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Our Pastors and Staff


Co-Pastor – Kristin Gorton

Rev. Kris has multiple connections to the United Church of Christ. She grew up in and was confirmed at Plymouth UCC in Dodgeville, and was a member of the McFarland UCC for over 20 years. She attended the University of Wisconsin-Madison, obtaining a BA in Communication Arts and a MS in Communicative Disorders. She worked at the Waisman Center as a speech and language pathologist. Participating in the Wisconsin Conference UCC’s Lay Academy program, Kris began to delve into the ways in which God was leading her to serve the church. In May of 2017, Kris completed her Masters of Divinity studies at the Chicago Theological Seminary (CTS).

Her ministry interests include exploring the intersections between spirituality and social advocacy, cross-generational faith formation, and providing sacred spaces that are accessible to all. Kris is involved with the Multi-faith Coalition of South Central Wisconsin and Dane County’s Restorative Justice program.

Kris and her husband Steve are from Dodgeville and have been married for over 35 years. They have two adult children, Nicole (and Josh) Woodstock and Joshua (and Emily) Gorton, and 4 granddaughters. Together, Kris and Steve enjoy biking, hiking, and traveling.

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Co-Pastor – Peter Morris

Peter moved to Madison in 2011, when he began serving as pastor of Arbor Covenant Church. As Arbor and Memorial’s connection deepened, so did Peter’s connection to the UCC. He was credentialed by the UCC in 2023 and began officially serving at Memorial in the summer of 2024.

Peter has graduate degrees in divinity and community development and also serves as the executive director of the Arbor Good Neighbor House — a nonprofit that is reimagining the space that once housed Arbor Covenant Church as a community asset where collaboration is cultivated and resources are shared.

Peter and his spouse Tamsin have been married since 2013 and have a son named Theo and a wheaten terrier named Winfrey. He enjoys cooking and traveling, watching movies and reading books. Peter grew up in Seattle and still has deep love for the Cascade mountain range.

Email Pastor Peter

Director of Music – Jonathan Schroerlucke

Jonathan SchroerluckeJonathan brings to Memorial a broad musical background. He has experience directing choirs. He has familiarity with a wide range of instruments and is proficient with piano, guitar, bass and other instruments. He teaches voice and guitar and he sings in the chorus with the Milwaukee Florentine Opera. He also composes and arranges music. His primary job is as the Marketing Manager for Madison Opera.

He graduated from Verona High, then went to North Central College, a Methodist college in Naperville, Ill., where he earned a bachelor’s degree in music in 2009 and received the Outstanding Music Student Award there. While in college, he was the student director of the choir and he spent a semester abroad studying music in Tunisia and Turkey. During the summers, he worked at a summer camp program through the college, teaching music to children. And he was involved in the music program at a local church in Naperville as an assistant to the music director.

He is married to Solveig (Smithback) and they have a daughter.

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Church Administrator – Jamie Gaffke

Jamie Gaffke joined the staff at Memorial in June, 2020. Prior to that, she worked in Religious Education, as an administrator, and Director of Congregational Life at Unitarian Universalist churches in Arlington, VA and Rockford, IL. Jamie grew up in southeastern Wisconsin and earned her BA at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse and her MSE at the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh. She and her family live in Madison and enjoy outdoor adventures, baking, and reading.

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Youth Faith Development Leader – Mo Foster

Pianist – Jeff Darwin
Bell Choir - Betsy Robbins
Bell Choir –
Betsy Robbins
Instruments - Mark Sieger
Instruments –
Mark Sieger

Nursery staff – Brenda Boutelle and Indy Eliganti

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