Health and Wellness Services

Rev. Elaine Gehrmann is co-minister of the Unitarian Universalist Church of the Monterey Peninsula, 490 Aguajito Rd, Carmel. Prior to coming to the Monterey Bay area in 2015, Rev. Elaine had been co-pastor of two Unitarian Universalist churches for five years each, in Watertown, NY, and then in Champaign-Urbana, IL. She has also worked as an attorney and a family and individual counselor, and executive director of an non-profit organization serving senior citizens and adoptive families of foster children.

Rev. Gehrmann has a Bachelor’s degree in Sociology and Anthropology from the University of Pittsburgh and a Master of Divinity from the Starr King School for the Ministry in Berkeley, CA. She later earned a Master’s in Educational Policy Studies from the University of Illinois College of Education, and a J.D. from the U of I College of Law. She was granted Ministerial Fellowship in the Unitarian Universalist Association in 1991 and was a member of the Illinois State Bar. She was a member of the Urbana School District Board of Education for 6 years. She and her husband Axel have two children in their early 20’s, and two cats.

E-mail: egehrmann@gmail.com

Pastor Paul is a third-generation Mexican American and a native Californian. He serves as Pastor of the Lutheran Church of the Good  Shepherd in Salinas. He has over a decade of experience in ministry, he has spent time in Rwanda, the Rockies, the Mile High City, the city of  brotherly (and sisterly) love, the Windy City, corn fields of Iowa, and the Santa Cruz Mountains. Pastor Paul has served in various roles within the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. He received his Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and Sociology from Luther College and a Master of
Divinity from United Lutheran Seminary in Philadelphia. He is excited to join the CSUMB campus as a chaplain.

E-mail: plarson@csumb.edu

Father Jon Perez is an Episcopal Priest, serving as the Vicar for Epiphany Lutheran and Episcopal Church. He comes to the Episcopal Church after a career in the corporate and non-profit worlds. His congregation is the largest social service facilitator in Marina. The congregation is multi-cultural, multi-ethnic and multi-political. Currently, he serves the Lutheran Episcopal Coordination Committee, resolving practical and theological issues between the Lutheran ELCA and Episcopal Church. Father Jon is club advisor for Out and About (GLBT campus club) and is a recipient of the Atkinson Civil Rights Award.

E-mail: jonperez1@csumb.edu

For more information about CSUMB Campus Chaplaincy, please call us at (831) 578-2545.

Dr. Kaiqi "Kaichi" Hua is the Assistant Professor of Legal Studies and Civic Engagement at CSUMB, he teaches religion and law, social justice, service learning, and civic participation. He helps guide members of the oriental religious traditions to pursue spiritual practice and interfaith dialogues. Kaiqi held a J.D. degree in law from UH Manoa and a Ph.D. degree in World Cultures from UC Merced. Previously he was a postdoctoral scholar in Asian Studies at University of British Columbia, and a professor in Religious Studies at Semester At Sea. He taught courses in Buddhist studies, sacred space, and religious material culture. He is interested in comparative studies of world religions, human rights and religion, as well as studies of religion and law. He had studied and lived in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv in 2013, 2014, and 2017, and traveled broadly around the world.