Clergy

Father Timothy Sas

Father Tim was born on April 16, 1973 in the city of Simeria, Romania as the eldest of five children in the family of an Orthodox Christian priest. Due to increased persecution at the hands of the Communist regime, his parents fled Romania in July 1988 and ended up in a refugee camp in Sweden. Fr. Tim and his siblings were reunited with them in February 1989. In January 1990 Fr. Tim’s family moved to Vancouver, BC, Canada where his father became the pastor at one of the Romanian Orthodox Churches.

Fr. Tim graduated from St. Andrew’s Seminary, Winnipeg, in 1998. In August of that same year, Fr. Tim moved to Winona, Minnesota, to pursue a master’s degree at St. Mary’s University. On the feast of Transfiguration, August 6, Fr. Tim was ordained to the diaconate and on Sunday, August 8 to the priesthood by the hand of the late Archbishop Victorin at St. Stephen Church (ROA) in South St. Paul, Minnesota.

In March 2002, Fr. Tim and family joined our community of St. Mary’s and was an assistant priest to Fr. Harry Pappas. He was subsequently assigned to Twelve Holy Apostles Church in Duluth in September 2004. In January 2022, Fr. Tim returned to Minneapolis to serve as priest at St. Mary’s.

Father Tim and his wife Presvytera Gabriela are blessed with four daughters– Andrea, Casiana, Theodora, and Sofia.

Father John Kostas

Father John Kostas was ordained to the priesthood in 1995 after a 16-year career in government and politics in the New York State legislature and on Capitol Hill. While in Washington, Fr. John earned a master’s degree in ancient Greek at the University of Maryland. He then earned a Master of Divinity degree from St. Vladimir’s Orthodox Seminary.

Fr. John began his pastoral career as assistant priest at St. Mary’s until deciding to pursue advanced studies at Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology, receiving the degree of Master of Theology. Fr. John has served parishes in Pittsfield, MA, Knoxville, TN, Martin’s Ferry, OH, and Nassau, Bahamas. He also served first as an assistant chaplain under the late Rev. Fr. Thomas Hopko at the Orthodox Monastery of the Transfiguration in Ellwood City, PA.

Upon retirement Father John and Presbytera Janis Kostas returned to St. Mary’s where Fr. John currently serves as priest, assisting with bible studies and other pastoral duties.

Father Paul Kalina

Father Paul Kalina, the grandson of Slovakian immigrants, was very involved in St. Mary’s Orthodox Cathedral in Northeast Minneapolis where he was born and raised. After graduating from the University of Minnesota with a B.S. degree in Biology, Fr. Paul received a Doctor of Medicine degree from Mayo Medical School.

Even as a medical student and physician-in-training, the Orthodox church remained the focal point of Fr. Paul’s life. In 1999, Fr. Paul enrolled in the St. Stephen’s House of Studies, a 4-year theological studies program administered by the Antiochian Orthodox Archdiocese. In 2003, he received a Master’s degree in Applied Theology, and in February 2004, he was ordained to the diaconate in Scottsdale, Arizona.

Fr. Paul (a practicing ophthalmologist) and his wife, Diakonissa Alexandria (a practicing pediatrician) have three children – Andrew (married to Andrea) , Maria, and Stephen. Father Paul now serves St Mary’s community as a deacon.

Father Luke Twito

Father Luke Twito was born in Minneapolis to parents of Norwegian and German ancestry. He was baptized and raised in the Lutheran church with the given name, Randy Scott Twito. He graduated from the pre-med program at  Valparaiso University with a degree in Chemistry. While attending Mayo Medical School he met Mary Kay (Pantages) and they were married in 1981. Surgical training continued with two years in general surgery at Mayo followed by a four year residency in orthopedic surgery at Loma Linda University in California which was completed in 1988.

At his Chrismation on April 8, 1990, he was given the name “Luke” (the Evangelist). Early in his career as an  orthopedic surgeon he felt a calling to some day serve the Church as a deacon. He retired in 2018 and completed the Diaconate Program at Holy Cross in 2020. His Ordination to the Diaconate occurred on June 18, 2022 with “the laying on of hands” by Metropolitan Nathaneal. He joins Fr Paul Kalina as one of the deacons serving the St Mary’s community. He hopes to help his fellow clergy with hospital and other medically related visits.

He and Diakonissa Mary Kay have three children – Kristina (married to Andy), Andrew (married to Megan), and Nicole. They love being called “Papou and YiaYia” by their four grandchildren.

