Meet the Staff

The Rev. Dr. Mary E. Westfall has been the Senior Minister here at Community Church since 1999. Prior to joining us, Mary was the Executive Director of the United Campus Ministry and Chaplain to UNH for 11 years. She was Associate Pastor at West Park Presbyterian Church in New York City. Mary holds Bachelor’s Degrees in history and political science from Sterling College, graduated from San Francisco Theological Seminary, and received a Ph.D degree from the University of New Hampshire. Mary is married to Dale Rasmussen, an educator and Oyster River High School’s baseball coach. They have two children: Emma, a student at Philips Exeter Academy, and Zach,
a student at Oyster River Middle School.

Paula Norbert is the Director of Educational Ministries at Community Church of Durham. She brings with her more than 13 years of work as a college chaplain at Boston College and Loyola University of Chicago. While serving as chaplain, she helped organize retreats and worship as well as providing pastoral care, grief support and spiritual direction for those in the university community. She also organized service/immersion trips to Nicaragua, Mexico, and Ecuador, in addition to student-led service experiences in the Boston area and in Appalachia. She has experience teaching on the middle, high school, and college levels. Her education includes a BA in English from the College of the Holy Cross, a Masters in Education from Harvard University and a Masters of Theological Studies from Weston Jesuit School of Theology. Paula and her husband, Rich Westley, live in southern Maine with their two children, Emma, age 4 and Liam, age 2. Her husband is a teacher of high school English and Instructional Support in Portland, Maine.

David Ervin is our Music Director. He is also a music teacher at Oyster River Middle School, where he directs their renowned Jazz Band. He is married to fellow teacher Ellen Ervin, and they have two children, Thatcher and Alana.

Gloria Mason is Community Church of Durham's Educational Program Coordinator. She assists Paula Norbert by keeping the Church School running smoothly. She has served on the CE Cabinet twice and is a former Chair of the Diaconate. In addition to years of teaching in Sunday School, she was also previously a member of the Chancel Choir. Gloria been a member of Community Church since 1967. She is also a Registered Nurse and Certified Guardian ad Litem in the state of New Hampshire. Gloria is married to Bill Mason, an attorney and active member of our congregation. She has 4 children, 3 stepchildren, and 10 grandchildren.

Tom Murphy has joined the office staff as Business Administrator. He and his wife, Peggy, raised their three children in Montpelier, Vermont, where Tom worked as an attorney and real estate investment manager for National Life Insurance Company. Peggy is a Registered Nurse. When Tom took early retirement, they moved to Cape Cod, expecting the children to visit. In short order, however, the children relocated – one to Burlington, VT and one to Dover, NH. Two years ago, when another daughter selected Dover for her home, Tom and Peggy promptly followed to be closer to the kids and grandchildren.

Leslye Dedopoulos has been a member of Community Church since 1995 and its Administrative Assistant since February, 2002. She has a Bachelor's Degree in Political Science from the University of NH and an AAS Degree in Culinary Arts from the Culinary Institute at NH College. She lives in Durham with Finn, beagle extraordinaire. Her daughter Meredith is a student at University at Albany (SUNY).