Alumni Updates
Rev. Kimberlee Law, CATS ’17, was ordained on February 18 at First Lutheran Church in Gypsom, CO. She has accepted a call at Grace St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Tucson, AZ.
Diane McGeoch, MCM ’03, has taken a new position as coordinator at Learning Peace Camp in Nampa, ID.
Rev. Kaitlin Pabo-Eulberg, M.Div ’16, has accepted a call at Epiphany Lutheran-Episcopal Church in Valdez, AK. She was ordained on February 23 at Ebenezer/herchurch Lutheran in San Francisco, CA.
Rev. Dr. Gabriele Schroeder, Ph.D. ’98, has accepted a new call at Advent Lutheran Church in Citrus Heights, CA.
Rev. David Wall, M.Div ’83, is currently serving an interim pastorate at Calvary Lutheran Church in Willmar, MN.
Rev. Laura Antea-Stephenson, M.Div ’13, was ordained on January 31 at St. Matthew’s Episcopal Church in Grand Junction, CO.
Rev. Christian Jennert, M.Div ‘03, was installed at St. Paul Lutheran Church on January 7 in Oakland, CA.
Rev. Karen Perkins, M.Div ’04, has taken a new call at Resurrection Lutheran Church in Juneau, AK.
Rev. Erika Spaet, M.Div ’17, was ordained on October 1 at Salt and Light Lutheran Church in Portland, OR. She has taken a position as a mission developer called to curate new community and expressions of church in partnership with the ELCA and the United Methodist Church.
Rev. Linda Vogelgesang, M.Div ’02, will be retiring from full time ministry as of November 15 and will be moving to the Temescal Valley in Southern California to be close to family. Her previous call was St. John’s Lutheran Church in Anticoch, CA.
Rev. David Wall, M.Div ’83, is currently the Interim Pastor at South Santiago Lutheran Church in Clear Lake, MN.
Rev. Ryan Hersch, M.Div ’03, has been called to serve as Senior Pastor of Atonement Lutheran Church in Wyomissing, PA.
Rev. Dominique McFall Buchholz, MDiv ’16, was ordained on January 21 at Trinity Lutheran Church in Bismarck, ND. She has been called to serve as pastor at Sharon Lutheran Church in Grand Forks, ND.
Rev. Ronald Moe-Lobeda, MDiv ’84, was installed as Associate Pastor of St. Mark’s Lutheran Church in San Francisco on March 26.
Rev. Jayson Nicholson, MDiv ‘16, was ordained on April 7 at Trinity Lutheran Church in Pleasanton, CA. He has been called to Our Savior’s Lutheran Church in Laurel, MT.
Rev. Greg Ronning, MDiv ‘ 88, has accepted a concurrent call at First Lutheran Church, Fullerton, CA. He will continue to pastor The Table.
Rev. Pam Schaefer Dawson, MDiv '12, has resigned her call as pastor of Cross and Crown in Rohnert Park, Ca. She is on leave from call and teaching high school math in Petaluma.
Rev. Josh Serrano, CATS ’10, has accepted a new call at Holy Trinity Lutheran Church in San Carlos, CA.
Rev. Dr. Niveen Sarras, MDiv ’16, was ordained on October 29 at Lutheran Church of Christ The Redeemer in Minneapolis, MN.
Rev. Ryan Eikenbary, MDiv ’15, was ordained on December 4 at St. John’s Lutheran Church in Sacramento, CA. He has accepted a call at Zion Lutheran Church in Stockton, CA.
Rev. Erin Armstrong, MDiv ’16, was ordained on December 4 at Trinity Lutheran Church in Riverside, CA. She has accepted a call at Trinity Lutheran Church in Hemet, CA.
Rev. Dawna Svaren, BTEM, ’98, has answered a call to serve Ocean Park Lutheran Church in Ocean Park, Washington. She was installed on October 23.
Rev. Kirsten Sauey Hoffman, MDiv ’12, is leaving her congregation in Hobbs, New Mexico and taking a new call at Lord of Life Lutheran Church in Kennewick, Washington.
Steve Otte, MDiv ’15, will be ordained on October 29 at King of Glory Lutheran Church in Fountain Valley, CA. He will be installed as the pastor of Grace Lutheran Church in Covina, CA, on October 30.
Rev. Korey Finstad, MDiv ’05, has been called to serve Bethel Lutheran Church in Brush Prairie, WA. He was installed on October 16.
Rev. Anita Baly, MDiv ’79, has just begun a one-year call as Pastor of Prince of Peace Lutheran Church, Plymouth Meeting, PA.
Rev. Steven Renner, TEEM ‘15, was ordained and installed as pastor at Third Lutheran Church in Louisville, KY on April 25, 2015 by the Rev. Dr. William O. Gafkjen, Bishop of the Indiana-Kentucky Synod.
