Our Staff
Rev. Zayna Thomley
Pastor
Middleton Community Church joyfully called the Rev. Zayna Thomley as their new settled pastor early in 2022. She comes to MCC with over a decade of experience as a local church pastor and leader in the wider United Church of Christ.
Zayna loves being a pastor, and delights in sharing the Good News of a Loving God for all people. She is a gifted preacher committed to offering creative, relevant worship for people of all ages and backgrounds. She thinks love is best shared over a meal, and community is at the heart of our Christian faith. She holds tightly to Mother Teresa’s proclamation that “Today, if we have no peace, it is because we have forgotten that we belong to each other.”
While answering the call to ordained ministry, Pastor Zayna held several positions through UCC Volunteer Ministries, spending long stretches in the city of St. Louis, the hills of Eastern Kentucky, and a small village on the edge of the Volta River in Ghana. Her first call was to two congregations in Southwest Wisconsin, where she and the congregations helped found Family Promise of Grant County, serving rural families experiencing homelessness, and the Southwest Wisconsin Rainbow Alliance, committed to promoting equity, justice, and quality of life through support and advocacy for the LGBTQIA+ community. She is passionate about connecting faith and life through service to the wider community and working toward a more just and generous world.
She holds a BA in Religion and Service from the UCC Affiliated Elmhurst University and an MDiv from Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary. She was ordained in October of 2013.
Pastor Zayna currently lives in Madison with her spouse, their toddler, and a whole lot of animals: a dog, cats, and chickens! She likes to spend her free time meandering through the woods, feeding her friends, listening to podcasts on long road trips, planning the next adventure, or hiding under a pile of blankets watching good (and some not-so-good) TV.
Rev. Dr. Michael Bausch
Ministry Associate
Mike joined the team at MCC in the summer of 2023. He’s here on a very part time basis to provide worship leadership and consultation as MCC discerns the future during an exciting season of growth. You’ll find him in worship on Sunday mornings twice a month and popping in to staff and Board of Worship meetings. He comes with a passion for creative worship and years of wisdom from serving growing congregations.
Mike is a Wisconsin native who has served UCC congregations in California, Wisconsin, and Iowa over many years, most recently as the interim pastor of McFarland UCC. He is currently an Annuitant Visitor for the Pension Boards UCC, maintaining connection with some 20 retired clergy in our Southwest Wisconsin UCC Association, and also volunteers twice a month to provide music at the Agrace Adult Day Center in Madison.
Mike wrote Silver Screen, Sacred Story: Using Multimedia in Worship (2002), Feeding Imaginations: Worship That Engages (2015/2022) and Drawn In: Dramatic Encounters With Art (2017) as well as a number of articles on worship and the arts. He co-edited Everflowing Streams: Songs for Worship (1981).
While pastoring churches he also served as part-time adjunct faculty at the University of Dubuque Theological Seminary and the Pacific School of Religion in Berkeley, CA and has taught the introductory courses in Old and New Testament at UW-Platteville (along with Pastor Zayna!), as well as online courses in biblical studies and church revitalization at graduate and undergraduate levels. He loves making the connection between the Bible, Christian worship, musical and visual arts, and today’s world.
Anne Tennies
Office Manager
As Office Manager, Anne keeps everything running smoothly at MCC, mostly staying behind the scenes. In addition to being the friendly face at the front desk, she's also the bookkeeper and in charge of communications for the church. Her background is in video production, and she loves being able to use those skills in our video ministry.
She and her family love the music and fellowship opportunities at MCC -- particularly potlucks! In her free time, she enjoys board games, video editing, crafting, baking, snuggling with her cats (and her kids, when they're in the mood), and reading or listening to audiobooks.
Deb Neuman
Music Director
Through her Music Director position, Deb gets to share her love of music with musicians of all ages at MCC. She enjoys working with soloists and ensembles of all sizes as they prepare music for worship services. She also loves organizing music experiences and exploring new styles and formats of music and sharing them with the congregation.
Deb loves the community at MCC! She also values the importance MCC places on reaching out and participating in community projects. And she loves her relationships with members of all ages.
Outside of MCC music, Deb enjoys reading, walking her Golden Doodle, playing harp and just enjoying friends and family.
Barbara Brown
Pianist
Barbara Brown serves as the pianist for services at Middleton Community Church. She enjoys accompanying the choir and special musicians and playing as the congregation sings.
Barb thinks of MCC as her second family and loves the intergenerational relationships that have developed. She enjoys MCC activities that involve social justice and environmental causes.
In her free time, Barb likes playing with her four pets, gardening, reading and cooking.
Amy Miller
Children’s Coordinator
Amy loves that she can bring her passion for and professional background in education to the warm and welcoming community of MCC.
She received a B.S. in Elementary/Early Childhood Education from Carroll University in 2006 and has completed graduate classes in Curriculum and Instruction. She's worn many educator hats including working with English language learners in a 4K HeadStart setting and infants and toddlers at a Montessori preschool. She's also served as director of a childcare center and worked as a classroom aid for children with special needs in a public school classroom.
In the church world, she's been part of the elementary Sunday School teaching team at MCC for the past two years. In her hometown of Fond du Lac, before moving to Middleton, she volunteered as a nursery attendant and led the First Presbyterian Children's Choir.
Amy is a mom of two boys who love attending MCC and eagerly assist with her Children's Education Coordinator duties. As a family they love seeing musicals, spending time in nature, and cooking together. Amy is enthusiastic about music, sings with the choir and sometimes contributes to special music for services. She's also a fan of dance, reading aloud (with voices), curling up with a good fiction book, journaling, and taking care of the planet.
Christine Tarrant
Sunday Nursery Attendant
Chris’s goal is to allow parents and caregivers the opportunity to fully participate in worship. With a background in early childhood education and a playful spirit, she is excited to spend time each week with the youngest children at MCC!
Gary Eckstein
Building and Grounds Manager
Gary Eckstein was born and raised on the west side of Madison, and currently lives in Middleton with his beautiful wife of over 25 years. He has two daughters and four grandchildren and loves spending time with them. Gary’s hobbies include fishing, smoking his own meats (especially making bacon), spending time outdoors, and woodworking.
Gary has over thirty years in the building maintenance area and has been in a hands on supervisory/managerial role for several years. His number one goal at MCC is to get the church on a quality preventative maintenance program. We’re very happy to have him here!