Our Staff

Dr. Alexander Riegel, Developmental Minister

Dr. Alexander Riegel is the Developmental Minister at First Unitarian Church. He attended the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, where he received a B.S. in Philosophy with a minor in religious studies. He then studied at Harvard Divinity School, where he received a Masters of Divinity (M.Div.) and a Masters of Theology (Th.M.). Dr. Riegel has served as the settled minister in four churches, as well as being an Interim and Contract minister and serving as Developmental Minister at First Unitarian since 2023.

Dr. Riegel’s ministry draws upon the study of world religions and his commitment to spiritual practice. He is passionate about preaching from the wisdom he finds in world religions, as well as poetry, philosophy, literature, and dogs. (From time to time you may see his fuzzy companion, Godot, at church with him.) Ultimately, his spiritual journey is one of the heart, and his ministry calls us to our best selves through the path of the heart.

When he is not preaching, Dr. Riegel’s forte is adult religious education, where he sees opportunities to engage in spiritual wisdom as we travel together on our various spiritual paths. Social justice is another area about which he is passionate, as that is where spirituality hits the worldly road: how we walk our religious talk.

On the Nature of Developmental Ministry: Developmental Ministry is designed to prepare a congregation for a future settled ministry. Typically serving for 4 - 7 years, the Developmental Minister helps the congregation achieve the goals it believes will create the culture it desires before calling a settled minister. In sum, Developmental Ministers are change agents for congregations that are intentional about transformative work.

Rev. Mary Tarbell-Green, Assistant Minister for Pastoral Care

Rev. Mary Tarbell-Green is an ordained interfaith minister and a retired adult and pediatric hospice chaplain and bereavement coordinator, most recently at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital. She currently serves as a celebrant at Spring Grove Funeral Homes and Arlington Memorial Gardens. Mary says, “I truly cherish my role as funeral Celebrant, as I have the privilege of working with families to help co-create a personal and meaningful service."

Mary loves First Unitarian Church because it has been warm, welcoming, and supportive. In her role as Assistant Minister for Pastoral Care, she has navigated challenges, celebrated weddings, and welcomed babies! Mary feels privileged to meet with congregants to help, support, and reassure. She also feels fortunate to have found a spiritual home at First Unitarian Church and she enjoys helping others to share her sense of belonging.

Barry Green and Mary together have three married adult sons and three super grandchildren. Additionally, they have three furballs: Scooby, a 10-year-old rescue dog, and two beautiful Siamese cats, Tai and Chi. They live on the river "with amazing views, boats, barges, and magnificent sunrises!”

Rev. Sharon K. Dittmar, Minister Emerita

Rev. Sharon Dittmar graduated from Harvard Divinity School in 1997 and served 18 years as the settled minister at First Unitarian Church of Cincinnati (1998 to 2016). Since 2016, she has worked as a congregational life field consultant with the MidAmerica Region of the Unitarian Universalist Association, where she specializes in stewardship, staff supervision, lay leadership development, conflict transformation, and program size congregational needs. She lives in Cincinnati with her husband, and in her free time she enjoys gardening, reading, writing, cooking, time spent with family and friends, and traveling.

Jera Cox, Director of Music

Jera Cox has served as music director and keyboardist for First Unitarian Church since 2010. Prior to serving this church, she was the music director at Hartzell United Methodist Church for 32 years, where she directed the handbell and singing choirs and provided keyboard music for all services. Jera earned a B.A. in piano performance and a master’s degree in secondary education from Xavier University. She is currently the band director for Reading Community City Schools, and is responsible for resurrecting the band program after several years of elimination.

Jera provides keyboard music for services, directs the First Unitarian Singers and Ringers, plays with the House Band, and arranges music when necessary. She is grateful for the myriad of talent in the church and feels privileged to have the support of the congregation.

Lisa Yunker, Operations Manager

Lisa is a lifelong resident of Cincinnati. Before becoming Operations Manager at First Unitarian Church, she was involved with redeveloping our city’s urban core. She operated her own business, first as an urban gardener working on several innovative projects, including installing a roof garden at City Hall, and eventually transitioned into rehabilitating historical properties.

Lisa has a bachelor’s degree in philosophy and an associate’s degree in accounting from the University of Cincinnati. She has been fortunate to do quite a bit of traveling both in the United States and internationally. This has given her many opportunities to reflect on the beautiful diversity that life has to offer.

Jennifer Hurrell, Administrative Assistant

Jennifer Hurrell grew up across the river in Ft. Thomas, KY, and now lives in Cincinnati with her family. She has an AA in Commercial Art and a BFA in Theatre from NKU. Jennifer’s past lives include art direction, working as the resources coordinator for Film Cincinnati, and acting as a local print model and commercial actress, but her favorite role so far has been parenting her son and daughter.

First Unitarian ushered Jennifer back into the workforce, where she produces our newsletter as well as our Sunday service materials. When not at work, Jennifer enjoys theatre, traveling, hiking with her family and dogs, and advocating for PANDAS, a little-known neuroimmune disorder that has greatly impacted her daughter and family.

Dr. Amy Bottomley, Acting Director of Children's Religious Education

Dr. Amy Bottomley is an advocate for high quality, skills based, social justice oriented education for K-12 students. She specializes in designing curriculum and materials that enhance critical thinking by applying knowledge, skills, and understandings to real world problems.

Most recently, Amy was the Director of Education at the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center. She has also taught teacher preparation courses at the University of Cincinnati, served as Reading Department Chair at Montgomery Blair High School in Silver Spring, Maryland, and taught social studies and reading courses at William Mason High School in Mason, Ohio.

Amy earned an Ed.D. in Curriculum and Instruction from the University of Cincinnati, a M.Ed. in Reading Education K-12 from Bowling Green State University, and a B.S. in Secondary Education: Integrated Social Studies from Bowling Green State University. She is also certified in bilingual education by George Washington University.

Amy has been a member of First Unitarian Church since 2016.

Ms. Lizzy, Pre-K/Kindergarten Teacher

Elisabeth/Lizzy is an enthusiastic autism educator originally from the beaches of Pensacola, Florida, now turned Cincy Girl. She now lives with her partner, two dogs, three cats, six snakes (and counting), three geckos, two spiders, and their four-foot lizard. Lizzy has volunteered in nonprofit animal rescue for many years and continues to be an activist for both human and animal rights. As well as working with animals and children, Lizzy loves gardening, hosting weekly game nights for friends, reading/collecting books, and spending time outside. “I am beyond excited to be here and I look forward to all the wonderful things to come as a part of this community!”

Ms. Beth, Grades 4–6 Teacher

Beth joined the staff of First Unitarian Church in 2025 as the 4th-6th grade classroom teacher. She is a recent transplant to Ohio and lives with her partner, Joe, and her high-school daughter. She also has an adult son who is away at college in Missouri, and who doesn’t visit often enough. Beth has an embarrassing houseplant addiction, enjoys photographing her cats (she may have recently been told she “needs a hobby”) and as a cheese lover, is considering getting way too into fondue during her forties.