Episcopal Church Women

Jo Elaine Martin

Province VIII – Diocese of Oregon

Jo Elaine Martin shares her faith foundation received as a 10-year-old: “Lay people from a Mennonite local church gathered after their service to all who wished to hear about our Lord and Savior. My God is a kind and wonderful person who will love me until we meet one day.

“I am blessed that those lessons of so many years ago are my foundation still and forever.”

Born on Easter Day, and baptized in the Episcopal Church as a teenager, she was a 40-year member of St. Thomas Church, Dallas, Oregon, faithfully serving her parish as President of the Altar Guild, Senior Warden, Lay Reader and Licensed Eucharistic Minister.

Jo eventually accepted the call to the Diocesan ECW Board as a member-at-large, particularly sharing her ministry with Rahab’s sisters located in Portland Oregon—a community-creating radical hospitality ministry with those marginalized in poverty. Elected President of the Diocese of Oregon ECW Board in 2016 she remains in that position.

Presently living in the seaside village of if Waldport, Jo is a member of St. Luke’s by the Sea and still very involved in her church and community.

Rose Mary Kinale

Province VIII – Diocese of Nevada

Rose Mary Kinale is a priest in the Diocese of Nevada.  She is a native Paiute woman. Rose Mary is very involved in the Diocese and the national church.
She is a member of the Standing Committee; serves on the Galilee Camp and Conference Board; member of the Episcopal History Project Board; Acting Director of Mountain and Deserts Native Churches; Path’s Crossing; Province 8 Convener for Indigenous Ministry; Wintertalk.
Rose Mary states: “As an Indigenous Native American woman, a mother, and a grandmother, it is women who carry a major responsibility in the individual lives of their families and church. We maintain a healthy home lifestyle especially with church participation. As a Priest, it is my duty to be involved and spread God’s message to all I encounter and not be judgmental or prejudiced as well as to serve with love to all.” Rose Mary is incredibly involved with her church and the Diocese of Nevada and serves to the best of her ability.
Rose Mary also believes in and practices the 5 Marks of Mission and feels a strong bond to the efforts of the Diocese of Nevada.
Diocese of Nevada

Rose Mary Kinale is a priest in the Diocese of Nevada.  She is a native Paiute woman. Rose Mary is very involved in the Diocese and the national church.

She is a member of the Standing Committee; serves on the Galilee Camp and Conference Board; member of the Episcopal History Project Board; Acting Director of Mountain and Deserts Native Churches; Path’s Crossing; Province 8 Convener for Indigenous Ministry; Wintertalk.

Rose Mary states: “As an Indigenous Native American woman, a mother, and a grandmother, it is women who carry a major responsibility in the individual lives of their families and church. We maintain a healthy home lifestyle especially with church participation. As a Priest, it is my duty to be involved and spread God’s message to all I encounter and not be judgmental or prejudiced as well as to serve with love to all.” Rose Mary is incredibly involved with her church and the Diocese of Nevada and serves to the best of her ability.

Rose Mary also believes in and practices the 5 Marks of Mission and feels a strong bond to the efforts of the Diocese of Nevada.

Rev. Canon Mary Crist, Ed.D

Province VIII – Diocese of Los Angeles

The Diocese of Los Angeles ECW has chosen The Rev. Canon Mary Crist, Ed.D., as their Distinguished Woman for Triennial 2022.  She qualifies for this honor in numerous ways.

Her work has enriched and benefitted people through her initiative, leadership, educational passion, selfless service, and creativity in delivering the good news of the gospel message.

Canon Mary Crist’s guiding and determined ministry at St. Michael’s Episcopal Ministry Center in Riverside has revived a closed church which now provides needed services to the underserved and homeless in the Riverside community while nurturing the message of commitment to those most vulnerable.

She accomplished the huge task of raising funds and working with the city to build low-income housing on the St. Michael’s grounds, realizing the shared goals of providing housing for the city’ s homeless population and re-purposing church land for the city’s public needs and the church’s commitment to service.

Named Indigenous Theological Coordinator at General convention in 2018 for her work assisting the development and implantation of Indigenous curricula and the Doctrine of Discovery workshops, Mary inspires us in so many ways, with her pride in her heritage and  as  an articulate voice to the ministry of the indigenous peoples..

Sandra Leialoha

Province VIII – Diocese of Hawai’i

A member of St. Mark’s Episcopal Church, Honolulu. Very active on the parish level, diocesan level and active member of Hawai’i ECW.

Currently, she is the CPC Representative for Hawai’i. Sandy has also represented Hawaii as a delegate to ECW Triennial meetings.

Gerry Chartrand

Province VIII – Diocese of El Camino Real

Gerry grew up in the farm country of Davis, California. She has served her community as an educator, as a reading specialist, an Associate Superintendent of Educational Services and a professor in the College of Education at San Jose State University.

In her parish and greater community, she has served as Senior Warden, a member of the Order of St. Luke, is a leader of ECW and anchors the jail ministry team.  She helped launch the Hope Inside/Out ministry as the board president which serves recently released inmates.

