Meet Our Team

OUR CLERGY

THE REV'D MICHAEL J BORDELON
Rector

The Rev. Michael J. Bordelon was installed as the seventh Rector of St. Barnabas Episcopal Church in August of 2019. Fr. Michael is a native of Alexandria, Louisiana and holds degrees from Louisiana College, BS and The University of the South, M.Div. Prior to being called to ordained life, Michael had a business career with a Fortune 500 company: Stryker Orthopedics, specializing in Total Joint Replacement. Before coming to St. Barnabas, Fr. Michael was the Curate and School Chaplain of Grace Episcopal Church in Monroe, Louisiana. Fr. Michael is married to Lauren Bordelon. They have two beautiful children, Hollis and Henry.

Fr. Michael enjoys summer camp, meeting new friends, practical jokes, and looking for any possible opportunity to talk about Jesus Christ and then making that love real in the world.

THE REV'D BENJAMIN GEORGE-THOMS
Curate

The Rev. Benjamin Thoms began his work as Curate at St. Barnabas in May of 2023 after graduating with his M.Div. from The School of Theology at The University of the South. Fr. Ben was also ordained to the Priesthood at St. Barnabas in May of 2023 as well. A native of Louisiana, he is the youngest of four and also holds a B.A. in Modern Languages from the University of Louisiana, Monroe. He enjoys sharing life in all of its joys with his husband, Jacob.

His passion is telling of God's love for all in Christ and the Mission of the Church: "to restore all people to unity with God and each other in Christ... as it prays and worships, proclaims the Gospel, and promotes justice, peace, and love" (The Catechism, Book of Common Prayer, 854).

OUR STAFF

ARIELLE LATIOLAIS
Director of Communications

Arielle Latiolais is a digital evangelist dedicated to making faith more accessible in the digital age. As the Director of Communications, she’s transformed St. Barnabas' online presence, turning it into a vibrant community that reaches beyond the walls of the church building. Her efforts have positioned St. Barnabas as a notable voice in Episcopal digital spaces.

Arielle and her husband have been members of St. Barnabas since 2018, and both of their children were baptized here. In addition to her communications role, she serves as Clerk of the Vestry and is involved in various worship ministries.

PHYLLIS MAYO
Director of Congregational Vitality

Phyllis is a sixth generation Louisianan who went to kindergarten in Morocco, junior
high in Japan, and graduated from high school in Honolulu. Her military family was originally from central Louisiana where she was born. She retired (for the first time) in 2008, after serving in Governor Kathleen Blanco’s administration. Before that, Phyllis worked for Cleco in corporate communications and business development. Her background also includes arts administration, media relations and advertising.

Phyllis received degrees from LSU and UNO and was the first woman elected to the
Alexandria City Council. St. Barnabas has been her faith community since moving to Lafayette to be near her two grown children.

SHANTELL GOMEZ
Accounting Coordinator

Shantell Gomez serves as the Accounting Coordinator at St. Barnabas, bringing over a decade of finance experience from both banking and nonprofit sectors. She holds Bachelor's degrees in Business Administration and Behavioral Science from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette.

Originally from New Iberia, Louisiana, Shantell has lived in Lafayette since 2005. She is happily married to David Gomez and is a proud mother of three children, Amelie, Felix, and Oliver, as well as the caregiver to her furry companions, Jack and Griffin. Outside of work, Shantell enjoys local performing arts, cherishes family time, and finds joy in writing.

TERA MELANCON
Director of Mother's Day Out

Tera Melancon is the Director of the St. Barnabas Little Lambs Mother's Day Out program. She is originally from the Fort Worth, Texas area and moved to Lafayette in 2015. Tera graduated from Texas A&M University with a degree in Interdisciplinary Studies and a minor in Reading, then received an Alternative Masters in Educational Leadership. Tera taught for four years in Texas and spent the last six years teaching Kindergarten Spanish/English dual language immersion in the Lafayette Parish School System. Her passion is early childhood education, and she loves learning about students' different backgrounds and cultures.

Tera enjoys spending time with her two sweet girls, Ella and Amelia, her husband Matthew, her parents, Lori and Terry, and her grandmother, Janice. Tera also loves spending time outdoors camping, gardening, and riding her bike, and she loves reading, as well as collecting books.

MORGAN GREEN
Assistant Director of Mother's Day Out

Morgan Green is the Assistant Director of the St. Barnabas Little Lambs Mother's Day Out program. Born and raised in Lafayette, she graduated from Lafayette High School in 2013 and earned her bachelor's degree from UL Lafayette in 2017. During her senior year of college, Morgan began working at St. Barnabas part time providing childcare in the nursery on Sunday mornings. Before becoming the Assistant Director, Morgan taught Pre-K4 at Little Lambs for 5 years. She is passionate about early childhood education and finds joy in instilling a love of learning at a young age. She loves her job and considers it a blessing to work at St. Barnabas.

Morgan is married to her high school sweetheart, Michael Green. They have a dachshund named Hermione. When she isn't at work, Morgan is a nanny for 2 of the sweetest children and the secretary for her weekly bowling league. She enjoys cheering on the LSU Tigers, spending time with her family and friends, attending concerts, and traveling, especially to Disney World.

SHAWN ROY
Director of Music

Shawn Roy is a professor at UL Lafayette, working as Voice Instructor and Director of Opera and Musical Theatre activities. Shawn regularly performs with the Acadiana Symphony Orchestra and does recital work around the country. He and his colleague, pianist Chan Kiat Lim, have released a CD entitled "An American Kaleidoscope: Song Cycles through the lenses of William Bolcom, John Duke, Thomas Pasatieri and Ned Rorem" on the Centaur Records label. The CD is available in Lafayette at Barnes and Noble Booksellers.