The Rev. Joy Y. Warburton was born and raised in Sierra Leone, West Africa, where she attended high school and college, earning a Bachelor of Arts degree. She emigrated to the United States in 1991 and has made her home there ever since. Joy is a graduate of Virginia Theological Seminary, where she earned her Master of Divinity. She was ordained to the diaconate on March 1, 2025, and was ordained to the priesthood on September 20, 2025.

A cradle Anglican, Joy was received into the Episcopal Church and has been an active member ever since. She brings both her cultural heritage and lived experiences into her ministry, grounding her work in the conviction that baptism is the foundation of Christian life and the calling through which God invites each of us into ministry and mission.

Joy has served the Episcopal Church in a variety of capacities, including Diocesan Vice President for Programs for the Episcopal Church Women (ECW), member of the Committee on Liturgy and Music for Diocesan Convention, and has over twenty years of experience as a Parish Administrator. Called as the Associate Rector for Family Ministry at St. Francis, Joy celebrates a full-circle moment, since St. Francis was the very first church where she served as Parish Administrator in 2003.

Joy also played a key role in affiliating the Mothers’ Union (MU) with her home parish, Trinity Episcopal Church in Arlington, VA. The MU is a global Christian charity based in the United Kingdom, with a strong presence throughout Africa and the Caribbean. It supports families worldwide by demonstrating faith in action and transforming communities through fostering loving, respectful, and flourishing relationships.

As Diocesan President of the MU, Joy led efforts to collaborate with the ECW of the Diocese of Virginia, the Mothers’ Union of Kumasi, Ghana, and the MU in Liverpool, UK. Under her leadership, MUTEC members contributed reflections for the 2021 Lenten season. She also organized an International Race and Inequality Webinar and an International Conference for the Mothers’ Union. When Joy started seminary in 2022, she stepped down from her roles as Diocesan President for the Mothers’ Union and the ECW. 

Joy’s passions include family ministry, preaching, creation care, and Christian education for all ages. Made in the likeness of the Imago Dei, she is deeply committed to creating spaces where every person is seen, valued, and never dismissed. Every person has inherent worth because all are bearers of God’s image. At the heart of her ministry is a deep and abiding love for Jesus, which shapes her preaching, teaching, and pastoral presence.

Joy has a heart for service and strives to make God’s love known through her witness in both work and ministry. She is committed to making Christ known in the world through prayer, education, and joyful service.

In her spare time, Joy enjoys reading, cooking, and spending time with family and friends. She and her husband, Edmund, live in Woodbridge, Virginia, and are proud parents of two adult children, Elaine and Cameron.