Canon Cathy Black

Province VIII – Diocese of Arizona

Canon Cathy Black is a cradle Episcopalian and native Arizonan. She is a past president of the ECW at All Saints’ Church and Day School in Phoenix, Arizona.

Currently she is the Canon for Administration in the Bishop’s Office of the Diocese of Arizona where she was also the Bishop’s Assistant until just recently as she is preparing to retire.

She has served faithfully on the bishop’s staff since 2004. Cathy is currently a member of Christ Church of the Ascension in Paradise Valley where she is an active member of the church choir. She has been the heart, memory, and wisdom of the Diocesan Office in Arizona. 

She has been the person people call, turn to, cry with, laugh with, vent to, and ask for help. In all these ways and more, she is a very Distinguished Woman of Arizona!

Betty Morris

Province VII – Diocese of West Texas

Betty is a daughter, sister, wife, mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, friend, servant and dear sister in Christ.  Betty is ACTIVE in the community, parish and the diocese.

Betty loves Jesus, her family, her parish, her friends, her cat Morris, the deer and other animals that have sanctuary in her beautiful hill country yard. Betty regularly examines her life, seeing God’s hand in her journey.

She understands the importance of sharing her love of Christ with others.  No matter if you’ve known her for 30 minutes or 50 years, Betty graciously offers love, kindness, wisdom, truth and faithful encouragement to everyone who has the opportunity to have a relationship with her.

She is a tireless trailblazer for Christ… “reflecting His glory, being transformed into the image that she reflects in brighter and brighter glory, this is the working of the Lord…” (paraphrased from 2 Corinthians 3:18)

The Rt. Rev. Kai Ryan

Province VII – Diocese of Texas

Kathryn “Kai” McCrossen Ryan was born in Raton, New Mexico and was baptized at Holy Trinity Episcopal Church.  Camping ministry, the Happening movement and parish committee work, especially resettling a refugee family, nurtured her faith and her leadership gifts.

Attending Albuquerque public schools, she pursued her fondness for athletics by competing in gymnastics, track and cross-country. She graduated from Sewanee with a BA in Philosophy in 1986. While there she met her husband, Tim. They married in 1989 and have 2 children.

She returned to Albuquerque to gain employment experience before seeking ordination. She received her Master of Divinity from the Seminary of the Southwest, served 20 years in parish ministry – 14 years as rector of Ascension Church in Dallas, learning from brothers and sisters of other cultures how to lead a multi-ethnic community.

As Canon to the Ordinary for the Diocese of Texas 2014-2018, she led the ministry staff as they sought to implement the diocesan vision. Elected Bishop Suffragan at the Diocese of Texas Diocesan Council in February 2019, she   was consecrated by Presiding Bishop Michael Curry on June 1, 2019.

Mary Gail Ruark

Province VII – Diocese of Oklahoma

Mary Gail Ruark has been the backbone of the Diocese of Oklahoma’s Women, as an ECW Diocesan Board Member, and as a member of Diocesan Committees.

Her 50+ years of service to the Diocese is remarkable. Her path began when her mother and mother-in-law volunteered her as regional ECW chair.

Mary Gail worked with talented, busy women giving of their time, talent, and money to promote education, new ideas, existing programs and support women’s inclusion in all areas of the Church, while providing for spiritual enrichment.

Nurtured by new friends who taught her the oral history of the Diocese and ECW, Mary Gail is ever grateful to them for their support. She has served ECW as Regional Chair, Christian Ed Chair, VP for Regional Meetings, Diocesan President, has been a Provincial delegate and officer, was Province 7 Representative on the National Board and member-at-large; involved in her diocese on many levels, she received the Bishop’s award.

Mary Gail deserves this award especially for starting the endowment for the Oklahoma ECW, which today has over $250,000 to award women grants and scholarships!

The Rev. Helen Hoch

Province VII – Diocese of Kansas

Active with our ECW Board for approximately 20 years, Helen Hoch has served multiple terms in multiple positions throughout her ministry.

Though currently serving as Treasurer, Helen has also served on the Diocesan ECW Endowment Fund, on the planning committee and as co-chair for our Diocesan Women’s Summit Events.

In addition, she has worked  on by-law revision, attended numerous National ECW Triennials and mentored many on this board and throughout the diocese.

Helen considers her years of ministry with ECW as an influential part of her spiritual journey. Ordained to the priesthood in 2001 Helen spent about five years as a member of the former five-parish Holy Trinity Regional Ministry team in the Southeast region of Kansas.

Currently the 21-year Vicar at Calvary Episcopal Church in Yates Center, Helen presently is  Chair of the Woodson County Ministerial Alliance, participates with  the Love-Emitting Disciples within the Diocese of Kansas, is on the Board  for the Bishop Kemper School for Ministry  and belongs to  Daughters of the King.

The  mother of three grown children she  is retired from the field of education, grateful to be able to spend time with her family and friends.