St. Joseph's Episcopal Church
Staff & Leaders

Karen Barfield

The Rev. Karen C. Barfield is married to Ray Barfield and has two children: Micah (17) and Alexandra (13). Karen has been ordained eight years and has served in a variety of settings: urban and suburban; Cathedral staff, campus ministry, and congregations of all sizes; as interim rector, associate rector and interim chaplain. Her greatest joys in ministry involve liturgy, prayer, pastoral care and issues of justice. She was born and raised in Memphis, TN where she served as priest until moving to Chapel Hill, NC four years ago with her family. In her spare time Karen enjoys reading, gardening, travelling, and designing most anything, especially houses (kitchens and baths in particular). Ray, her husband of 22 years, is a pediatric oncologist at Duke and is Associate professor of Christian Philosophy in Duke’s Divinity School. Ray enjoys writing, playing classical guitar and running. Prior to ordination Karen served on staff at St. Luke’s Community Kitchen in Atlanta, GA, and she was co-founder of a prison ministry there as well. In downtown Memphis she helped develop the Hospitality Hub, a non-profit organization which assists persons who are homeless connect with the resources they need.