Our Staff
At Lyndale, our members are our ministers. Meet the people helping them.Rev. Gail Irwin
Interim Pastor for Congregational Life
Rev. Gail Irwin was born and raised in the UCC in California and received her M.Div. at Pacific School of Religion in Berkeley. After serving two settled pastorates in Wisconsin, she has spent the past 12 years specializing in intentional interim ministry. She is an author and freelance writer and lives on a farm with her husband, Charles O’Harrow, who raises dairy heifers. Her daughter Evelyn lives in Minneapolis. She enjoys music, gardening and bike riding.
Rev. Dr. Rebecca Voelkel
Pastor for Justice Ministries and the Director of the Center for Sustainable Justice
Chelsea Boyden
Youth Minister
Hello new friends! My name is Chelsea Boyden and I am excited to join SpringHouse as the new Youth Minister. I graduated from Gustavus Adolphus College in 2021 with degrees in Political Science, Philosophy, and Peace, Justice, & Conflict Studies and am currently pursuing my M.Div in Social Transformation at United Theological Seminary of the Twin Cities and seeking ordination in the UCC. I have several years of experience in youth work and have been involved in several youth ministries and currently work full time as the Academic Success Coordinator for TRIO Upward Bound. In my free time, I enjoy exploring new foods and restaurants with my partner in the Twin Cities metro and spending time with my cat, Kiwi. I am eager to get to know all of you soon and help the SpringHouse youth navigate their faith and big questions.
Karn Anderson
Church Administrator
Karn is grateful and honored to be able to support the mission and vision of the Lyndale UCC community. She lives with her two son’s in South Minneapolis. Between them, you’ll find art makers and crafters, competitive soccer players, yogis, runners and general fitness buffs, super outdoorsy, frequent visitors of Lake Superior, travelers, game nighters, and people who are generally curious and open to new experiences. You can email her at admin@lyndaleucc.org
Paul Kovacovic
Director of Music
Rev. Don Portwood
Pastor Emeritus