West Central Abbey Board Members

Co-Chair

Dylan Cooper

Dylan Cooper moved to Spokane from New England in 2022 to pursue an MFA in fiction—and ultimately stayed in Spokane largely for its welcoming artistic and creative communities, including the West Central Abbey. A few of their favorite things are watching birds, riding bikes, and spending quiet evenings with their little cat, Gord.

Alvin Chak

Co-Chair

My name is Alvin Chak. I live in Cheney with my wife and our three children. Our family has been attending the Abbey since the spring of 2021. Since joining the Abbey, we have been welcomed warmly and have found meaningful ways to participate—attending services, volunteering for community events, and joining small groups. The Abbey’s program for families and children have helped our kids make friends and given us opportunities to connect with other parents. Outside of church life, I enjoy running for both fitness and mental health. I also value spending playful, active time with our children.

Melissa Martin

Treasurer

Melissa Martin is a registered nurse, mom, and harmoniously married co-conspirator in life and music. Alongside Tim, she serves as a music steward at the Abbey, where they lovingly protect the church’s musical soul—especially the darker, weirder, folky, and occasionally rock-adjacent moments. She sings and is bravely beginning her journey on bass. When not learning songs, she sews, dreaming of creating an elaborate Elizabethan costume - but is usually distracted by Lego sets, journaling, travel planning, epic romantasies, and the joyful shenanigans of parenting.

Andrea Oetman

Inclusion & Belonging

Andrea has been part of the Abbey community since 2023, and likes to say that the Abbey is a great place for broken people. It has been a place of deep belonging, healing, and joy for her. She’s always up for a conversation about what you’re enjoying reading, and loves spending time catching coffee or taking walks with others.

Olive Baurer

West Central Collaborator

Olive is a native to Portland, OR but lived all over the United States, until she landed in Spokane a few years ago. She’s been attending the Abbey since meeting her partner Lyss in 2024, who introduced her to this community.

In Olive’s free time you can find her going on long walks in west central, being outside as much as possible, gardening & taking care of her plants, being in water, hosting friends, cooking good food, and being an avid women’s sports fan. One of her favorite things about the Abbey is that it truly embodies the spirit of “everyone is welcome at the table.”


Deanna Harris

Minister of Breakfast (M.O.B.)

Being a M.O.B Boss (minster of breakfast) is a good fit for my sometimes feisty personality and mom instinct to feed my people. I am a gardener, avid DIYer, and amateur poet. Being creative in my spare time feeds my soul and creativity is big part of Abbey worship. Even though I love how we think outside the box, the Abbey became home for me because it is a safe space for questions, doubts and wounded people. I value the Abbey’s commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion and the annual participation in the Spokane Pride Parade. It’s the perfect opportunity to wear a rainbow chicken costume!

Justus Brozek

Maintenance & Grounds

Justus Brozek grew up in small town West Texas. He comes from a variety of faith experiences having experiences with the Baptist, Catholic, and Charismatic churches. He has an MFA in printmaking from Texas Tech and is passionate about making art that reflects on the cultural and societal context in which he exists. He is particularly interested in the Christian church’s interactions and relation to culture.

He moved to Spokane to support his wife Aimee in her pursuit of an MFA in Creative Writing. He has worked many summers as a groundskeeper. He isn’t the most proficient handyman, but he does have the good sense to fight his youthful male ego and call someone before making a bad situation worse! He loves the West Central community whether it be the variety of people or pets that exist in the neighborhood! Dogs, cats, pigs, and ducks walking through West Central is like walking through a petting zoo.