Rev. Mary J. Daniels, TEEM ’03, retired on December 31, 2015. She was previously the pastor at St. John Lutheran Church in Sprague, WA.
Rev. Jeremy Fuerst, MDiv ’10,was installed as the new pastor at Central Lutheran Church in Everett, WA, on December 19, 2015. The Northwest Washington Synod welcomed Jeremy in their newsletter and wished blessing upon their new ministry partnership.
Rev. Jennifer Shaw, CATS ’15, was ordained on January 31, 2016, at Ascension Lutheran Church in Thousand Oaks, CA. She has been called to serve St. John’s Lutheran Church in Palm Desert, CA.
Rev. Dale Burke,MDiv ‘72 received a national award from the NCAA as a Faculty Mentor of the Year in Division 2. He currently serves as a faculty member and chaplain at Hawai’i Pacific University. You may view the full article in the HPU newsletter here.
Rev. Adrienne Strehlow, MDiv ’09, called as redevelopment pastor to Immanuel Lutheran Church, Vancouver, WA.
Mrs. Rebecca Swee, MDiv '14, has been called to Good Shepherd Church in Burlingame, CA. She will be ordained on Jan. 3 at Grace Lutheran Church in Palo Alto.
Rev. Dorothy Cottingham, MDiv ’14, has been called to Christ the King Lutheran in Tigard, OR, beginning Jan. 3. She was ordained on Nov 22 at St. James Lutheran Portland, OR.
Rev. Gail Duba, TEEM ’03, has accepted a new call to Zion Lutheran Church, Spokane, WA. She will be installed on Dec. 20.
Mr. Tim Feiertag, MDiv ‘09, has been called to Trinity Lutheran in Everett, WA. He will be ordained Dec. 13 at St. Mark Hope and Peace in Kansas City, MO
Mrs. Martha Santrizos, MDiv ‘ 11, is to be consecrated as a diaconal minister in the ELCA, called through the Southwest California Synod on Dec. 6 at Christ Lutheran in Goleta, CA. She will jointly serve Trinity Lutheran Church, Christ Lutheran Church (Goleta), and the University Religious Center Board (Isla Vista).
Rev. Natalie Faltin, MDiv ’15, was ordained on July 11, 2015, and has accepted a call at St. John’s Lutheran Church in Great Falls, MT.
Rev. Emily Olsen, MDiv ’15, was ordained on June 20, 2015, at Church of the Savior in Paramus, NJ. She has accepted a call at Christ the King Lutheran Church in Gladwin, MI.
Rev. Gretchen Colby Rode, MDiv ’14, is being called as associate pastor to House of Hope, New Hope, Minnesota.
Rev. Dr. William Busch and Rev. Martin Schaefer, both MDiv '65, celebrated the 50th anniversary of their ordinations at a banquet at the Sierra Pacific Synod Assembly in Sacramento on May 30.
Rev. Maggie Falenschek, MDiv ’15, was ordained at University Lutheran Church in Palo Alto, California, on May 24th, one day after her graduation! She has accepted a call at St. Matthews Lutheran Church in Urbana, Illinois.
Kyle Merkle and Briana Watts, MDiv ’15 and ’15, will be married this August.
Rev. Anthony Rhodes, MDiv '14, was ordained on May 9, 2015, at Advent Lutheran Church in Mill Creek, Washington. The Rev. Kirby Unti, Biship of the Northwest Washington Synod, officiated. Tony has accepted a call in Townsend, Montana.
Rev. Daniel Senter, MDiv ’93, is a contributor and board member of altSpirit, a non-profit organization that creates easily accessibly materials and techniques for small group discussions. Visit here.
Rev. Geri Cunningham, MDiv ’00, will be retiring May 31, 2015. She has served at St. Peter Lutheran Church in Carlsbad, New Mexico, since 2009.
Amanda Nelson, MDiv ’14, will be ordained on May 31st at Immanuel Lutheran Attleboro, Massachusetts. She has accepted a call at Faith Lutheran Church in East Hartford, Connecticut.
Rev. Janna Mikkelson, CATS ’07, was ordained on May 3, 2015 at Lutheran Church of the Ascension in Sacramento, California. She has been called as pastor of Faith Lutheran Church in Pioneer, also in California.
Rev. Dena Williams, CATS ’96, has created a website to provide affordable and creative devotional materials. Visit here.
Rebecca Seely, CATS ’14, will be ordained on August 8, 2015, and has received a call to serve as pastor to a college ministry in New York City, The Vine NYC. She will also be the Executive Director of Lutheran Ministries in Higher Education.
Revs. Philip and Laura Holck, MDiv ’97 and ’99, have been called to serve as senior pastors of Evangelical Lutheran Church of the Cross in Calgary, Alberta, Canada.
