Leadership
The Rev. Charles G. Martin
Chaplain
The Rev. Charles Martin is Associate Rector for Formation & Chaplain at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Fayetteville, serving as chaplain at St. Martin’s Episcopal Center at the University of Arkansas. He serves regularly as preacher, presider, pastor, and teacher in the parish. In this role also he oversees formation ministries from birth to death at St. Paul’s while having a special focus on campus and young adult ministry. He has served at St. Paul’s and St. Martin’s since 2025.
Fr. Charles is a native of Wisconsin, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts in chemistry from Lawrence University in Appleton. He then earned a Master of Science degree in chemistry from the University of Colorado at Boulder and spent a few years teaching community college while discerning his call to the priesthood. He prepared for ordination at the School of Theology at the University of the South (Sewanee, Tennessee), earning the Master of Divinity optime merens and also serving as student body president. He then earned a Master of Sacred Theology degree in liturgical studies at Yale Divinity School (New Haven, Connecticut) along with a certificate from the Yale Institute of Sacred Music. His thesis centered around the baptismal theology of the 1979 Book of Common Prayer. In Connecticut, Charles served as an assistant priest at St. Luke’s Parish in Darien, as well as regularly serving at the altar at Berkeley Divinity School and Christ Church, New Haven.
Charles is an avid amateur musician with a particular passion for renaissance choral music. In 2022, he participated in the Sewanee Schola Cantorum pilgrimage to the United Kingdom with residencies at St. Mary’s Episcopal Cathedral in Edinburgh, and Westminster Abbey. He also enjoys exploring parks and trails and is enjoying getting to know the Northwest Arkansas region.
Fr. Charles is a council member of Associated Parishes for Liturgy and Mission, and a member of the Association of Anglican Musicians and the Historical Society of the Episcopal Church.
Student Leadership Team
Our student leaders are elected as officers of our Registered Student Organization at the University of Arkansas for the academic year.
2026-27 Officers
President: Bauer Patton ‘27
Treasurer: Hilda Peterson ‘27
Vice-President for Fellowship: Madi Stiles ‘28
Vice-President for Outreach: Noah Long ‘29
The Rev. Dr. Lora Walsh
Faculty Advisor
In addition to serving as Assistant Professor of English at the University of Arkansas, Lora is also an associate priest at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church and the faculty advisor to St. Martin’s.
Lora is passionate about nurturing the spirituality of contemplatives-in-action, building inclusive institutions, and encouraging life-long learning and relentless inquiry. She couldn’t make it through the day without the Prayer of Self-Dedication each morning (BCP p. 832) and the Ignatian Examen each night.
The Rev. Evan D. Garner
Rector, St. Paul’s Church
As the Rector of St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, Evan oversees the ministry of St. Martin’s. Evan has served as the Rector of St. Paul's since July 2018. Before that, he served in two parishes in the Diocese of Alabama, where he was ordained in 2006. He trained for ordained ministry at Ridley Hall in Cambridge, England, and at Virginia Theological Seminary in Alexandria, Virginia.
As a follower of Jesus, Evan believes that God's love has no limits and that unconditional love has the power to transform this world. As Rector of St. Paul's, he works with the staff, Vestry, other lay leaders, and volunteers to share that love with this congregation, this community, and the whole world.
