She has experience in diverse contexts, from low income neighborhoods of Los Angeles and Fuller Theological Seminary, where Shelton obtained a Masters in Intercultural Studies, to South Africa townships, and the multi-ethnic church of America. She also serves as a Spiritual Director with Nuos Formation, companioning churches, businesses, non-profits, and individuals in various ways to help them experience greater intimacy with God and to live out of their values and into their fullest and healthiest potential. This includes designing and facilitating conversation and training spaces called Kingdom Conversations, for which the fruit of the Spirit provide a structured and guided way of engaging healthily, equitably, and fruitfully in harder conversations. Shelton lives in Jamaica Plain with her husband Scott and two children.

Dr. Craig Ramsey Jr.

What is his role for UniteBoston?
United Gospel Choir Initiative Director

Home Church
Mission Church of Christ – Sommerville, MA

How did he get involved with UniteBoston?
Craig heard about UniteBoston through many of his students and friends attending or participating in their annual worship concert. Craig is the director of the God’s Chosen Gospel Choir at Gordon College, and Gordon College had also served as a sponsor of UniteBoston’s annual worship concert. In 2022, God’s Chosen Gospel Choir was invited to support in the “Together Again” concert, backing up local artists. Craig saw this as an opportunity to expose students to what Christian faith in the city looks like. The following year, they were invited back again, not only to support but also to lead in worship.

What does he like most about UniteBoston?
Craig loves opportunities to expose young adults to the realness and practicality of a relationship with Jesus and His bride, the church. He finds joy in how God can work through the lives of young adults who have curiosity about establishing a deeper relationship with God through ministry and service. UniteBoston shares in the love for having honest conversations that serve to point people back to Christ, the author, and finisher of his faith.

About Dr. Ramsey Jr.:
Dr. Craig Ramsey Jr. has served as the Community Choir Director for UniteBoston since 2022, which has sought to create opportunities for intergenerational unified worship among people in the Boston Area. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Communication from Gordon College. He also graduated with his Master’s in Educational Leadership from Gordon College, which focused on leadership and administration in the private, public, and higher ed school systems. He also graduated with his Doctorate in Education in Leadership and Administration from Liberty University in 2023, which focused on leadership and school transformation in secondary and higher education. Dr. Ramsey serves as an educator in the Boston Public School as an elementary music teacher where he educates pre-kindergarten through sixth grade. Along with this, Ramsey is heavily involved in his local school Instructional team, serves as the team lead for specialists, and is a member of the Boston Public Schools Academic Mentoring. He also holds a certificate and standing with the Boston Public Schools Male Educators of Color, where he allies with other educators of color to increase recruitment and retention within the Boston Public Schools. He is also the founder and advisor for God’s Chosen Gospel Choir, which was founded in 2012. Ramsey Jr. has mentored many leaders and young adults through music and beyond. Dr. Ramsey is an ordained deacon and has celebrated holy matrimony with his high school sweetheart Trisha Ramsey. They have one daughter Caia, who enjoys traveling with mom and dad. His highest desire is that young adults would be honest and real with Jesus Christ.

UniteBoston Volunteer Profiles

Melody Kwong

UB Role:
Newsletter Volunteer

Home Church:
Boston Chinese Evangelical Church

Why Melody enjoys serving with UB:
Serving with UniteBoston has allowed me to meet new people, try something new & see how God has been/is working in other areas + communities in the Greater Boston area. I also love to see the diversity! Everyone is so different, so it’s very interesting to see how people come to know & understand God from their perspectives.

About Melody:
Melody Kwong was born and raised in Massachusetts and has been attending Boston Chinese Evangelical Church for most of her life, as her parents met there. She is currently in her fifth year of undergraduate studies at UMass Boston and will graduate this May with a B.A. in Early Education and Care in Inclusive Settings, concentrating on Early Intervention. After a few years, she hopes to pursue an M.S. in Child Life and eventually work with children and adolescents in hospitals and other settings. In her free time, she enjoys spending time with her family and friends, as well as going shopping.

