Ryan Wagner
Pianist / Organist and Marketing Manager
Ryan moved to Seattle from the New York City metropolitan area in 2017. A classically trained pianist, he holds a degree in piano performance from Oberlin Conservatory of Music in Ohio. Ryan has an extensive background in providing music for church worship services, as well as weddings, memorials, and events throughout NYC and Seattle. He is active as an accompanist & collaborator within the Seattle music scene
Ryan has performed and recorded with a diverse range of ensembles, choirs and instrumentalists throughout his musical career. Ryan is also a dedicated music educator and teaching artist, offering piano lessons throughout the city. Ryan also serves as Marketing Manager for MUCC. In his spare time, Ryan enjoys hiking, travel, spending time with his pup, and exploring everything the beautiful PNW has to offer. More information can be found via his website: www.ryanwagnermusic.com
Michael McKenzie (they/them)
Music Director
Michael McKenzie is a national award-winning conductor and music educator, whose work centers around the power that choral music has to affect social change. Michael serves as the Director of Music at Magnolia United Church of Christ. Outside of MUCC, they are a Managing Director of Voices for Social Justice, a national nonprofit organization whose work combines social activism with justice-centered artistic expression through performance, resources, and community collaboration. Michael is currently pursuing their DMA in Choral Conducting at the University of Washington School of Music. Prior to this, they graduated with an MM in Choral Conducting, with honors, from the Bob Cole Conservatory of Music at California State University – Long Beach. There, Michael served as the director of ConChord, a student community chorus, and as a teaching assistant for the University Choir and Bob Cole Chamber Choir. Michael was the Founder and Director of two Social Justice Choirs at Gustavus Adolphus College, and their performances earned them 2nd place in The American Prize for Choral Conducting – Community Division and an invitation to present a concert at The 2020 Nobel Conference. Michael graduated from Gustavus Adolphus College, summa cum laude, in 2019 with a BA in Music Education and certification in K-12 Vocal, Instrumental, and Classroom music.
Rev. Michael Haven (she/her)
Minister-in-Covenant
Michael comes to us from the San Francisco Bay area. She holds a Master of Divinity from Pacific School of Religion in Berkeley, CA. MUCC called Michael as Traveling Minister of the Arts which allowed her Ordination in April 2018. She joined MUCC in May of that year. With over 30 years’ experience on stage, Michael brings a theatrical eye to Scripture. Working with other members of MUCC in BiblioDrama workshops, Michael develops scripts that are part contemporary, part Scriptural, bringing these sacred stories to life on the chancel stage. She is proud to be a member of this open-hearted, radically inclusive Christian community.
Rev. Maureen McLain (she/her)
Minister-in-Covenant
Maureen has been a long-time member of the MUCC Community and became Ordained in the United Church of Christ in the Summer of 2022. She served MUCC through her Covenant Ministry of Adult Education.
Rev. Marci Scott-Weis (she/her)
Pastor
Marci comes to Magnolia UCC with a very diverse background. She formerly ran a community health clinic in Nepal, was a hospice nurse on the front lines during the peak of the AIDS crisis, studied health policy and helped run a non-profit healthcare company. She has a Masters in Divinity from Seattle University and a Certificate in Spiritual Direction. She has a passion for worship and spiritual experiences that extend beyond Sunday mornings and outside of the church walls into our greater community. Outside of Magnolia, Marci enjoys reading a good work of fiction in front of a fire on a cold, rainy day or taking a hike deep into the Cascades with her daughters.
Taylor Hawn
Taylor (they/them) made their home in Seattle in 2022 after moving from the high desert of Bend, Oregon. Though baffled by the near-constant winter damp on this side of the Cascade Range, they are delighted to join the wonderful staff at Magnolia United Church of Christ (MUCC). Taylor graduated from Oregon State University with a degree in religious studies. The ways in which religion, linguistics, and feeling shape one another is of particular interest to them and they are excited to learn more while ensconced in the MUCC community. Outside of the church, Taylor loves nothing more than to curl up with tea, a good book, and a cat.
Lauren Schulz (she/her)
Accountant
Lauren Schulz serves the MUCC Community as the Bookkeeper. She grew up in Shoreline as a member of Richmond Beach UCC and still enjoys performing with the RBCC Players community theater group. She is now living in Kirkland and an active member of Northlake Unitarian Universalist Church where she serves as their finance committee chair. Lauren is also the bookkeeper for three other churches in the area. In her free time Lauren can be found exploring local parks or working on creative projects with her two kids.
Jasper Scott-Weis
Rev. Becky Withington (she/her)
Minister-in-Covenant
Rev Becky is a graduate of Seattle University as well as an ordained Minister in the United Church of Christ (UCC). She serves as a Minister of Transformative Spirituality in covenant with MUCC and serving the wider church and community at large. Rev. Becky is called to create and lead spiritual practices and experiences that invite God’s people to approach these thin places with open hearts and spirits through forms of prayer and devotions, guided meditations, and spiritual retreats, and to encourage the regular application of spiritual practices to everyday life.