Yvonne Schlaeppi

Life is full of changes for Yvonne Schlaeppi these days. She just moved to Tarpon Springs from Brookline, Mass., recently. And before the move, she and Preston Kavanagh were married at Church of the Redeemer in Chestnut Hill, Mass.

The newlyweds are living in Cypress Run in Tarpon Springs now. And Yvonne has become the newest member of All Saints.

She started coming to All Saints a year and a half ago, when they were commuting between Massachusetts and Florida. "I love the people here," she says with a big smile. She was looking for a new church home when she first visited All Saints.

"It's the only one I visisted," she says "All Saints is a very welcoming Episcopal parish, a lovely church and Rev. Janet is really so insightful. I love her sermons."

Yvonne is semi-retired, working as a director on the boards of a couple of companies and nonprofits. "I'm moving toward retirement," says the former lawyer. She has been doing board work for the last 12 years.

Yvonne was born in New York state and grew up in Switzerland. "My family is Swiss," she explains. She has dual citizenship. "My first language was Swiss-German."

She went to Princeton and received a degree in international affairs. Then she went to Columbia Law School. She worked on Wall Street and returned to Europe four times for jobs. She finally moved to Boston from Germany 20-plus years ago. She and Preston met at Princeton when they were both students. They lived separate lives over the years after college, meeting at class reunions every five years. They attended their 45th reunion right after their wedding and celebrated the occasion with their friends.

Preston has two adult children. His wife died several years ago and they got together a few years later. He is a retired CFO and worked here in Florida. That's how the couple came to this area. They both enjoy living in Florida.

"I love the parks," she exclaims. "We just both love going to the different parks, biking and taking Audobon walks. My favorite birds are the sandhill cranes. They are so extraordinary!"

Besides the parks, the couple enjoy kayaking, biking and gardening. Yvonne says she used to kayak in Boston and she's excited to try kayaking here. "But we'll do that when it gets a little cooler," she says.

She is interested in getting involved at All Saints, but is still learning all about the church here. "They have lots of good things to do," she says.

Alex Bratu

When Alex Bratu started looking for a church home he knew exactly what he wanted.

"I went to a few Episcopal churches in the area, and I finallly settled on the great community here," says the 26-year-old North Carolina native about All Saints.

"I like helping people, I've had a lifelong passion to help others," Alex says. "The church is great for that."

He was born and grew up in Greensboro, N.C. After high school he took professional courses and started a career in security. He moved to Virginia, where he lived for six years before coming to Florida last Fall.

Alex who lives in Tarpon Springs with his partner, works in hospital security. He tries to find time to get to know his new hometown and get involved.

"When I first came here the Sponge Docks was all I knew," Alex says with a smile. But he's discovered all the parks and trails in the area. "I love nature and I love walking. Honeymoon Island is really a great place, and also all the other places around here."

He's already getting active at All Saints. He attends the Wednesday healing service when his work schedule allows, and he wants to help more with the Peanut Butter and Jelly teams. He's also helped out at Pack a Sack. He hopes to become a eucharistic minister. He prefers the 8 a.m. service. "I've met a lot of people there," he says.

""I like studying theology," Alex says, when asked about his interests. "I'm also a big music person." He especially enjoys trance music, a more modern electronic dance music style.

Alex has two brothers and a sister. One brother lives in Ohio and his other brother and sister are still living in North Carolina.

What he really likes about All Saints is the feeling of family. "I love the community here," he says. "Everyone has been so great. You get to know everyone, not like other churches I've attended."

And he appreciates the beauty and history of All Saints. "I love the church architecture," he observes. And he's been reading up on the history of the church, including its relocation from downtown Tarpon Springs.

Karen and Warren Roquermore

Family brought Karen and Warren Roquemore to Florida and it was a family feeling that helped them find All Saints.

The couple moved to Florida in late November 2025 from Marion, N.C., to be near her brother, who had lived in the area for 10 years.

"I don't like the cold and he loves to golf, he and my brother love golf," Karen says with a smile. They found a place near New Port Richey, between Trinity and Odessa. They immediately began looking for a church home.

"When we moved here, we Googled Episcopal Church," she explains. "The first church we visited, it was on Christmas Eve, and no one spoke to us at all." Then they found All Saints. "This was the second one we visited, and we just looked at each other and said this is where we want to worship," she recalls. "I don't think we need to look any longer."

What struck the couple especially about All Saints were the people and the friendly atmosphere. "It just felt like home," she said. "Everyone was so friendly." In fact, partly because of the warm welcome they received when visiting the church, the couple say they hope to become Greeters themselves eventually.

Karen grew up in Chicopee, Mass. She went to college there, and graduated from Elms College, with a degree in nursing. She is a registered nurse. Karen works from home as the training coordinator for the state of North Carolina Division of Health Services Regulation. She is planning to retire in October.

Warren was born in Charleston, S.C., and grew up all over the state of South Carolina. His father was a school administrator and the family moved around with his jobs.

Warren graduated from College of Charleston with a degree in English literature. He spent more than 30 years in financial services and for the last 10 years he's been a case manager at a homeless shelter. He is thinking about retirement, but has not made any final plans yet. "I'm having too much fun to retire," he jokes.

The couple have two grown daughters. The older daughter lives in Vermont, and the younger daughter still lives in North Carolina.

Both enjoy being active and say they hope to get more involved at All Saints. He loves his golfing and she is an avid swimmer at the local YMCA. She swims a mile at the Y on the weekends and exercises daily. "I do love my Y," she exclaims.

Karen says she probably will join Daughters of the King. They both played handbells at St. John's Episcopal in Marion, N.C., where they attended church for 26 years. They would like to join the handbell choir here at All Saints when they have time to attend practices. They also know about the active outreach programs here, like Pack a Sack, the Peanut Butter and Jelly team and the Cold Weather Shelter volunteer work. "Im looking forward to getting more involved when we do retire," Warren says.