In late 2007, Tommy Hinson joined with a group of men and women living in Columbia Heights, and together they established Church of the Advent. Prior to this time, Tommy lived in Boston, where his passion for urban renewal was born out of his tenure as a mental health counselor working with underserved populations.

A native of North Carolina, Tommy attended Furman University in Greenville, SC, where he met his wife, Laura. Tommy received an M.Div. and an M.A. in counseling from Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary in South Hamilton, MA. He and Laura have two sons, Riley and Maddox, a daughter, Emmeline, and a dog named Jasper.

Deborah Tepley has been attending Church of the Advent since the fall of 2010. She has twenty years of experience in business, operations and human resources management for mission-based organizations in the faith-based, non-profit, and international development sectors. She especially enjoys leading organizations that are starting up or transitioning to a different organizational development stage.

Deborah felt called to ministry at a young age and holds an M.A. in Cross-Cultural Studies from Fuller Theological Seminary and an M.B.A. from Georgetown University. This position brings things “full circle” for Deborah, combining her love for the church and skills in organizational leadership, and she feels like she’s landed her dream job. Deborah met her husband, Luke Jackson, at an Advent potluck. They have both been deeply involved in several church ministries over the years and count Advent as their family in DC. They live with their housemates in Petworth.

Before working at Advent, Jeff Simpson served as a campus minister with Cru for eight years at the University of Virginia, the University of Maryland, and Washington University in St. Louis. Over time, he was drawn to the Anglican way of following Jesus through beauty, liturgy, and Reformed theology.

Jeff grew up in Damascus, MD and attended the University of Maryland and Covenant Theological Seminary in St. Louis, MO, where he received an M.Div. He lives in Arlington and loves playing any sport with mediocrity and fine tuning his pour over coffee skills. Some of his favorite places in DC are Union Market, Rock Creek Park, and Hains Point.

Born in Jacksonville, FL, Hilary Van Wagenen has been a member of Church of the Advent since it was a Friday night house church in 2007. Although her background is in classical piano teaching and performance, she’s passionate about connecting congregations with their Creator through all styles of music. She studied music at Furman University (B.M.) and Catholic University (M.M., D.M.A.) and has played a lot of piano in a lot of places, but being part of Advent’s worship team is her absolute favorite. She is proud to have been awarded the unofficial, yet very important, distinction of “classical pianist most knowledgeable about baseball” by her husband, Tom, and son, Peter, who know about these things. When she’s not attending Peter’s baseball games, she also enjoys reading, eating good food, hiking, and going for long walks with her two dogs and Cheverly neighbors.

Sharon Walsh worked as an Operations Manager for 22 years in Anglican churches in the UK, having become a Christian as an adult at a church in Oxford. She moved to DC from London in February 2023 with her American husband, Tom, and they joined the Church of the Advent shortly after.  She loves imposing order on chaos and using the gifts of organization and administration the Lord has given to her in his service. She and Tom live on Capitol Hill and enjoy hosting friends and family as often as they can.

Heather Morton grew up in Corvallis, Oregon, and moved to the DC area after receiving her BA in English from Covenant College and her MA in English from the University of Virginia. She taught twelfth-grade American lit and then worked in communications in university and think-tank settings before stepping out of fulltime work to begin her family. In recent years she’s balanced family commitments with freelance writing/editing work, as well as volunteering in a variety of church ministry roles. Heather lives in Cheverly, MD, with her husband Mark and their three teenage kids, Claire, Lilah, and Cole. She enjoys reading, writing, running, long talks with friends, and handily beating her family in animated games of “Celebrity.”

Susan Calhoun is originally from Spokane, WA. After finishing her degree in International Studies at Baylor University, she moved to DC in 2014 to pursue a master's degree in International Communication. Susan comes with extensive experience in events planning and management. She and her husband Julian, both members, have been worshiping at Advent since the fall of 2018. She loves reading and lives in Capitol Heights, MD with her husband and approximately 10,000 books.

Jeff Bailey is the Canon for Leadership Development in the Diocese of Christ Our Hope, where he assists the Bishop in the leadership of our diocese. Prior to this, Jeff and his family lived in England for eight years, where he enjoyed Arsenal, pubs, and the BBC, but never cricket. He taught political theology at the University of Cambridge, and later became Managing Director of the Centre for Social Justice, a policy think tank in London. He sits on various boards for organizations working at the intersection of faith and public life, and is a graduate of Duke University and the University of Cambridge. He and his wife, Alicia, have three teenagers and live in the Takoma neighborhood of Washington, DC.

Michael Ellison was born and raised in Manassas, VA. He started attending Church of the Advent when he moved to Washington, DC, to study at The Catholic University of America. He studies philosophy, theology, and history. In his free time, he can be found playing music on one of his six instruments, reading, traveling, enjoying the outdoors, or spending time with friends. Michael has worked at Christian youth summer camps, in housing and homelessness service programs, and in many church ministries, but worship has always held a special place in his heart. After college, he hopes to continue his education by attending seminary and becoming an Anglican priest.