Staff Stories: Matt “Brick” Brichetto

My Story

Family has been a huge blessing from God in my life. Growing up in a Christian home, I was exposed to the Gospel from an early age and as a third grader surrendered my life to Jesus one night in my parents’ bedroom.

A few weeks later, I was baptized as a believer as a celebration of this life change. Servanthood is one of the biggest qualities my parents instilled in me.

As a high school junior, I met Sarah, a beautiful young woman who became my high school sweetheart at band camp. As a new high school graduate, I surrendered to pastoral ministry. In college I saw two dreams come true: I received a degree in Business Administration from the University of Tennessee and marched in the drumline for the “Pride of the Southland Marching Band.” In fact, I turned 21 years old in LSU’s Tiger Stadium during a thrilling Volunteer Overtime win over the Tigers!

I first visited New Orleans the week before Katrina and moved here from Knoxville, TN in 2007 for graduate school. My plan was to live here temporarily but only 2 weeks after I moved, I fell in love with the history, culture, food, atmosphere, and became one of the many post-Katrina transplants.

Sarah and I got engaged and married after she graduated from college. We live Uptown and love our neighborhood. We are parents to Elizabeth Jane, the cutest, curious little girl in all the world. For pictures, check me out on social media—I love to post tons of pictures with my girls.

My Role at Vintage

I have been connected with Vintage Church since its beginning as a small Community Group in 2007. This church was one of several avenues through which God called my family to serve in this city.

I currently serve as the Executive Pastor overseeing the administration, ministry, and staff at Vintage Church. I also believe that my calling is to history and urbanology. New Orleans is in the midst of a rebuilding project which I believe presents some enormous opportunities as well as some really difficult challenges.

Christians have an important role to play in the city and process. My dream is to see similar collaboration that happened at the end of the Old Testament when Zerubbabel an average Joe, Jeshua and Ezra both priests, and Nehemiah a government employee, all worked together to rebuild & revitalize a city.