Our Team

The Rev’d Robert C. Hooper III (“Bob,” please) and his wife Priscilla married in 1988 and have three children and two Labrador retrievers, "Lilly" and "Theo." Bob received a B.S. in business/marketing from New England College in 1987 and a M.Div. from Virginia Theological Seminary in 1995. He was ordained to the priesthood in 1996 after seven years in the brokerage and banking industry in New York. He served parishes in both Northern Virginia and suburban Boston before coming to St. James’s in 2002 to serve as rector.

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The Rev. Chris Leung joined St. James's as Assistant Rector on January 7, 2026. Chris brings extraordinary gifts to our community. Born in Hong Kong and shaped by her Jamaican and Cantonese heritage, she rediscovered her faith in the Anglican tradition and went on to serve with the Episcopal Service Corps before graduating from Virginia Theological Seminary this past spring. During her formation, she worked in the VTS Dean’s Office supporting major events and served on the General Convention Task Force on Imagining a Church Grounded in Social Justice. Chris is also a commissioned officer in the U.S. Air Force, completing Officer Training School and her first month of chaplain candidate training this summer. When she’s not serving the church, you might find her reading, studying mysticism and Hebrew, riding her motorcycle, traveling, or playing video games.

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Mrs. Cheryl Batter arrived at St. James's in September of 2003 after serving as the assistant to the administrator at Trinity Episcopal Church in Hartford. Originally from Aroostook County in Northern Maine, Cheryl first came to Connecticut to study music at the Hartt School. She lives in Meriden with her husband Jeff, a native of Connecticut, and loves spending time with her step-daughter, Sara, and two grandchildren Autumn and Dahlia. Jeff serves as the organist and director of music and liturgy at St. Paul Roman Catholic Church in Berlin where Cheryl is a cantor and religion teacher. 

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Mr. Leon Fraser moved to West Hartford over one decade ago and is a trained teacher and sports coach by profession and journeyman by choice. He and his wife Marylin raised four children, including their daughter Nia who was a valued member of the St. James's choir for many years. Marylin is an active member of the congregation. He has served as sexton since 2016, and loves a good book, especially espionage thrillers.

Mrs. Priscilla Hooper moved to West Hartford in 2002 when her husband, Bob, was named rector of St.  James's. She has worked as the Director of Religious Education (now called Director of Family  Ministries) since 2003. Priscilla is the mother of three grown children—Robby, Henry and Maddy and  grandmother to two granddaughters, Millie and Channing. She is also mother of two four-legged children, a yellow lab named Lilly, and a chocolate lab, Theo. In addition to her work at St. James's, she is  a library paraprofessional at Morley School part-time. She has a bachelor's degree in journalism from  the University of Texas at Austin and has dedicated her life to children.

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