Our rector, Archpriest James Carles (b. 1969), was appointed to this parish in December 2002. He and his wife, Marie, were received into Orthodoxy at Saint Mary's Antiochian Orthodox Church, Mount Pritchard, on 5 November 1994. They joined the Russian Orthodox parish of Saint Nicholas in Fairfield in 1996. He was tonsured a reader in May 1997 and ordained subdeacon and deacon in November 1998. On 23 September 2001 Father James was ordained to the priesthood and assigned to the parish of the Protection of the Holy Virgin in Cabramatta, Sydney, with the additional responsibility of serving what was then the newly-established Russian Orthodox community of Saint Panteleimon, Gosford. In August 2003 he was released from his appointment to the Cabramatta parish and has, since then, served continuously in Gosford and Wallsend. In October 2015 he participated in a delegation of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia accompanying the Kursk-Root Icon of the Mother of God to the Yekaterinburg and Ufa Metropolitanates of the Russian Orthodox Church. In November 2016 he was raised to the rank of archpriest. In May 2021 he retired from the Australian Public Service after 32 years' service and in August 2021 he commenced full-time tertiary study in law and theology. In December 2022 he was appointed to Saint Symeon of Verkhoturye Orthodox Mission on the NSW Mid North Coast in addition to his responsibilities in Wallsend and Gosford. Father James and Matushka Marie have seven children born between 1990 and 2007.
Subdeacon Vitaly Lupish, the eldest son of the ever-memorable Archpriest John Lupish, was a founding member of our parish. An indispensible helper to his father in parish life, he has been our choir director and reader, the designer of our church and hall and a participant in both building projects, and an active member of the Parish Council. Tonsured a reader and ordained subdeacon by the ever-memorable Archbishop Paul (Pavlov) in 1984, Vitaly assisted the many clergymen assigned to serve our parish after Father John's repose in 1977. It is impossible to over-estimate Vitaly's contribution to Saint Nicholas' in the course of nearly 70 years. No longer an active member of the Parish Council, Vitaly nevertheless retains an honorary position by virtue of his long and distinguished service to our parish. In October 2017 Vitaly and his wife Irene were awarded the prestigious Diocesan Cross.
Subdeacon Luke Goura is a life-long member of our parish. Tonsured a reader in May 2004, he was ordained subdeacon by Metropolitan Hilarion (Kapral) in May 2009. Luke and his wife Elise were married at Saint Nicholas' in 2006, and have two sons, Daniel and Thomas, born in 2008 and 2012 respectively. Luke is the senior altar server in our parish and also regularly reads the Apostol at Divine Liturgy.