Lisa McDonough

UB Role:
Copy Editor

Home Church:
Marsh Chapel Community

Why Lisa enjoys serving with UB:

I got to know United Boston through a Be the Bridge discussion group — a powerful and transformative experience! I am thankful for Unite Boston’s work to help each of us realize deep learning and to build genuine community among Christian communities in Boston. It is my privilege to support their important work as a volunteer!

About Lisa:

In a story of prevenient grace, Lisa came to faith through a co-worker. She lives outside Boston with her husband and works at Gordon College. Despite being a native New Englander, she is learning to enjoy the Bay Area in CA where her daughter currently lives and works.

Bill Ivanov

UB Role:
UB Journalist

Home Church:
Apple Valley Catholic Collaborative

Why Bill enjoys serving with UB:

Bill heard about UniteBoston through attending a zoom gathering hosted by his Catholic collaboration As an award-winning writer of writing Celebrating Diversity in America, a column in a company publication, Bill has always believed that “Our” Father was a God of inclusion, and that we are one family.

About Bill:

Bill has been honored to have been given the opportunity to live out the belief that we are one family through supporting a close friend’s journey to become a U.S. citizen, and then to bring his wife and family here as well. There are many stories out there like this one…Good stories that bring us together. Through UB, Bill looks forward to putting my more than 20 years of professional writing, journalism, and Open-Mic storytelling to work sharing these stories. He describes, “As your reality is what your focus is, it is time to look to things that bring us together. Efforts like UniteBoston go a long way to extending Jesus’ work and Love so that everyone feels welcome, appreciated, respected, and part of God’s family.”

Cleopatra Muhammad

Home Church:
Restoration City Church

UB Role:
Dorchester Neighborhood Dinner Coordinator / Church and Creative Arts Collaboration

Why Cleo enjoys serving with UB:
“I enjoy meeting different people, being a part of a network, and experiencing God at different events.”

About Cleo:
“Put simply, I am from Massachusetts and love the Lord Jesus. I currently reside in Dorchester.”

UB Board of Directors

Note: Rev. Kelly Fassett and Varnel Antoine, profiled above, also are serving on the UniteBoston Board of Directors

Pastor Kat Hampson

Ministry Role:

Lead Pastor of Riverwalk Church (formerly called Highrock Brookline).

Why Kat enjoys serving with UB:

“Jesus’ prayer was that we would be so united in love that the world would know the boundless, radical, and life-transforming love of the God who draws near to us. When the church — yes, with all our glorious diversity — is unified in love for God and for God’s mission of healing and reconciliation, then we show our neighbors and communities in Boston and beyond the beauty of God and God’s Kingdom/Kin-dom drawing near.”

About Kat:

Kat’s call to ministry began when the Lord asked her, “Do you want to see people come alive?” Since then, she has sought to live into that call to see people and communities come alive in Christ.

Kat currently serves as lead pastor of Riverwalk Church in the Brookline/Boston area and has previously served as an InterVarsity campus minister, college chaplain, and worship pastor. She is ordained with the Evangelical Covenant Church.

As a Filipino-immigrant-American having also grown up in the Middle East, she is a child of many cultural “intersections” and passionate about the intersection of the Church and racial justice, with the local church embodying mutuality and solidarity as part of the global Church. She currently lives in the Greater Boston area (Quincy) with her husband, Ben, their very energetic toddler son AJ, and their German shepherd dog, Bonnie. She is fond of karaoke, productivity life hacks, weighted blankets, good books, and copious amounts of sugar in her coffee.

Michael James

Ministry Role:

Michael James serves as a full-time faculty member and Resident Minister on the campus of Boston College.

Why Michael enjoys serving with UB:

Serving with UniteBoston is a response to the call of the Holy Spirit to live more deeply a spirituality of unity with my brothers and sisters in Christ.

