Who We Are

The Rev. Lisa M. Erdeljon is excited to accept the call as Priest-in-Charge at St. John’s Episcopal Church, in Hampton, Virginia.
Born and raised in Virginia—spending time in Fairfax County and Virginia Beach, Lisa earned a Bachelors of Science in Intercultural and Mass Communication from Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Virginia. After graduation, she served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in the country of Georgia, returning home unexpectedly, when Russian troops marched through her village in 2008.

Following evacuation, Lisa earned a Masters of Public Policy in Peace Operations from George Mason University, in Arlington, Virginia, while also working on the science and technology side of Nuclear Nonproliferation.

After hearing God’s call and discerning in the Diocese of Virginia, Lisa attended Berkeley Episcopal Seminary at Yale Divinity School in New Haven, Connecticut. Her first call, after seminary, was as Curate/Associate Rector for Christian Education at St. Michael’s Episcopal Church in Barrington, Illinois, where she served for almost 4 years. After realizing that the ocean is very far away and it’s very cold in the Chicago area, Lisa returned to the east coast, answering a call to serve as Assistant to the Rector for Pastoral Care at St. Philip’s Episcopal Church in downtown Southport, North Carolina. During her 3.5 years there, Lisa grew the lay Pastoral Care ministries, as well as assisted in developing a third Sunday worship service, based on Celtic theology, and introducing additional Adult Formation opportunities.

Lisa is excited to return to Virginia and to the Hampton Roads area, being closer to her parents, who are now retired, living in Sandbridge, Virginia Beach. In addition to spending time outside, running, using her standup paddleboard, and exploring the beach or a golf course, Lisa finds God most often when chopping vegetables and cooking, dancing (she taught ballet, contemporary, and acrobatics last year), and simply sitting with her dog Bedi (pronounced Bed-EE, brought home from Georgia at the end of Peace Corps service). She tries to do yoga every morning and look for the moon every evening, and she spends a lot of her time at home in quiet—hoping she might hear something from God that she hasn’t heard yet.

Deborah L. Carr has been the Music Director/Organist at St John’s Episcopal Church since 2011. She holds degrees in organ performance, church music and choral conducting from the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music and Westminster Choir College. In addition to her work with worship and musical programs at St John’s, she is a member of the adjunct faculty at Virginia Wesleyan University ,Virginia Beach, teaching organ and church music, and is the founding director of the women’s vocal ensemble Bellissima! Deborah is also an accomplished composer of music for voice as well as instruments.

Bio coming soon.

The Rev. Ryan Missel is honored to accept a call as Curate/Assistant to the Rector at St. John’s Episcopal Church in Hampton, Virginia.

A native of Maryland, Ryan began his professional life as a classical oboist, completing his undergraduate study at The Johns Hopkins University’s Peabody Institute. He went on to perform across the country with symphony orchestras and chamber music ensembles before accepting a position as an Air Force Bandsman, stationed in Illinois. During his five years on active duty, Ryan performed music in support of military and civic events, including official ceremonies and tributes honoring veterans, current service members, their families, and communities.

Encouraged over time to explore a call to the priesthood, Ryan was raised up for ordination in the Diocese of Missouri and attended Virginia Theological Seminary. His first call after seminary was as a chaplain resident at The Johns Hopkins Hospital, where he offered pastoral and spiritual care to patients and families from a wide diversity of cultural backgrounds — including support in end-of-life care and moments of acute crisis. Longing to love God’s people in the Eucharist on Sundays, Ryan was then called to a joint role in parish and campus ministries at Christ Episcopal Church in Cape Girardeau, Missouri. During his time there, he developed strengths in preaching, leading Christian formation, and cultivating outreach ministries that fostered meaningful bridges.

As St. John’s Curate, Ryan is blessed for the opportunity to grow under Lisa’s leadership and to learn from the wisdom of the congregation. As a newer priest, Ryan is delighted to serve, to keep learning, and to be shaped by this exciting new chapter of ministry in Hampton. Ryan is also grateful to return to the East Coast, where he and his husband, John, look forward to settling into the rhythms of daily life together once John is able to join him — and where they will be closer to Ryan’s family. He and John are proud parents of their “fur children,” Holly and Cooper the dogs — and when not at church, Ryan can often be found at the gym, wandering into local coffee shops, or rocking out to Handel like it’s 1742.