Hailing from Buffalo, New York, Jay despises the snow and dreams of life in Wakanda. To wit, he is pretty much obsessed with “Black Panther”—as well as the 1980s cartoon series “The Thundercats.”

Rev. Dr. Jay Williams returned to Union as lead pastor on July 1, 2018, having guided this congregation September 2012 – June 2017. An ordained Elder in The United Methodist Church, Jay has served congregations in New York City, Boston, and San Francisco, including Glide Memorial.

Williams holds a Master of Divinity with highest honors from Union Theological Seminary in the City of New York (2009) and the Bachelor of Arts magna cum laude from Harvard College (2003). In May 2017, Jay received the Ph.D. in the Study of Religion from the Harvard University Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. Dr. Williams’s work explores the meaning of “Spirit” in black cultural discourse at the intersection of race, class, gender, and sexuality: particularly how spirit-talk has been a marginalizing language of power. The dissertation, entitled “Unholy Ghosts in the Age of Spirit: Identity, Intersectionality, and the Theological Horizons of Black Progress,” develops a constructive theology of spirit that rethinks hope, courage, and vitality, premised on insights from W.E.B. Du Bois, Zora Neale Hurston, and Howard Thurman. Through his pastoral and academic work, Jay strives to help more disinherited folk find their voices.

Rev. Jay, a queer cisgender man, and his partner, Robert, have two crazy yorkie-chihuahuas, Bentley and Hurston.

 

Ashley is a recent graduate of Boston University School of Theology where she earned a Master of Theological Studies degree. Prior to her current role at Union, Ashley also served as Union’s Director of Christian Education for several years and Union’s Minister of Worship and Faith Formation. She is a provisional Deacon in The United Methodist Church, called to connect community and church through the ministry of Compassion, Service, Justice, and Word.

Ashley attended Spelman College in Atlanta, GA where she studied Psychology and Child Development. Upon Graduation in 2007, she entered the Department of Education at Brown University. She received her Master of Arts in Teaching from Brown and has had the pleasure of serving as an elementary school teacher for seven years.

Ashley’s mission in life is to help young people, especially children of color, to flourish and to encourage them to listen for and respond to the voice of the Divine as we all work towards greater peace and justice in our communities and in the world.

Adama Brown-Hathaway joins the pastoral team as Minister of Connection and Care. In this capacity, she will implement a process for identifying and connecting guests and congregants to spiritual growth opportunities that facilitate connectedness and fosters engagement with congregational life. She is a provisional Deacon in The United Methodist Church, called to connect community and church through the ministry of Compassion, Service, Justice, and Word.

Adama is a sociologist by training and earned a bachelor’s degree in sociology from the University of Texas at Austin and a PhD in sociology from Iowa State University with an emphasis in medical sociology, research methods and statistics, and social policy. She also earned an MDiv from Iliff School of Theology with a specialization in pastoral counseling and spiritual care.

Adama is a sixth generation Texan who is passionate about genealogy, jazz, and intersectional justice. She currently serves on the board of the Reconciling Ministries Network, an organization dedicated to the full inclusion of LGBTQIA+ persons in the life of UMC congregations. She also loves talking about womanist theology and encouraging people to reimagine sacred texts in ways that embolden us to love, compassion, and justice.

As Union seeks to live out its mission to promote Christ’s gospel of liberation, Kyle brings his creativity and organizational capacity to build sustainable ministries and nurture others’ callings to ministry. He believes that our role as the church is to live into Christ’s vision of the Kin-dom of God, being a place where we practice personal and social holiness and live in radical solidarity with one another across social barriers. 

Kyle is a commissioned elder in provisional connection in the North Texas Conference of The United Methodist Church. He graduated from Boston University School of Theology with his Master of Divinity in May 2021. After growing up in Texan suburbs, he completed undergraduate studies at The University of Texas at Austin (B.A. Psychology and Plan II) and served a year with Americorps in Austin.

In his free time, Kyle enjoys playing music, binge-watching “The West Wing,” and spending quality time with his partner, Angie, and family.

Born in Stara Zagora, Bulgaria, Plamen Karadonev comes from a musical family. His father Dinko Karadonev was a choir director, educator, and accordionist. Plamen started playing the accordion at age five. He later fell in love with Bulgarian folk music and soon began playing the piano.

A Berklee College of Music Scholarship brought Plamen to Boston in January 2001 where he found a whole new world of musical adventures. In the United States he has performed with some of the most respected jazz musicians currently on the scene including Randy Brecker, Gene Perla, George Garzone, Hal Crook, Dave Liebman, Jimmy Cobb, Richie Barshay and many more.

Fabio Pirozzolo is an Italian drummer, multi-percussionist and singer. Originally from Terracina, Italy, he started his career as a folk percussionist, playing Italian frame drums tamburello and tammorra, in one of the most famous folk groups in his area. This experience gave him the opportunity to travel throughout Europe, playing concerts and giving lectures on regional Italian frame drum techniques. A summa cum laude Berklee College of Music graduated, he performs in virtually any genre of music from jazz to world music to rock.