Since 2018, Kirstie has served as organist at St. Gregory’s Episcopal Church (Deerfield), where she accompanies the weekly liturgy, as well as the professional quartet and adult choir. Prior to this, she held several Lutheran church music positions in the Chicago area, which included organ, adult, children’s and handbell choirs.
Originally from Madison, she began piano at age six and organ at 15, when the organist at her home church encouraged her interest in and desire to play the church’s new Schantz organ. He offered her organ lessons in exchange for choir accompanying and occasional subbing. She won first place at an AGO high school organ competition in Milwaukee, and then earned Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in organ performance from Wartburg College and Northwestern University. While at Wartburg, she studied her junior year at the Berlin School of Church Music (West Berlin), and during her time at Northwestern, she studied with Karel Paukert. In addition, she worked 45 years as a staff member at Northwestern University.
Kirstie enjoys spending time outdoors, striving to improve her Sudoku skills, and being entertained by her beloved Shorthair Pointer, Greta.