Our Staff
Rev. Jeny Carlson
Pastor
Pastor Jeny (she/her) has served the congregation at Northminster since 2018 and stepped into the role of Transitional Pastor in 2021. She has a passion for faith formation across our lifetime, believing that God is always presenting us with opportunities to grow, learn, and live into our calling to transform the world through God’s love.
Jeny’s educational and vocational background includes a degree in Biology Education, Certificates in Forensics and Social Work, and a Master’s in Divinity from Seattle University, where she cemented her call to work for social justice, particularly LGBTQ+ inclusion and reconciliation within the whole church. As a woman who puts the “B” in LGBT, she understands the challenges that come with not fitting neatly into boxes, and resonates with the living Christ who crossed all boundaries to share the love of God who calls us into deep relationship and community.
Jeny lives near Haller Lake with her husband, Lars and son, Gunnar, along with their dogs Leia, Pippi, and Tasha. She has two adult, daughters, Annika and Erika. She has a passion for knitting and counts that as an essential part of her daily meditative practice.
She is a HUGE Marvel Comics geek and if you really want to get her talking, ask her about anything connected to Captain America.
Dustin Wilsor
Director of Ministry
Dustin Wilsor (he/him) has had an extensive and varied career across the country as a theatre creator, administrator, educator, and minister. He received his BA in Entertainment Business from Full Sail University, and his MDiv & MA in Theology and the Arts at United Theological Seminary of the Twin Cities. He is on the ordination track in the (PCUSA) under care of Woodland Park Presbyterian. In ministry, he is committed to creative reimaginings of liturgical worship tradition, and is particularly interested in the intersection of theology and pop culture. He wrote his thesis on the Theology of Musical Theatre, and is passionate about developing creative, story-centered worship that seeks to invite fully-engaged participation in the Word rather than one-way observation of the Pastor. In this time at Northminster he hopes to begin to explore new ways in which we might experience and interpret scripture.
Rev. Martín Jiménez
Associate Pastor for development
Martin Jimenez is a Chicano (Mexican American from California) from the rural/suburban spaces south of the San Francisco Bay Area. My dad's family settled in Los Angeles early in the 20th century after escaping the violence of the Mexican Revolution while his mom's lineage comes through Oregon with various relations dating back to the earliest moments of the country.
After the rock and roll dream fizzled he finished his BA at San Francisco State University as the departmental honoree of the photojournalism school and went to work at a California weekly for a few years.
In 2006 he moved to Seattle to pursue Seminary where he worked and studied until graduating in 2012 and leaving employment there in 2016. Since then he has managed a Lilly Endowment Grant at Seattle Pacific University (Pivotnw.org) that seeks to understand why 20-somethings eschew church and what can be done to reverse that trend.
Valencio (2) and Petra (8) are the kids he raises with his wife Ali who works at UW. If he is daydreaming it is probably about his next time sailing on the waterways of the PNW, thinking of the next DND adventure to take his party on, or recalling a great Warriors basketball play from a recent game.
Joseph To
Music Director
Award-winning choral director, Joseph To (he/him) serves as music director for multiple organizations, including the Norwegian Ladies Chorus of Seattle; the Magnolia Chorale; Northminster Presbyterian Church; and the Seattle School District, one of the most diverse school districts in the nation.
He holds a master’s degree in choral conducting and a bachelor’s degree in music education. Interested in world music, especially Chinese choral music, Joseph has studied and presented Mandarin and Cantonese choral music and ethnomusicology implementation in secondary music education.
He serves as the Community Repertoire and Resources Chair of the Washington Chapter of American Choral Director Association (WAACDA). He is the recipient of the “Outstanding Emerging Choral Director” 2022 by the WAACDA and he will be presenting in NAfME Northwest regional conference in 2023 about ethnomusicology implementation plan for secondary music classrooms.
Chen Liang
Accompanist
Chinese-born pianist Chen Liang is an active figure on stages around the world. As a recording artist for KNS Classical in Spain and a performing artist for Chengdu City Concert Hall in China, Chen gives numerous recitals every year around the world.
As a passionate educator, Chen has been serving as a piano faculty at the State University of New York (Geneseo) and Chopin Academy of Music in Issaquah.
As a music entrepreneur, Chen is a Board Member of the Seattle International Piano Competition and the Artistic Director for the “Beyond Clouds” summer piano festival in Chengdu China.
As an active collaborative pianist, Chen plays for the Pacific Northwest Ballet and the Seattle Choral Company.
Before joining the beloved Northminster Presbyterian Church, Chen was the organist and pianist for the United Church of Pittsford in New York. Chen received his degrees in piano performance from Lynn University (BM) and the Eastman School of Music (MM, DMA).