Clergy & Staff Directory

Fr. Rex Pillai Associate Pastor

Fr. Rex Pillai is originally from Sri Lanka, an island that is located off the Southern coast of India. He was ordained as a member of a religious order known as the "Redemptorists." After his ordination he was engaged in preaching parish missions, retreats and parish ministry in Sri Lanka.

He arrived in Chicago in 2005 to attend graduate school at Loyola University to obtain a degree in Psychology and Counseling. It was during his time at Loyola University that he began to discern a calling to the diocesan priesthood in the Archdiocese of Chicago. After prayer and guidance he made a decision to transition to the Archdiocese of Chicago, a process known as "Incardination." The Incardination process consists of two phases in two different parishes. He began the first phase of his incardination process in November 2009 at St. Benedict Parish on W. Irving Park Road. The time he spent at St. Benedict Parish gave him an insight into parish ministry in the Archdiocese of Chicago. He was able to learn much at St. Benedict Parish and feels blessed to have been part of a vibrant faith community.

While taking classes at Loyola University, Fr. Rex was a resident at St. Michael Parish in Old Town, where he first heard of Saint Clement Parish in Lincoln Park. He joined the pastoral staff of Saint Clement Parish in July 2013. This marks the beginning of the second phase of his Incardination process.

Fr. Rex is honored and humbled to be part of a parish that has served God’s people in Chicago for over a century, and share in the vision of this great parish. His job duties include preaching, celebrating the sacraments, sacramental preparation, pastoral visits to the sick and homebound, counseling and spiritual direction, marriage preparation, married couples group, working with teens/youth group (the God Squad), and Ministry of Care.

Deacon Tim Sullivan Permanent Deacon

Deacon Tim is the permanent deacon assigned to the parish family at Saint Clement by Cardinal George. He is an Ohio native where he went to John Carroll University in the Cleveland Area. He was a Special Agent with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (which was then under the U.S. Treasury Department). After retiring from ATF in 1999 he was ordained to the permanent diaconate by Adam Cardinal Maida of the Archdiocese of Detroit and received his masters of theology in 2000 from Sacred Heart Major Seminary in Detroit. During his studies for the diaconate, he did his internship at St. Mary’s Hospital in Livonia, Michigan in pastoral care. He taught Theology at Loyola High School in the inner city of Detroit for eight years as well as being the campus chaplain and chair of the theology department for five years. During that period he also was the chaplain (4 years) at a juvenile girl’s detention facility in Dearborn Heights, Michigan and chaplain at a nursing home in Detroit (5 years). From 2001 until 2010 he was the Detroit Field Division Chaplain for the Bureau of ATF. In 1992 he founded a public charity which ministered to (and continues to minister) to the homeless and marginalized in downtown Detroit and continued as president until 2010. He still remains on the board of directors to an organization that now has three locations and serves between 250-300 people ever week on Saturday (food, clothing and counseling). He has two daughters in Chicago.

As a deacon, his primary ministry is one of charity. He also assists at Mass, proclaims the Gospel, preaches, baptizes and witnesses marriages as well as para-liturgical duties such as Benediction during the week, house and business blessings as well as a variety of other services. He is also available for counseling and spiritual direction.

Rachel Espinoza Director of Children and Family Catechesis

Rachel Espinoza joined the Saint Clement staff in June 2015. She directs the religious education program for parish children, sacramental preparation, Liturgy of the Word for Children, and family catechesis. She offers training and support for the catechists at Saint Clement and collaborates in providing adult faith formation in the parish. She also guides the Faith Formation Committee called Faith in the Next Generation.

Rachel earned a Bachelor of Arts in Theology and Catechetics from Franciscan University and a Master of Divinity degree from the University of Notre Dame. She has worked professionally in parish ministry for five years and is a certified Pastoral Associate of the Archdiocese of Chicago. She is also an author for Liturgy Training Publications and wrote Sunday Prayer for Catholic School Teachers (2015-2016) and Sunday Prayer for Teens (2016-2017).

“The question of how we are educating in faith is not rhetorical, it is essential. The response calls for courage, creativity and the decision to take paths which are at times yet uncharted. The catechesis, as a component of the process of evangelization, needs to go beyond the simple realm of scholastics, in order to educate believers, beginning with children, to encounter Christ, living and working in his Church. It is the encounter with [Christ] that gives rise to the desire to know him better and thus to follow Him to become his disciples.” ~ Pope Francis, May 29, 2015

Paul Nicholson Director of Music

Named Director of Music at Saint Clement in 2010, Paul is a distinguished Chicago accompanist, vocal coach, composer, conductor and singer. He has served both faculty and staff at Roosevelt University, Lake Forest College, Concordia University, Columbia College, and the School of Music at DePaul University. 

He has sung with the Chicago Symphony and Grant Park Music Festival choruses. His vocal and instrumental compositions have been recorded on the Cedille, Imaginary Road and Polygram labels, and he has appeared both at the keyboard and as a singer on Live from Studio One on WFMT. Currently he serves as accompanist to the Grant Park Music Festival chorus. Paul serves Saint Clement as principal organist and director of three choral ensembles: Schola Clementis, Seraphim, and Cantate Choir. In addition, he auditions and trains all cantors and instrumentalists.

Chris Bagnall Director of Finance & Administration

Christopher Bagnall joined the parish staff in 2016 temporarily, guiding the Saint Clement finances as he continued consultant work with the Office of Finance for the Archdiocese. Chris now begins his full-time staff relationship with Saint Clement as Director of Finance & Administration. 

Chris is responsible for finances and human resources. This includes budget preparation and management, annual and interim reports to the Archdiocese, staff liaison to the Finance Council and the monthly reports provided to them, bill paying, bank relations, and managing the work of the administrative staff. He routinely reviews contracts and purchasing processes. Chris attends the meetings of the Building and Grounds committee, guides the expense side of construction projects, major repairs, renovations and any capital projects. He is also responsible for human resources, including processing payroll and acting as the local benefits administrator, and assists the pastor in hiring of new staff. He works closely with the Coordinator of Stewardship & Development in assessing fund raising activities and acts as liaison to Archdiocesan administrative agencies.

Chris spent over 40 years in the corporate business environment and retired at the end of 2013 to pursue a new career in non-profit consulting. His career was in executive management, sales management, and marketing positions and possesses strong sales, administrative, analytic, financial, computer, and people skills. He was President/Chairman of MCG (Division of Randa Accessories,) a Retail Service Provider, providing service modules and support to department and speciality stores for the US market. Prior to that, he served in sales management positions for Randa Accessories, as well as marketing and E-commerce positions.

Mari Jo Hanson Saint Clement School Principal

Joanna Krynski Outreach and Adult Formation Assistant

Joanna joined the Saint Clement Parish staff in April 2005, serving as the Communications Specialist until May 2014. Joanna now serves the parish as the Outreach and Adult Formation Assistant, coordinating the Friday Sack Lunch & Hospitality Ministry, the Donate-a-Day program, and Plaza Hospitality, as well as assisting with other service, hospitality, and parish-wide events. She also provides administrative support to our Director of Community Outreach, Maggie, and our Pastoral Associate, Christina, and maintains many of their communication needs.

Joanna graduated from Loyola University Chicago with a Bachelor of Arts degree in English/Creative Writing and Women Studies, earning the John Gerrietts Award for Excellence in Creative Writing—awarded to one graduating senior each year. During college, she held internships at the Field Museum and the Museum of Contemporary Art (in their marketing and media relations departments, respectively). In June 2013, Joanna graduated (with distinction) from DePaul University, earning a Master of Arts degree in Writing and Publishing.