Ayanna Hines, Executive Director

Ayanna Hines is an experienced non-profit leader who has worked for mission-driven organizations anchored in health-related social needs (HRSN) and/or focused on individual and professional development. Non-profit sectors in which she’s worked include athletics, community and economic development, education (K – 12 and higher education), faith-based, housing (affordable and homelessness) criminal justice and workforce/youth development. Harvard University, Madison Park Development Corporation (MPDC), the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association and Myrtle Baptist Church have been among her professional homes.

An engaged community member, she aligns her interests to serve the greater good. Most recently, she served as President of the MPDC Board of Directors of which she was a member for 10 years. She is a member of the Physical Education/Physical Activity Subcommittee of the Boston Public Schools District Wellness Council. Ayanna is most proud to have founded O.M.E.G.A. (Organization for Minority Enrichment Growth and Advancement), the first affinity group at Thayer Academy.

A graduate of Howard University, she was born in Greenville, MS and reared in Roxbury, MA. She is a wellness content creator and a creative at heart who enjoys color, working with paper (especially gift wrapping), interior styling and making artisanal cranberry sauce in 3 different flavors. Of the titles she’s held, Mom to her daughter is her most important and treasured.

Contact: [email protected]

Melissa Martin, Congregational Care & Connection Manager

Melissa Martin joined the UUCR staff in September 2013 and serves as our Congregational Care & Connection Manager. She works alongside our Membership Team to welcome visitors and new members, build meaningful connections within the congregation, and help people make UUCR their spiritual home. Melissa also coordinates congregational care, offering compassionate support to members through life’s joys, challenges, and transitions while fostering a caring and connected community. She previously served as our Member Services & Volunteer Coordinator, and her role has grown to include expanded congregational care and pastoral support.

Melissa holds a variety of professional certifications in different areas, including as a Life-Cycle Celebrant, Grief Educator, Conscious Dying Coach, Sacred Passage End-of-Life Doula, Sacred Death Care Guide, and Reiki Master Teacher. She lives in Saugus, where she enjoys time spent with her husband, their five adult children, their partners, four grandchildren, and their Goldendoodle, Teddy!

Contact: [email protected]
Facebook: MelissaMartin UUReading

Dr. Bonnie Anderson, Music Director

Dr. Bonnie Anderson is thrilled to join the staff of UUCR as Music Director/Pianist. Bonnie has a multi-faceted career as church musician, pianist, flutist, and teacher. She is principal pianist of the Vista Philharmonic Orchestra and flutist in the Metropolitan Flute Festival Orchestra. Bonnie is an Adjunct Instructor of Music at Phillips Andover Academy. Bonnie loves sharing her passion for music with people of all ages. If you love to sing or play an instrument, please join us for rehearsals on Thursday evenings and Sunday mornings and share your music with the UUCR community. An avid indo-rower and certified yoga instructor, she lives on the North Shore with her husband, two teenage daughters, and two golden retrievers. www.bonnieandersonpiano.com

Contact: [email protected]

Kimberly Redd, Religious Education Coordinator

Kimberly joined UUCR staff in January 2024 as our 20 hour/week Religious Education Coordinator.

Kimberly is a Yoga Teacher, Musician, and Priestess of the Goddess. She has been educating children for 15 years, focusing the past 8 on Mindfulness through music.

Through her small business, Yogattune, Kimberly currently travels to schools and libraries sharing teachings of movement, breath, self love, and connection to nature through her original music.

Her second album, Dream Sequence: Kid songs for Yoga and Relaxation is coming soon!

She holds a BA in Theatre Arts and several Yoga teaching certifications including kids yoga and prenatal. She is a trained Priestess in the Avalonian lineage and the Magain Way, a Birth Doula, and a Reiki Practitioner. Kimberly writes and publishes Flow with the Wheel, a free monthly magazine for families blending Yoga and Earth-based Spirituality.

Contact: [email protected]

Kerri Sullivan, Communications & Operations Associate

Kerri Sullivan joined the UUCR staff in August 2025 and serves as our Communications & Operations Associate. She oversees the day-to-day operations of the church office while coordinating communications, supporting staff and volunteers, and helping ensure the many moving pieces of congregational life run smoothly. Kerri also manages short- and long-term rentals of our church spaces, working with community groups and organizations to help make UUCR a welcoming gathering place for the wider community.

As a Universalist Unitarian herself, Kerri is passionate about the welcoming spirit and values of the UU faith and brings that passion into her everyday work at UUCR. She earned her bachelor’s degree in Public Relations and enjoys putting her creativity, organization, and love of community into practice.

She lives in Lowell with her husband, their four energetic boys, and their four cats. In her free time, Kerri loves swimming, singing along to Broadway musicals, reading, and spending time outdoors with her family.

Contact: [email protected]

Melanie Hoggard-Perley, Bookkeeper

Contact: [email protected]