Leadership & Staff
Leadership 2026 - 2027
Board of Trustees
President - Maureen Flanigan
Vice President - Kathy Derrick
Treasurer - Margie Boudreaux
Past President - Steve Benton
Trustee - Maris Biela
Trustee - Laura Shahtaji
Shared Ministry Team
Gerrie Spezia
Richard Pilatzke
Minister
Rev. Jenny Amstutz
Reverend Jenny Amstutz (she/her), a native of southwest Denver, began her ministry at Columbine UU Church the summer of 2021 after completing her Masters of Divinity at Meadville Lombard Theological School. She brings a passion for environmental and social justice to her ministry, having spent a decade building and promoting sustainable living residential demonstration projects (ecovillages) in Virginia, California, Missouri and Ireland. Rev. Jenny has been a passionate Unitarian Universalist ever since she discovered the religion in the early 2000s. She is a mother to five wonderful human beings and lives in Lakewood with her husband, children, and a menagerie of pets.
Email: minister@columbineuuchurch.org
Rev. Jenny's Website: www.jennyamstutz.com
Rev. Jenny's Blogsite: medium.com/@revjennyamstutz
Director of Music Ministry
Matthew Cox
Matthew is thrilled to be a part of the music ministry at Columbine UU Church. He received a Bachelor of Musical Arts degree from the Eastman School of Music, and studied Audio Music Engineering and American Sign Language at the University of Rochester. Matthew teaches piano, voice, violin, and viola at Deeply Rooted Music School in Arvada, and performs as a vocalist and and multi-instrumentalist throughout the Denver Metro Area.
When he’s not thinking about music, Matthew enjoys listening to music while exercising or vegetable gardening, and occasionally takes breaks from listening to music so that he can listen to NPR.
Email: music@columbineuuchurch.org
Director of Faith Exploration
Destiny Beeson
Destiny currently serves as the Director of Faith Exploration and Community Engagement Coordinator at CUUC. Alongside her leadership role, she works as a Substitute Educational Assistant for the Douglas County School District, supporting local students and schools.
Destiny is a dedicated advocate for the neurodivergent community. Driven by both personal connection and a deep passion for inclusion, she actively works to create supportive, accessible environments where neurodivergent individuals are understood, valued, and empowered to thrive.
When Destiny is not serving her community, she can be found managing a lively household complete with her children, a flock of chickens, and her dog, Ace.
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Office Administrator
Kerby Baier
Kerby (she/her) originally hails from the southeast and is grateful to be a part of the CUUC team. Primarily she is a singer and voice teacher, and moved to Denver to work with Opera Colorado in 2023. She was previously based in the triangle area of North Carolina.
She has worked in the church setting in the past, both as an administrator and as an associate music director. She enjoys spending time with her partner, practicing yoga, teaching voice lessons, a night out on the town, and live theatre.
Email: cuuc@columbineuuchurch.org
Accompanist
Grace Cacayorin
Grace has lived in Colorado most of her life and loves it here. After growing up in a musical home and being involved in church music from an early age, she earned a Bachelor of Arts in Music and taught piano lessons, band and music at a private school for many years. At home, she can often be found playing one instrument or another for the sheer fun of it. She also enjoys going on nature walks with her husband and three children, and loves to read and write in her spare time. She is excited to bring her longtime love of music along to the team at Columbine UU Church.
How is Columbine organized?