About Michael:

Michael has lived in Boston with his wife, Julie and two children for almost twenty years. He has participated in many UniteBoston programs and in a variety of ecumenical and interreligious initiatives throughout the city representing the Focolare Movement – a lay ecclesial movement of the Roman Catholic church. The members of the Focolare Movement aim at spreading the message of unity worldwide. Inspired by Jesus’ prayer to the Father, “May they all be one” (Jn 17:21), their goal is to promote brotherhood and to achieve a more united world in which people respect and value diversity. To achieve this goal, people of the Movement engage in various forms of dialogue and are committed to building bridges of fraternal relationships among individuals, between cultural groups and in every area of society. Michael also serves as a full-time faculty member at the Boston College Lynch School of Education and Human Development where he coordinates the MA degree program concentration in Spirituality, Faith and Formation in Higher Education and the Ed.D. concentration in Catholic Higher Education. Michael is also the Director of the Boston College Institute for Administrators in Catholic Higher Education.

Pastor Melinda Priest

Ministry Roles:
Lead Planting Pastor of Awaken City Church, Global Cities Network Lead Team Member, New England Network Leader for The Wesleyan Church, Local Director of Immigration Connection Site in Boston, and Church Planting Fundraising Coach

Why Melinda enjoys serving with UB:
“I truly believe that we are better together! If the Kingdom of heaven is going to come to earth, each of us need to be willing to join with our brothers and sisters in Christ and celebrate what unites us instead of focusing on what divides us. If the world ever needed to know about the transforming love of Jesus, it is now. What better way to show His love than by the way we love and serve one another and our community.”

About Pastor Melinda:
Pastor Melinda grew up in the Chicago area and has served in a variety of pastoral roles in Virginia, Indiana, and Michigan over the last 20 years. She is an ordained Pastor in The Wesleyan Church, with degrees in Music Ed/ Vocal Performance, and Divinity. She is a certified health coach, as well as a Church Planting/Ministry Resident Coach. A mother of two boys, she lives in Jamaica Plain and is married to a wonderful husband named Jason.

Pastor Robin Lutjohann

Ministry Roles:

“I am glad to serve as pastor to a quirky and lovely little church in Cambridge: Faith Lutheran Church. It’s a community full of grace, which I believe is desperately needed in an often grace-starved world. It’s also a church that somehow its able to hold a variety of theological perspectives, age groups, and ideological commitments in one body. To be sure, we are very flawed, but we mostly know it too. And from that self-awareness, we can appreciate God’s lavish kindness and pass it on to others.”

Why Robin enjoys serving with UB:
“I am impressed by UB’s ability to bring very different followers of Jesus together. In fact, our church has already benefited from this in a number of ways. I believe in the unity of the church, not just as an aspiration, but as a present reality. In my own Lutheran tradition, we have a somewhat minimalist conception of what “church” means. Wherever the Gospel is proclaimed and people gather to share the sacraments — there is the church of Christ. So, I see UniteBoston simply manifesting what is already true about the Body of Christ. Our unity is not something to achieved — it’s something to be lived! And I want to be a part of that.”

About Robin:
“I am a native of Berlin, Germany. I came to this continent for college and stayed because I fell in love with my wife Heather and with the city of Boston. I am a proud Allstonian and can be found cycling manically to and fro various coffee shops, bars, churches, and museums. I grew up unchurched in a loving family of musicians, bartenders, poets, hippies, and trouble-makers. When I was in college, Jesus decided to blindside me with the full heft of the Gospel and plunk me into an ecumenical community of Christian students. My best friends were the daughter of a Pentecostal missionary, a Catholic woman with a conflicted call to the priesthood, a environmentalist who had recently converted to Eastern Orthodoxy, and an aspiring Jesuit brother. Through many conversations and countless long nights of reading and praying, I ended up in the Lutheran church (ELCA). I was baptized in the Charles River, not far from one of the boathouses in Cambridge. Ever since, God has been throwing me into the wonderful company of the saints, and I am beyond grateful. After some time of study at Harvard’s Divinity School and a brief stint of appeasing the needs of a Lutheran education in the Midwest, I have found myself right back where it all started, and I couldn’t be more excited.”