The Sixth Bishop of the Diocese of Southwest Florida, the Rt. Rev. Douglas Scharf leads the diocese where he was raised, ordained, and consecrated. One of the youngest bishops in The Episcopal Church, Bishop Scharf believes that Christ's love and transformational teachings paired with the authentic connection of a Church community can replenish the wellspring of the soul.

The Rt. Rev. Phyllis A. Spiegel was consecrated as the 12th Bishop of Utah on September 17, 2022. She is passionate about The Episcopal Church’s work of deepening discipleship through daily practices of faith, believing that deepening our daily walk with God profoundly changes the way we walk in the world. Bp. Spiegel is committed to finding sustainable solutions for providing stability and dignity for the unhoused and those with mental illness.

Bishop Spiegel was ordained a priest in 2004. She served as Priest-in-Charge and then rector of St. Thomas in Christiansburg, VA from 2004-2015. In 2015, she was called as rector to St. Anne in West Chester, Ohio.

The bishop graduated from Virginia Theological Seminary in 2004. Her undergraduate work was at Emory & Henry College where she received a Bachelor of Arts degree. After graduation, she interned with the Southern Empowerment Project (SEP) and spent her time learning grassroots organizing in Appalachia. She then taught Business and Commerce at a secondary school in Kenya for nine months. 

Upon returning to the U.S., she worked as a Field Executive for Hornet’s Nest Girl Scout Council in Charlotte, N.C. before returning to Virginia to open a second location for her mother’s business, For the Birds.  In conjunction with their retail stores, Bp. Spiegel and her mother taught birding and conservation classes throughout Virginia. After this wonderful decade, the bishop answered the call to the priesthood.

She has a daughter, who lives in England with her husband. The Bishop’s hiking partner is a 90-pound Dutch Shepherd mix named Samson, who loves his new life in Utah.

Melissa and Ryan Flanigan live in Austin, TX with their three children, Lily (16), Liam (14), and Noelle (12). They are both on staff at Resurrection South Austin (EDOT) as parish administrator/neighborhood engagement coordinator (Melissa) and music director (Ryan). Ryan is also the theological artist-in-residence at Baylor University in Waco, TX. The Flanigan family have a music project called Liturgical Folk, which seeks to create beautiful and believable sacred music for church folk and the world. They have released eight albums of new liturgical music (hymns, settings, choruses) since 2017 and have toured extensively. Their music is accessible to all ages and faith stages and is rooted in the inherently joyful sounds of the American folk traditions. Melissa earned a BA with an emphasis in Worship Arts from Judson University in Elgin, IL, and Ryan earned a BAS from Dallas Baptist University, an MA from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, and a CTS from the University of Oxford. Listen to Liturgical Folk's music at https://www.liturgicalfolk.com/music