Pastoral Staff

Ministry Support

Doria Saros

Doria is a Registered Nurse with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from the University of Minnesota. She has also completed coursework in Basic Theology from St. Stephen’s Course of Studies in Orthodox Theology. Doria formerly served as the Youth Director for 20 years. She has been serving the faithful of St. Mary’s since 1993. Doria is responsible for these key areas: Youth Committee Program Facilitator, Visitation Ministry Coordinator, Summer Camp Coordinator, Family Camp Coordinator, Sacramental Paperwork, and Parish Lenten Retreat

Youth Director

Scott Rudquist

Originally from Savage, MN, Scott attended St. George Orthodox Church in West Saint Paul. In May of 2023, he earned his Undergraduate Degree from North Dakota State University studying Psychology and Criminal Justice. While at NDSU he founded and led a chapter of the OCF and worked in the Legacy Children’s Foundation. Scott has been involved with the St. Mary’s Camp Program since 2009, and has been serving as the Youth Director since December 2023. Scott is responsible for these key areas: HOPE/JOY, Junior GOYA, Senior GOYA, Summer Camp Task Force, Family Camp Task Force, and Basketball.

Church School Director

Dena Tortorelis

Dena is a lifelong member of St. Mary’s. She graduated from Gustavus Adolphus College with a BA in Nursing and worked at the VA hospital for eight years in a variety of specialties including critical care.
After marrying her husband, Deano, they moved to Rockford, IL where they were members of Sts. Constantine and Helen GOC and she taught 4th grade Church School. They moved to Chicago where she worked as a head nurse for the Dept. of Federal Occupational Health and attended Holy Apostles GOC in Westchester, IL. In 1998 they moved to Scarsdale, NY where they attended Holy Trinity GOC in New Rochelle. Dena, Deano and their three children, Athanasia, George, and Pericles returned to the Twin Cities in 2002. She then joined the St. Mary’s team and has been a Church School teacher ever since. She has served as the advisor for Jr GOYA, a St Mary’s camp counselor, and started and led the Zouzounia – Junior Greek dance program. She served as Church School co-director from 2008-10 before reassuming the role in 2016 to the present.

Protopsaltis (First Chanter)

Joseph Karos

Joseph is a child of the parish at St. Mary’s in Minneapolis. In his youth, singing in various choirs sparked a love of Byzantine Psaltic music. Over the past 7 years, he has studied the received tradition of Byzantine Chant through parish involvement and formal education at the Trisagion School of Byzantine Music. Joseph has led chant groups at Antiochian Village Camp, at national young adult retreats, and regularly in parish life at St. George Antiochian Orthodox Church in West Saint Paul. He graduated from the University of Minnesota with a degree in Marketing and a minor in Professional Sales. While there, he was involved in several ministries including being the president of the UMN OCF chapter, and 4-full summers of youth camping ministry at Antiochian Village Camp. In addition to chanting, Joseph enjoys Gopher sports fandom, golfing, recreational sports, and quality time with family and friends. Joseph is responsible for these key areas: Chanting and leading chant groups at all services outside of Sunday Liturgy, leading rehearsals, teaching Byzantine Theory in classes and individually, and teaching chant to the youth.

Choir Director

Emily Skoutelis

A Minneapolis native, Emily Skoutelas grew up in the St. Mary’s Greek Orthodox community. As a child, Emily experienced the beauty of our church music ministry through her Aunt and Godmother, Thespina Macres. From there, she developed a deep love and appreciation for singing. After graduating with a Bachelors of Music from the U of MN – School of Music, she moved to NYC, working for the Juilliard School within the Vocal Arts department. Eventually, she pursued her Masters of Music at Hunter College and began her own vocal studio in the city, preparing students to audition professionally. After meeting her husband and beginning their family, she made the move back to her home state. By the grace of God, she was given the opportunity to lead the choral music ministry within her beloved home parish. Emily resides in the Minneapolis area with her husband and three children. Emily is responsible for these key areas: Directing the choir for Sunday Liturgies and special services, as well as weekly rehearsals..

Administrative Staff

Office Manager

David Mertesdorf

Description coming soon. David has been at St. Mary’s since 1996. 

Communications and Marketing Specialist

Nikolas Kouzes

Nikolas (Niko) has been a lifelong member of St. Mary’s and has a background in visual communications. He studied visual art at MCAD and communications design at the Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, New York. Later, he attended portfolio school at Brainco: The Minneapolis School of Advertising and Design to pursue a career in marketing and advertising. Since 2007, he has been focused on creative campaigns and communications for B2B and non-profit organizations. He has worked on key initiatives for major global brands including 3M, Medtronic, GE, Dow, Honeywell, Henkel, Konica Minolta, Emerson, and Trimble. He is currently the Creative Director for American Polywater and serves St. Mary’s in a part-time capacity. He and his wife Alicia live in Northeast Minneapolis.