The Very Rev. Richard Alan Demarest
Dean, St. Michael's Cathedral, Boise, Idaho
My wife, Diane, and our three children, Allison (20), Ben (17) and Andrew (15) came to Boise in June of 1998. Prior to our arrival in Boise, we lived in Pittsburgh, PA for nearly five years. We are all originally from New Jersey, my ancestral homeland. As transplants from the east, Diane and I now see ourselves as confirmed Idahoans, and cannot imagine living anywhere else. I am an avid skier, gardener, and camper.
In 1984, following graduation from college, I began seminary at Bexley Hall, part of Colgate Rochester Divinity in Rochester, New York. In the summer, following my second year in seminary, I was Director of the Right On School, a ministry of St. Simon Episcopal Church, an historic African American Church, in the City of Rochester.
I was ordained by John Shelby Spong, Bishop of Newark, as both priest and deacon, in 1987. I served two churches in the Diocese of Newark: Calvary Church, Summit, NJ, where I was Curate, and St. Andrew's, Harrington Park as Rector. In the Diocese of Newark I served on the Department of Missions of the Diocese, and the Bishop's Task Force on the Bible.
In 1993 my family and I moved to Pittsburgh, PA, where I began my first ministry in an urban setting. As Canon Pastor of Trinity Cathedral, I worked closely with Dean George Werner, who was elected Vice President of the House of Deputies of the General Convention of Episcopal Church. George later became President of the House of Deputies of the General Convention. I learned many invaluable lessons from Dean Werner, not the least of which is an in depth knowledge of the Episcopal Church's democratic structure, and decision-making processes.
I am currently in my tenth year as Dean of St. Michael's Cathedral in Boise. During my time at St. Michael's there have been a number of significant changes. We have significantly increased our ministry in the areas of Outreach, Youth Ministry and Music Ministry. Our Baby Steps Ministry, begun my wife Diane, and directed by two fine staff of the Cathedral, Holly Mason and Diane Bawcom, is one of the Treasure Valley's significant ways of positively impacting the lives of parents and babies in the Greater Boise area. Baby Steps has received numerous awards and honors from groups in Idaho.
In the area of Music Ministry, St. Michael's now has a full time music program and has established itself as a center for diverse kinds of music. In 2005, under the leadership of Michael Boney, Organist and Director of Music, St. Michael's hosted the National Spiritual Ensemble in celebration of Black History Month. Our Youth Ministry at St. Michael's has also become a full time program. Under the leadership of Bill Wallace, Director of Youth Ministry (and former attorney from Louisiana), St. Michael's is now fully committed to ongoing youth ministry, which includes both pilgrimages and mission trips.
In addition to my BA in Religious Studies, I hold two Master's Degrees, one in Sacred Theology and another in Organizational Leadership. I have been a member of the Boise Downtown Rotary for ten years. I am fifty one years of age. For more information you may contact me at dean@stmichaelscathedral.org or by cell at 208-859-0737.
Read Dean Demarest's responses to the questions asked by the Search and Nominating Committee.
