Our Leaders

The Bishop’s Council

The Bishop’s Council is the standing committee of the diocese. It provides ecclesiastical authority in organizational leadership, vision, and budgets during Bishop Stewart’s requested leave of absence.

Deans

The Diocese of the Upper Midwest is divided into three active deaneries. The Dean of each region represents that Deanery in diocesan matters and serves on the Bishop’s Council.

Chicago

Michael Flowers – Dean

Fr. Michael Flowers is Rector of St. Aidan’s Anglican Church, Kansas City, MO. He served on the Bishop’s Council 2017-2019 and has returned as acting Dean of the Chicago Deanery.

Barbara Gauthier

Dr. Barbara Gauthier is a high school Latin and Classical Greek instructor. She grew up in Tennessee, but has lived in the Chicago area for 33 years. This is her first term on Bishop’s Council, beginning July 2020.

Steve Williamson

Fr. Steve Williamson serves as the Dean of the Cathedral at Church of the Resurrection, IL. He began ministry as a worship leader and pastor and has served in ordained ministry since 2019. He has served on the Bishop’s Council since 2019.

Wisconsin

John Mackett – Dean

Fr. John Mackett is the Associate Rector of St. Michael’s in Delafield, WI. A life-long Wisconsinite, he was active in pastoral ministry for nearly 30 years in evangelical churches. He and his wife Betsy were received into the ACNA in 2018. He was ordained a priest in 2019. This is his first term on the Bishop’s Council.

Helen Buchanan

Helen Buchanan is a lifelong Anglican and lives in Walworth, WI with her husband, Fr. Steve Buchanan. Together the Buchanans planted Sts. Simeon & Anna Anglican Church in 2013 and its daughter congregation, Sts. Simeon & Anna Ridgestone, in 2017. Helen has been a church musician for over 40 years and is also a retired Music Therapist. This is her first term on the Bishop’s Council, beginning February 2022.

Matt Arndt

Fr. Matt Arndt has been a pastor for 30 years and is currently rector of Bread of Life Anglican Church in Madison, Wisconsin. He was ordained in 2005 and has served on the Bishop’s Council since July 2019.

Minnesota

Christian Ruch – Dean

Christian and his wife, Molly, followed the Spirit’s call for boundless revival when they planted Church of the Cross near Minneapolis in 2004, sponsored by Church of the Resurrection in Wheaton, IL. True to its own pioneering and mission-minded spirit, Church of the Cross then sought opportunities for Gospel multiplication by following the Spirit to a new thing. In 2012, they planted their first daughter church, Church of the Redeemer in St. Paul; in 2017, they planted Restoration Anglican in South Minneapolis.

Alyssa Tennison

Alyssa has been a member of Church of the Cross for 15 years. She has been involved in a number of ministries there, including serving on the Children’s Leadership Team, the prayer ministry team, and helping with readings and communion on Sunday mornings.

Alyssa studied history at Hillsdale College, and received an MA in Business from the University of Mary. Her background includes HR, sales, marketing, and homemaking. She and her husband, Justin have four children.

Meet the bishop and deans of our diocese.

Our bishop and deans are bound together as beloved brothers, sons, and fathers in Jesus. This Christian solidarity filters down from our leaders to every diocesan church, where trust, honesty, and truth are considered essential to healthy leadership.

Stewart Ruch III

Bishop of the Anglican Diocese of the Upper Midwest

Bishop Stewart and his wife, Katherine, have six children, and their first love and passion is developing their family as a “domestic church.” As bishop, Stewart has another deep-seated passion: to plant a revival of Word and Sacrament infused by the power of the Holy Spirit across the Upper Midwest. The diocese does this through modeling the 5 S Church in relationship and mission, raising up leaders and artists, and following the Spirit to new things.

Brenda Dumper

Lay Canon to the Ordinary

Brenda has been a member of Church of the Resurrection (the cathedral church of the Upper Midwest) since 1984. She joined the Resurrection staff team in 2009, and became Bishop (then Father) Stewart’s assistant in 2011. After Bp. Stewart was consecrated bishop in 2013, her responsibilities have been split between the Upper Midwest Diocese and Resurrection work.

Brenda’s love for the cathedral and the Diocese of the Upper Midwest is deep: she was baptized, confirmed, and married husband Don at Resurrection. Brenda and Don have four children: Donny, Allison, Annalisa and James. Other than serving the Diocese and Resurrection, some of Brenda’s favorite things are: being out in nature, camping, kayaking, bird watching and reading. She is a lover of coffee, dark chocolate (ok, any chocolate really), spring flowers and midwestern fall colors.

Stephen Gauthier

Canon Theologian

Canon Rev. Dr. Stephen Gauthier is a priest and Canon Theologian of the Diocese of the Upper Midwest. He assists the bishop on matters of theology and liturgy and is essential in helping to prepare candidates for ordination. Cn. Stephen also serves as Director of Formation for the Greenhouse Movement as the primary teacher in Saint Paul’s House of Formation, and the co-host of the Word and Table podcast.

Molly Ruch

Lay Canon for Church Planting

Canon Molly serves our diocese as the Lay Canon of Church Planting and broader province through her work as the Director of the Always Forward Institute for Church Planting, an initiative of the Anglican Church in North America.

Sixteen years ago, Fr. Christian and Molly planted the first daughter church of the Church of the Resurrection (now the diocesan cathedral) when when they moved to Minneapolis to start Church of the Cross. Together, they serve as the leaders of Gregory House North in Minnesota. Molly and Christian have four children: two in college and two at home.

Christian Ruch

Archdeacon