Now in the Diocese of the South, Living in Retirement in Florida
Matushka Doreen Bartholomew’s energy and influence have furthered the music programs of the Orthodox Church in America in a career spanning more than 35 years.
Her introduction to Orthodoxy occurred in Japan: she comments that “Japanese was my first liturgical language.” When she and her husband, Fr. John, returned to the US, she served for many years as choir director in parishes of the Diocese of NY and NJ – both St John the Theologian Church in Shirley, NY, and Our Lady of Kazan Church in Sea Cliff, NY, where she taught, sang and conducted the choirs for bilingual services in Slavonic and English.
While pursuing a full-time career in NYC, she brought her business skills to a full range of church musician roles. Serving as a Co-Chair of the Diocesan Commission on Liturgical Music, she spearheaded, organized, and directed in-person and on-line workshops for church musicians throughout the Diocese. She personally prepared and published numerous service books, with special focus on large-print publications, making them widely available on-line.
In the pan-Orthodox Spirit of Orthodoxy Choir, she served as Business Manager and later as President. In those capacities she solicited concert opportunities, advised on repertoire, and made all travel and logistics arrangements for the choir performances.
Upon her and Father John’s retirement, the couple moved to Melbourne, Florida, where Mat. Doreen quickly found a parish with a musician role she could fill, helping the parish of St John the Merciful Mission, South Orlando, in choir development. Mat. Doreen is eminently deserving of the Order of St Romanos to mark her enthusiastic, untiring, highly competent, and dedicated decades of work for the Orthodox Church in America.
