On a wickedly hot and humid day in the summer of 1992, William Baum was ordained by Bishop William Lazareth at Grace & St. Paul's Church on West 71st Street in Manhattan. Pastor Baum is the last person to have been ordained at the hands of Bishop Lazareth.
Receiving a Bachelor of Arts in music composition from Concordia College, Bronxville, he went on to post-graduate study in composition through the City University of New York. He was awarded the Master of Divinity degree by the General Theological Seminary of the Episcopal Church in Manhattan where his hard-working brother, George, the Episcopal priest (from the band Lost And Found), also received his degree.
In addition to his pastorate at Saint Barnabas Church, Pastor Baum has served on the Executive Committee of the Metropolitan New York Synod since 2000; as Dean of Southwest Queens; chairman of the Synod's Christian Ethics Dialogue and the Synod's Congregational Viability Committee; and chairman of the Brooklyn-Queens Lutheran-Roman Catholic Dialogue. He enthusiastically sponsors Boy Scout and Cub Scout Troops 237 and Girl Scout Troop 4286.
Pastor Baum is the husband of one and father of two. He is married to the Rev. Brooke L. Swertfager, pastor of Christ Lutheran Church in Manhattan. The couple have two tall sons. The family is full of avid hockey players and fans.