The Church of St. Mary the Virgin, Episcopal
Chappaqua, New York
Who We Are
We invite you to stop by sometime and get to know us. Or feel free to contact us to learn more about our church.
The Rev. Alan Christopher Lee
Priest-in-Charge
Contact info:
Parish Office: 914-238-8751
Cell: 646-431-9298
email: clee@smtv.org
The Rev. Alan Christopher Lee has served as Priest-in-Charge at St. Mary's since October 2022. Previously he was an assisting priest at Grace Church Brooklyn Heights, where he oversaw Youth and Family Ministry. Born and raised in Charlotte, NC, Fr. Chris is an alumnus of UNC-Chapel Hill, and received his M.Div. from the General Theological Seminary. Before discerning a call to ordained ministry, he worked as a musician and as a journalist for the New York Times. Fr. Chris' passions in ministry include Christian formation for all ages, the church's role in reconciliation across difference, and exploring the richness of Anglican liturgy and music. He is married to Julie Bleha, and they are the parent of two teenage boys, Thaddeus and Callum.
​
You can read Fr. Chris' sermons at https://luxmundi.substack.com/
​
To learn more about our new priest, please click here.
Dr. Alexandra Beliakovich-Shkoda
Music Director
Dr. Alexandra Beliakovich-Shkoda came to St. Mary’s as Music Director in January 2023. Born and raised in Belarus, she lives in Yorktown Heights with her husband and three young daughters. Alexandra has been a church musician since 2011, most recently serving as organist and choir director at the United Methodist Church in Shrub Oak. She has an extensive professional background as a concert pianist and holds bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees from the Manhattan School of Music. She is also an adjunct professor at Seton Hall University, where she works with student choirs.
​In addition to overseeing the adult choir at St. Mary’s, Alexandra has recently started a children’s choir. Anyone interested in sharing their singing or instrumental talents with the community is encouraged to contact her directly.
​
Joanne Tiebout Douglas
Christian Education Director
​
My name is Joanne Tiebout Douglas. As Christian Education Director, I teach Sunday School each week. Due to Covid-19, Sunday School will be organized as it was last year. A single class, pre-K through 8th grade, will meet in the Parish Hall, each family at one table, each table socially distant from the others and each with its own supplies. Participants are asked to wear masks.
​
I am grateful to be called to this position. Some of you may know me as the mother of Ludovica Douglas. I recently moved to Pleasantville and am a communicant of St. Mary the Virgin. My Sunday School teaching experience is varied. In Boston I taught grade school students at St. Stephen's and later taught teens at the Church of the Advent. At the Cathedral Church of St. Paul in Boston I began a one-class Sunday School, pre-K through high school.
Ms. Laurane Carnevale
Parish Administrator
Laurane Carnevale is a native New Yorker. She studied English literature at Hunter College, comparative literature at Harvard University, and drawing at The Art Student’s League and the New York Botanical Garden, where she served as president of the Greater NY Guild of Natural Science Illustrators, organizing exhibits throughout the tri-state area. She taught drawing for Rivertowns Adult Education and gave private lessons in her studio.
In 2005, while singing with Westchester Choral Arts Society, she became acquainted with fellow singers who regularly attended Ars Antiqua concerts and sang in the choir at St. Mary's. She began to attend services and found the homilies as compelling as the music was exquisite. In Chris Lee, Laurane has discovered shared interests in early church history, philosophy, and the poetic and spiritual aspects of scripture that inform our daily lives. She feels blessed to work in a magnificent setting in the service of exceptional people, whose faith and dedication have enriched her quest for beauty in all things.
______________________________________________________________________
Priest-in-Charge: The Rev. Alan Christopher Lee
​
Vestry Members:
​
Wardens: Durrie Golding
Camilla Calhoun
​
David Aplin
Cindy Forrest
Christian Hakim
Barbara Jackson
Rich Juzumas
Kelly Leonard O'Keefe
Janet Priscantelli
Rick Romeo
Sally Sobolewski
Parish Communications:
The Bell Newsletter Editors: Dana Wu & Catherine Fenlon, Mary Ann Bayer
Weekly Update: Laurane Carnevale
Webmaster: Christine Maxfield