Staff
Rev. Nick Coates (he/him)
Lead Minister
Nick believes that everyone & everything is spiritual and his joy in life is helping people explore what it means to be human and alive in the world.
He is honoured to have joined the team and community of Wellington Square in August 2023, and wants to build and be a part of a church where anyone & everyone can come to connect with God, each other, and themselves and learn from Jesus how to create a life and world of love, justice, and peace.
Originally from the Maritimes, Nick has lived, studied, and worked in Toronto, Montreal, and Calgary. He received a Masters of Divinity and Masters of Arts in Theology from the University of Toronto.
He loves his two dogs Walter & Lewis who live with their mom in Calgary, enjoys being active, music, cooking, and hanging out at his fav local coffee shop.
Core values: courage & faith
Favourite food: pizza, asian food, cookies … I can’t decide!
Most influential book: Velvet Elvis – Rob Bell
Kim Belanger (she/her)
Director of Children’s Ministry, Designated Lay Minister (DLM)
Kim joined the Wellington Square family in July 2019. She is the Director of Children’s Ministry programs at the church and loves to spend time walking alongside the amazing people and families at Wellington.
Kim joined Wellington Square after spending over 20 years in ministry in Oakville. She felt called into youth ministry many years ago as a Staff Associate in the United Church, and then became a Recognized DLM in 2014. In 2022, she was commissioned to do sacraments which she thoroughly enjoys and loves to share Jesus with others.
When she isn’t at church, Kim enjoys spending time with her husband and two adult daughters, taking in sunsets, and connecting with others. While Kim’s main focus is Children and Family Ministries, she is available for weddings, funerals, pastoral care, and ANY chance to be a cheerleader on the sidelines of special events happening in your lives!
Adam Cresswell (he/him)
Director of Youth Ministries
Adam is our Director of Youth Ministries and has been with our church since 2015. Growing up in the United Church and spent years at the UCC Summer Camps that WSUC has supported and been supported by for decades. He is passionate about the way of Jesus, and it’s LGBTQ+ affirming and decolonizing call to our lives.
Adam loves connecting young people with that liberating, justice-rooted, life-changing and radically inclusive love of Jesus. He does this not just in his role at Wellington Square, but also as Director of The Hub Community Network—a ministry network originally seeded from those summer camps that connects teenagers and twenty-somethings across Ontario with home churches, worship, justice work and leadership development.
When he’s not having a blast directing our youth program for Grades 7-12 or leading The Hub, Adam is probably going on adventures hiking, swimming or watching Star Wars with his girlfriend Kristen and their dog Enzo.
Peggy Wright (she/her)
Director of Contemporary Music Ministry
New to Wellington Square staff in May 2023, Peggy Wright has been part of wonderful United Church communities since she was a child. She has been involved in UCC camps as a teacher, director, mentor and worship leader which has transitioned naturally into a variety of roles in church settings.
After a health crash in her early twenties, Peggy leaned into God’s nudges to move from stress mode to healing mode. In the process. she recovered her sense of self and healthier ways of relating to others. Integrating fragments of memory from trauma was a restoring journey outlined in her newly published book: Opening to Grace. Peggy loved homeschooling her three boys through elementary school and experimenting with creative social justice projects with youth alongside her husband.
Peggy is delighted to be part of the Wellington team that crafts services on Sunday mornings. Peggy shares her family home with four McMaster students each year. She enjoys meaningful conversations with family and friends; talking about faith, relationships, leadership, and self-care; inspiring songs and stories; yoga and dancing; reflection and creativity.
Core Values: Grace and Peace
Favourite Food: Enjoy Life Chocolate Chips – Yay, no allergens.
Most Influential Book: A New Kind of Christian – Brian McLaren
Sunyi Shin (she/her)
Director of Traditional Music Ministry
Sunyi Shin joined Wellington Square in November 2022 as the Music Director for the Traditional service. She majored in organ performance in church music and graduated from McGill University. Eventually Sunyi won second place at the Quebec organ competition.
