Pastor Ben Krey was called to be the Pastor of Christus Victor Lutheran Church in January 2017 and started on March 15th, 2017. Before moving to Durham, Pastor Ben served as the pastor of Prince of Peace Lutheran Church in Philadelphia from 2009. In his baptism, the Holy Spirit gave him gifts for evangelism and goofy skits for VBS and (otherwise boring) church annual meetings. Pastor Ben loves to talk to people outside of the Church and especially loves building relationships with people of different cultures. Though he only speaks English, he loves finding ways to communicate Jesus' love through actions to those who do not speak English. In doing so, he experiences Jesus in their smiles and hospitality. Click here to learn more about the pastor.
Meet our staff
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Pastor Ben Krey
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Simon Zaleski
Music Director
2008 Master of Music from Peabody Conservatory of Johns Hopkins University (Baltimore, MD)
Simon Zaleski has served as CVLC's Music Director since 2008, after moving to Durham following receipt of master's degrees in harpsichord, composition, and musicology from the Peabody Conservatory in Baltimore. A specialist in Renaissance, Baroque, and Celtic music, he has performed on harpsichord, organ, piano, viola, viola da gamba, and recorder and brings some of this music to CVLC. Over the past few years, he has performed with many early music ensembles in Baltimore and at Duke and UNC. A rather geeky list of hobbies, perhaps influenced by growing up in the Seattle area, includes history, fishkeeping, Star Trek and other sci-fi, and games of all sorts--and there is always another musical instrument to learn!
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Jeanne Purtell
Office Administrator
Jeanne Purtell joined the staff at Christus Victor Lutheran Church upon moving from Pennsylvania to the Durham area with her husband in January 2025 so they could be near her daughter, son-in-law, and new grandchild. She is already appreciating the milder winters, the wealth of things to do in the Triangle area, and the welcoming spirit of the CVLC community. Jeanne spent the entirety of her professional career in education, retiring in 2022 after teaching English for 30+ years at the high school and college level. When not working, Jeanne enjoys spending time with family and friends, snuggling with her cat, playing golf, pickleball, disc golf, and board or card games, gardening, exercising, and keeping those brain synapses firing by playing the New York Times games, doing crossword puzzles and reading.
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Brooklyn Justice
Events Coordinator
Brooklyn Justice joined Christus Victor Lutheran Church as a child and grew up in the church. She recently joined the staff after over a decade of being a member. Brooklyn is from Durham and lived nearby in Parkwood her whole life, with the exception of going to the University of North Carolina at Wilmington for 5 years. While there, she majored in biology and chemistry, with a minor in forensics. In the far future, she wants to be a forensic entomologist, with a passion for loving insects and all bugs. In Brooklyn's free time, she enjoys reading, crosswords, loving her two cats, drawing, and going on walks.
