Our Staff
Clare Butterfield , Executive Director
As Faith in Place’s executive director, Rev. Dr. Clare Butterfield preaches and teaches regularly at congregations throughout Illinois, while coordinating programmatic and organizational development. She started as Faith in Place’s original organizer and developed the organization into today’s regional scale. She is a Unitarian Universalist minister from central Illinois with a lifelong interest in environmental matters. Prior to entering the ministry, Rev. Butterfield had a career as a tax and corporate attorney. She has a D.Min. from Chicago Theological Seminary (2008), an M.Div. from Meadville Lombard Theological School (2000), a J.D. from the University of Illinois College of Law (1983), and a B.A. in History from the University of Illinois (1980). She is the community minister for Unity Temple in Oak Park.
Veronica Kyle , Congregational Outreach
veronica@faithinplace.org Veronica
Veronica joined the Faith in Place staff in August 2008 to engage in the much needed work of linking/involving African American churches to the work of Faith in Place. In addition Veronica works with other Faith in Place partners in the movement to share, coordinate and support congregations that are new to the idea of living out their faith while serving as good stewards of the environment. Veronica lived and worked for the past twelve years in the Caribbean and Southern Africa for a faith-based organization in the areas of social justice and development. She received her B.A. in Religion and Women Studies from Vermont College of Norwich University and her Masters degree in Gender Studies from University of the West Indies, 1999.
Brian J. Sauder , Policy Director
Brian joined the Faith in Place team in January 2010 to lead our advocacy efforts and reach out to central Illinois congregations. Brian grew up in central Illinois and received his B.S. from the University of Illinois in Natural Resources and Environmental Sciences. He has a M.A. in Religion from Urbana Theological Seminary and is a MBA candidate at the University of Illinois. Brian is a member of the First Mennonite Church of Champaign. The central Illinois office for Faith in Place is located at the University YMCA in Champaign.
Katy Regalado , Youth Program Coordinator
As first generation to the Great Lakes -Chicago born & raised, Katy(í) Regalado engaged by her questions about an ecology of body, spirit, and community, joined Faith in Place in 2006 . She works with youth in creating urban environmental stewardship rooted in exploring our relationship(s) to the natural world from our own backyards. She is committed to practicing a critical pedagogy of place in addressing the well-being of the social and ecological terrains we inhabit. She received her B.A. in Latin American & Latino Studies from the University of Illinois at Chicago and her M.A. in Environmental Education from Merry Lea Environmental Learning Center of Goshen College.
Cindy Shepherd , Central Illinois Intern
Reverend Cindy Shepherd joins Faith in Place staff as a Food and Faith intern in the central IL office. Cindy grew up in Kansas and has lived in Illinois for 24 years. Her interest in sustainable agriculture and healthy local eating was stoked by visits to small growers in Nicaragua and Palestine. She is the pastor of Philo Presbyterian Church and a grateful member of Sola Gratia Farm in Urbana.
Cindy can be reached at: cindyshep200@yahoo.com or 217-493-5046
Douglas Williams , Central Illinois Intern
Douglas A. Williams joins the Faith in Place staff as a Food and Faith intern in the central IL office. A native of Chicago, Doug’s professional vocation includes both public and private work ranging from the intricacies of floral design to city and regional planning. He has taught landscape architecture at the undergraduate and graduate level. Currently, he is a Ph.D. candidate in the landscape architecture department at the University of Illinois. He holds a bachelor’s degree in ornamental horticulture from Illinois and a master’s in landscape architecture from Cornell University. Douglas is a member of Providence Baptist Church in Greensboro, NC and has been under watch care at Salem Baptist Church in Champaign for the duration of his PhD studies.
Doug can be reached at: dwillia8@illinois.edu or 443-253-1629
Aaron Simmons , Congregational Outreach and Support
Aaron joined Faith in Place in September 2012 as the yearlong Avodah or Jewish Service Corps member. At Faith in Place he assists in the design and support of a number of programs that aim to involve and educate youth and congregations in the Chicago area in environmental issues. In addition he co-manages our Winters Farmers Markets. Aaron graduated from Earlham College in May 2012 with a degree in Philosophy, and is a native of the White Mountains in New Hampshire.
Chance Voigt , Congregational Outreach and Support
Chance@faithinplace.org Chance
Chance, a member of the 2012-2013 Lutheran Volunteer Corps, came to Faith in Place in August, 2012 as one of our year-round Congregational Outreach and Support people. He co-manages our Winter Farmer's Market project, assists with development, and supports other Faith in Place staff on a number of other projects. A native of Bemidji, MN, Chance is joining us after spending two years as a volunteer lead cook at Holden Village, a remote retreat community in the Cascade Mountains of Washington state. He graduated from St. Olaf College in 2010 with a B.A. in Religion and Women's Studies.
Ginnie Judd , Office Administrator
ginnie@faithinplace.org Ginnie
Ginnie joined the Faith in Place team in January 2013 when she responded to a plea from Rev. Clare in a Faith in Place e-newsletter for a one-day-a-week office volunteer. Four weeks later, Ginnie was thrilled to be asked to take on a part time job as Office Administrator. Ginnie has a Bachelor of Science in Food Science from Iowa State University in Ames and spent the majority of her career in food industry management before taking a nine year career break to care for her terminally ill husband. Faced with starting a new chapter of her life, she decided to move in the direction of environmental issues, something she has been passionate about for many years. Ginnie has been a CSA subscriber since 2007, and her home in Downers Grove is a host location for Genesis Growers of St. Anne, IL. She is glad to support Faith in Place’s mission in whatever ways she can.
Meghan Strell , Database Consultant
meghan@faithinplace.org Meghan
Chicago native, Meghan Strell, consults with Faith in Place on 1s and 0s. She uses the SalsaLabs contact database, Access, Excel, Social Media and a website to support FIP staff as they build relationships in the real world. She does the same for Protestants for the Common Good and the Community Renewal Society. When she's not online, she performs with Mucca Pazza.
Jim Cavallo , The Energy Doctor
Jim Cavallo, director of Midwest Energy Performance Analytics, Inc., is a RESNET certified home energy rater, BPI credentialed building analyst and shell specialist. His accomplishments are many – associate editor of Home Energy Magazine, board member of the Illinois Association of Energy Raters and Home Performance Professionals. He is a BPI proctor, teaches energy auditing and weatherization at St. Augustine College in Chicago, and teaches weatherization to contractors through the Illinois weatherization certification program. Prior to starting his own firm in 2000, Jim was on the research staff of Argonne National Laboratory where he directed a program on energy efficiency in existing buildings. He holds a Ph.D. from New York University in economics.
On Thursdays, Faith in Place is honored to welcome Jim’s expertise into our office. While volunteering with us, Jim (or The Energy Doctor, as we like to call him) will work with congregations participating in Faith in Place’s new Milestone program on energy management. With years of experience and a wealth of knowledge and resources at his fingertips, he will be an invaluable asset to those Milestone congregations looking to save energy and money.