She became the head teacher and founder of the Mont-Royal Music Academy for 20 years, then served as a College Organist at the Presbyterian College in Montreal just before moving to Burlington. She has been a conductor of the Korean mission choir organizing many concerts for the overseas mission.
Her mottos in life are: ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength’, and ‘Love your neighbour as yourself.’
Aaron Hutchinson (he/they)
Audio-Video Technician
Aaron Hutchinson joined Wellington Square in January 2022 as our AV Technician. They have brought their wealth of expertise to our worship services and incorporated many new technical features.
Aaron is an award-winning musician and sound artist from Hamilton, Ontario. They hold an MA in Communication and New Media from McMaster University and currently make music with a wide variety of artists from Choral/Classical to avant-garde Noise/Punk music.
Aaron has performed with the Toronto Symphony Youth Orchestra, the Hamilton Philharmonic Youth Orchestra, and the Hamilton All-Star Jazz Band. Hundreds of performances have taken Aaron to Europe, USA, across Quebec and around Ontario. Aaron is a founding member of the Hamilton Audio Visual Node (HAVN), Fort Rose recording Studio and the HAVNrecords DIY music label. Nowadays, Aaron is also busy recording sound on the sets of TV shows and Films.
In their personal time, Aaron loves binge-watching reality TV with their precious girlfriend Kenzie.
Lisa Lunski (she/her)
Director of Community Food Programs
Lisa and her children have been a part of Wellington Square for over 18 years. She has a passion for outreach and bringing the community together.
In 2009, our Men’s Ministry started the Friday Night Community Dinner and shortly afterwards, Lisa stepped in to support and grow it to what it is today. Lisa began on staff in 2015 and during COVID, she and her dedicated team pivoted to the Meal Bag Program, providing emergency food support to those in need.
Lisa is presently the Director of Community Food Programs which provides emergency food support, care and fellowship to many. Lisa has a passion for learning about and supporting people in their journey of mental wellness.
Outside of work, Lisa enjoys cycling and staying active, gardening and spending time with her friends and grown children.
Nancy Pizzale (she/her)
Community Food Program Coordinator
Nancy and her family started volunteering with the Meal Bag Program at Wellington Square at the beginning of Covid and have been a part of the ministry ever since.
Nancy joined the staff in September 2022. Her roles include assisting with the various programs and working with the amazing volunteer teams as well as maintaining strong relationships with our partners in the community.
Nancy enjoys working with a variety of people and loves the camaraderie that is a part of the program. Her husband, Dennis, and two adult daughters, Lauren and Grace, are also an integral part of the Community Food Programs team.
When not caring for our community, Nancy enjoys spending time with friends, walking her dogs, travelling, entertaining and reading.
Catherine Wagg (she/her)
Administrator
Catherine has been attending Wellington Square with her husband Ritch, and their sons Brian and Daniel, since 2000. Catherine joined the staff team in 2007 as admin support and became the Administrator in 2014. She has always enjoyed the many opportunities she has in her role to help others from both the congregation and in the larger community.
When Catherine isn’t in the office or helping out at church events, you can find her spending time with her family, or reading a book on the shores of Lake Huron and enjoying the sunshine, travelling or watching a Broadway musical. Catherine loves to connect with others and is always willing to find an answer to any question asked.
Danielle Roche (she/her)
Administrative Assistant
Danielle started at Wellington Square in 2022, and will be in our church office on Wednesdays and Fridays working alongside Catherine Wagg. She has a wealth of front desk and technological experience. She is very personable and loves helping people.
Danielle is excited to be part of the positive church community here at Wellington Square, in particular the Journey for Justice (J4J) committee.
In her spare time she bikes, hikes, walks, reads, cooks and enjoys her coffee.
Jeffrey Price (he/him)
Bookkeeper
While Jeff joined the Wellington Square staff in May 2023, he has been a member of this faith community since well before the turn of the century.
Jeff has a CPA designation and enjoys diving deep into the numbers, but he also has a bit of a creative side and has been known to perform improv at the local community centre.
Away from the church, Jeff loves spending time with his lovely wife, Leslie. You may find the two of them on the golf course, the ski hill, trying their hand at an escape room, or perhaps even hiking the Bruce Trail.