St. Thomas Episcopal Church in Sun Valley has announced the hiring of a new rector, the Rev. Kenneth H. Brannon. His first services will be held at 8 a.m. and 9:30 a.m. Sunday, July 15.
The interim rector, Bishop Craig Anderson, came in June of last year. He will be moving on to a new position as pastor at Emmanuel Episcopal Church on Orcas Island, Wash.
Brannon's appointment follows a 14-month national search, conducted by a 12-member search committee from St. Thomas. Bishop Harry Bainbridge, bishop of the Diocese of Idaho, with the Episcopal Church Deployment Office in New York City, supported the committee in its work. Six men and women were eventually winnowed from 70 applications from across the country. During the interview process, Brannon "conveyed extraordinary wisdom, energy and ability to relate warmly with everyone he met," said St. Thomas Parish Administrator Linda Thorson.
His appointment was announced Wednesday, June 13.
Brannon, 38, is currently the associate rector at the Church of St. Barnabas in Irvington, N.Y. His wife, Rachel Miller Brannon, is a clinical social worker and Jungian analyst-in-training. They have two children: Lucy, 10, and Isaac, 6.
A native of Fort Collins, Colo., Brannon spent his early childhood in Mandeville, La. He attended high school at a Christian international school in southern India while his parents worked in Saudi Arabia. He received his bachelor of arts degree in psychology from Wheaton College in Illinois, and a master's degree in drama therapy from New York University.
During his seminary years at Virginia Theological Seminary, Brannon worked at St. Alban's Episcopal Church in Washington, D.C.
Courtesy photo
The Rev. Kenneth Brannon is the new pastor of St. Thomas Episcopal Church in Sun Valley.
