Staff

Rev. Gusti Linnea Newquist

Pastor
gusti@shepherdstownpresbyterian.org

Pastor Gusti considers herself a poet, a preacher, a teacher, and a healer. Her mission in life is to participate in God’s "healing of the world" by nurturing creativity and cultivating healthy communities.

Gusti was just as surprised as anyone to discover she could live out this calling most effectively as a Presbyterian pastor! The preaching, the teaching, the caring, the healing and the opportunities for social action rooted in The Way of Jesus drew her in and have never let her go. She especially enjoys teaching Bible as a means of liberation, listening deeply for the movement of the Spirit in the lives of her parishioners, and designing rituals for individual and communal healing. She has also been active in faith-based movements for racial, environmental, gender, economic, immigrant, and LGBTQIA+ justice.

Gusti began her ministry at SPC in October 2019, bringing over twenty years of experience with diverse populations in parish and national church ministry. She is a graduate of Harvard Divinity School and Marshall University, a Spiritual Director in the Still Harbor tradition, a Reiki Master, a happily married spouse to a lifelong Buddhist (Christopher Beckley), and a grateful “Dog-Mom” of her beloved yellow lab, Aria.

SPC’s commitment to Radical Hospitality, Holistic Spirituality, and Engaged Compassion are a perfect match!
 

Christa Mastrangelo Joyce

Coordinator of Children's Education & Youth Programs
jalayoga.christa@gmail.com

Christa Mastrangelo Joyce worked for eight years as professor of English for Dean College in Massachusetts and for American University in Washington, DC. She is a published poet and journalist. After the birth of her daughter in 2006, Christa completed her first Yoga teacher training certification and transitioned her great love of teaching to the world of the body. She has since been teaching yoga, running a local yoga studio, and training students to become yoga teachers, all while pairing this practice with her love of writing, poetry, and literature through her blog posts. Another primary focus is her family, with many hours of her week aligned to her role as a homeschooling mama of her two children. As her work in yoga has grown, so has her connection to the great Spirit of God present in all. Her work with SPC's children's program is a natural extension of her years of teaching, her work to understand and connect to the body, her first love of poetry and storytelling, and her basic understanding of growing children.