Meet Our Staff
Rev. Jonathan has been an ordained minister since 1981. He is also a psychologist. He supervised interns for many years at the Pacific Pride Foundation, a local LGBTQ+ center. He teaches Jungian psychology and religious studies at the Pacifica Graduate Institute. His own search for meaning included studies with Viktor Frankl. Dr. Young's books and articles focus on the inner journey. He assisted mythologist Joseph Campbell at seminars and served as the founding curator of the Joseph Campbell Archives. Jonathan is seen on the History Channel as a mythology commentator. Travels and anthropological field work shaped his awareness of cultural uniqueness and the diversity of spiritual paths. “My own idea of a cathedral is hiking in the redwoods. Holiness can be found in the vastness of the cosmos, a child’s smile, or a caring group of people, like Live Oak."
In addition to being a vital part of Live Oak's music ministry as vocal soloist and choir member, Janet serves as a volunteer bookkeeper for our congregation, giving generously her time, talent, and treasure. Those are side gigs to her full-time career at the Santa Barbara Foundation where she is the Senior Director of Finance. As much there as at Live Oak, Janet is energized by working in collaboration with others to achieve shared goals and improve operating efficiency. Abundantly experienced and capable, Janet is a Certified Public Accountant and holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration with a concentration in accounting from the University of Washington. She counts Live Oak as her spiritual community, and has been an active, cherished member of this congregation for years. One of her favorite quotes:
Christina Boardman is a Santa Barbara native, who did her undergraduate studies at Scripps College in Claremont, California. In 2019 she completed her master's thesis in neuroscience at the University of Strasbourg in France. Back in Santa Barbara, she serves as Youth Coordinator for the Unitarian Society of Santa Barbara. During the pandemic she was Lead Youth Teacher at the Unitarian Universalist congregation of Eugene, Oregon. She comes to Live Oak with experience and UU sensibilities. Whether working with children, youth, young adults, or adults, Christina brings passion, creativity and a steadfast emphasis on inclusion and fun!
A retired high-school history teacher, Melanie is honored to serve as Administrator at Live Oak, her spiritual home for three decades. She grew up in San Diego with an agnostic father, who attended the Church of Sunday NFL, a sporty form of televangelism that at times got him up on his feet, shouting God's name at the whistle-blowing deacons in black and white with such intensity that the family was convinced he was touched. In retirement, Melanie's parents turned to a far less pentecostal group - Summit Unitarian Universalist Fellowship - for whom the question was more important than the answer. They encouraged Melanie to visit a UU congregation when she moved to Santa Barbara in 1993, saying she'd find her people there. She obeyed, and has praised her parents' wisdom ever since. Melanie is ever grateful to have sunk roots into this congregation, which has held her through changes, joys, and sorrows. This administrative role only deepens her belief in community and the expansiveness of our care for each other and Live Oak's future.
I began working as a professional musician a 17, performing at restaurants and hotels in Ventura. A few years later I was performing on cruise ships and, in 1990, moved to New York City. For nearly 20 years I played at many of Manhattan’s best-known hotels, clubs and restaurants and worked in musical theater as rehearsal pianist for various shows. While visiting my parents in Oxnard, I met my future wife, Lisa. In 2009, I moved back to California, and we settled in Carpinteria. I enjoy cooking and making up my own recipes and working with my wife in our garden. For the last few years, I’ve been a substitute or interim pianist for various congregations; I’ve found that places of worship call upon multiple areas of my skill set and are a positive and rewarding environment to work in. It is an honor and pleasure to serve as Music Director for Live Oak UU Congregation!
I have a long connection with Live Oak as I spent most of my formative years here, coming up through the Religious Exploration programs and completing the Coming of Age program in my early teens. You may remember me as the towheaded, bowlcut wearing kid running around the congregation in my youth.
In my adult years I've worked mostly in the information technology (IT) industry, primarily in the information security and ethical hacking spaces. I traveled nearly non-stop for close to 5 years consulting all over the globe. More recently (and much more locally) I spent a number of years doing property management and administration for the Montesano Group here in Santa Barbara (owners of Joe's Cafe, Tre Lune, Lucky Steakhouse, and others.) Branching out of IT and into other areas of business has given me a great leg up professionally, bringing my technical, troubleshooting, and automation skills to whatever new challenges arise. I hope to continue this here at Live Oak, and help out both the Board and Congregation with a number of projects going forward!
Outside of work I spend as much time as I can traveling abroad. I took up golf during the pandemic (like millions of others) and am absolutely hooked. I hear there might even be a group that plays here at Live Oak!
