Meet Our Staff

The Rev. Dr. Joseph F. Cistone has served as Seaside UCC’s Pastor since March 13, 2016, (to read more about Joe’s call and his April 17, 2016, installation please see below). Founded in 1886, Seaside UCC prides itself on Welcoming All Who Welcome All and, as such, is a Just Peace, Open & Affirming, and Sanctuary Congregation. At Seaside, Joe currently serves alongside Licensed Minister & Member in Discernment, Hannah Mondarch, and Affiliated Pastor, the Rev. Sarah Pringle-Lewis. Joe is a longstanding member, and current Moderator, of the Coordinating Council of the United Church of Christ’s Sunrise Association (Hancock, Waldo, & Washington Counties), Maine. Since 2015, Joe has held an appointment as a Lecturer in Social Ethics at Yale Divinity School and teaches regularly at the UCC-affiliated Eden Theological Seminary. Prior to his call at Seaside, Joe served as the International Outreach Minister at St. Paul’s Community Church, UCC, in Cleveland, Ohio.

Joe was named the fourth Executive Director/Chief Executive Officer of IPM (International Partners in Mission) in 2001. Founded in 1974, IPM is the premier, intersectional, multi-faith organization for international transformational learning experiences and direct person-to-person, community-based, partnerships, exchanges, and programs that nurture & affirm justice, solidarity, and peace. Joe provides the strategic vision, leadership, and supervision of all activities, programs, and staff of this international and intersectional non-governmental organization with offices in El Salvador, India, Italy, Kenya, and the USA. IPM has quintupled in size during Joe’s tenure with over 2,500 Immersion Experience Program participants since 2002 while impacting the lives of more than 100,000 persons annually. Seaside UCC members have travelled to El Salvador with Joe and collectively participated in a Virtual Immersion Experience there in 2020. IPM is a longstanding Outreach Partner of Seaside and each year IPM Project Coordinators from countries as disparate as Colombia, El Salvador, India, Kenya, Nepal, and Nicaragua visit MDI to share with our faith community.

Prior to joining IPM, Joe served as the Vice President of Capital, Endowment, and Philanthropic Programs at The Catholic Diocese of Cleveland Foundation (1997-2001). From 1990-1997, Joe lived in Rome, Italy where he pursued a Ph.D. at the Gregorian University and worked with a variety of organizations. Joe was a Research Assistant in the Department of Programmes at Caritas Internationalis (1990-1992); the Director of the Joined Hands Refugee Center (1991-1995); and, as Associate Director of the International Office for Justice, Peace, & Integrity of Creation of the Franciscan Friars Minor (1995-1997) with whom he remains actively engaged on Human Rights issues.

Joe holds degrees from the College of the Holy Cross (B.A. in History and Religious Studies) and Yale Divinity School (M.A.R with a Concentration in Social Ethics); a Certificate in Diversity and Inclusion from Cornell University; an Executive Education Certificate in Non-Profit Management from Case Western Reserve University; and, a Doctor of Ministry Degree (D.Min.) from Eden Theological Seminary. He serves on a number of international and national Boards—including MDI’s Abbe Museum where he is the former Chair—has lectured, preached, and taught at leading academic &/or religious institutions around the world, and has had his work published widely.

Joe is the recipient of the Sanctae Crucis Award from Holy Cross (Worcester, MA), the highest non-degree recognition bestowed by the College on an alumna/us, was member of the charter class of Cleveland Bridge Builders (2001), received a special Founders Award from Gilmour Academy (Gates Mills, OH), and is an Associate Member of the Iona Community, (Scotland). While Joe travels extensively for his international work & teaching, he resides primarily in both Mount Desert, ME, and Cleveland, OH, with his spouse Alyne Kemunto Cistone (a Kenyan Attorney) and is the proud father of Francesca, JJ, and Kemy.

You can reach Joe directly at: 207.276.5521 or jfcistone@ipmconnect.org.

Follow Joe’s ministry at Seaside at: https://www.facebook.com/groups/46922863436

Joe’s blog may be found at: https://josephfranciscistone.net

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Hope Rowan has a music degree from Colby College, specializing in piano performance. Her other music activities include teaching piano to children and adults on MDI, and messing around with celtic and bluegrass music on the mandolin. When not performing or teaching music, Hope has a day job as a cartographer, creating maps for, among other things, all kinds of trails across the state of Maine. In any spare time that is left she enjoys hiking and XC skiing with her dog Tess and enjoying the great Maine outdoors as much as possible. Hope resides in Southwest Harbor for most of the year, and in Steuben during the summers.

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