Mark Goodwin, MTS ’13, will start work at the VA in Palo Alto, California, as the Palliative Care Chaplain Fellow.
Revs. Adrian and Anna Bonaro, MDiv ’08 and ’11, welcomed their second son, Asher Hansen Bonaro, on February 15, 2015.
Rev. Ryan Chaddick, MDiv '14, was ordained on March 22, 2015, and is now serving Bloom Lutheran Church in Valencia, California.
Rev. Chris Hermansen, MDiv '05, started a new call at Epiphany Lutheran Church in Suwanne, Georgia, in August 2014.
Rev. Stacey Siebrasse, MDiv '13, has accepted a call at First English Lutheran Church in Billings, Montana.
Rev. W. J. Mark Knutson, MDiv ’86 and pastor of Augustana Lutheran Church in Portland, was elected to a second term as Chair of the Board of the Northwest Health Foundation. The NWHF is a leading foundation in the Northwest that is a major advocate for unheard voices and is a champion of social justice, equity and healthy communities and households.
Rev. Israel Jurich, MDiv ’14, was ordained on February 22, 2015 at Faith Lutheran Church in North Bend, OR.
Congratulations to Rev. Angela Freeman, MDiv ’04, who was married to the Rev. Jonathan Glass-Riley on February 7, 2015 at Trinity Cathedral in Cleveland, Ohio.
Rev. Sharon Lubkeman, MDiv ’89, retired on Jan 1, 2015, after serving Christ Lutheran Church in El Cerrito, California for her entire ordained ministry. Her previous vocation was as a social worker.
Rev. Mary-Lou Petitjean, MDiv ’96, retired on Jan 1, 2015. Her last call was Lord of Mercy Lutheran Church in Sparks, Nevada.
Tyler (Crabe) Jensen, MDiv ’14, will be ordained at Faith Lutheran Church in Castro Valley, CA, on March 15, 2015.
Rev. Jim Clark-Moore, TEEM ’11, was ordained and installed as associate pastor at Hope Lutheran Church in Santa Clara, California, on February 8, 2015. He is also beginning a ministry to the homeless of San Jose called Encompass Ministry.
Rev. Cristina Beauchemin, TEEM ’14, was ordained and installed at New Creation Lutheran Church on February 6, 2015.
Rev. Anne Carlson, MDiv ’86, retired on January 1, 2015, from New Creation Lutheran Church in San Jose, California. She and her husband have both been certified by the ELCA office of coaching to be on the referral list for pastoral and congregational/leader coaching. They are initiating a ministry called Small Stones Coaching. Rev. Carlson also continues to serve as the conference dean for the Santa Clara Valley Lutheran Parish.
Carlton Monroe, MDiv 2011, has been called to be Director of Evangelical Mission in the Sierra Pacific Synod.
David Beard, MDiv ’79, has been called to be pastor at St. John Lutheran Church in Palm Desert, California.
Todd LaGrange, TEEM ’14, was ordained on January 25, 2015 at St. Augustine’s Episcopal Church in Metairie, Louisiana, where he will serve.
Emily Frances Truby-Weller, MDiv. ’14, was ordained on January 31, 2015 at her home congregation, St. Matthew’s Lutheran Church in Lima, Ohio. She will be serving St. Stephen’s Lutheran Church in Hicksville, New York (Long Island).
Paul Nelson, MDiv.’82, is retiring from active parish ministry. He served St. Mark in San Fernando, California from 1982 to 1987 and Celebration Lutheran in Peoria, Arizona from 1987 to the present.
Jean Lebbert, MDiv.’92, has written a book with her sister, Janet Venerella. Janet is a licensed practitioner of Religious Sciences. The book is called A Positive Approach: Freeing the Ten Commandments from Negative Language. According to Jean: “In the book we discuss the negative effects of negative language, and then we explore how those effects have affected the interpretation of our cherished moral code, the Decalogue, and how removing the "nots" from the "thou shalts" reveals wisdom most relevant for a fulfilling spiritual journey. The book is useful as a teaching text and is also a devotional tool.”
Eric Huseth, MDiv '13, has been called to Our Savior's Lutheran Church in Bonner, Montana. He will be ordained on January 31, 2015 at Westwood Lutheran Church in St. Louis Park, Minnesota. Eric's wife Abby is doing graduate study at the University of Montana in Missoula.
Jen-Hao Lee, TEEM '12, has been called to Formosan Presbyterian Church in Los Angeles, and will be installed there on February 21st.
Harry Kapeikis, MDiv, '68, announces the publishing of the third book in his Exile from Latvia series, Sensing the Call. In it, he reviews the events that guided him to PLTS and subsequently his first call and ordination. He describes PLTSas "the seminary with all the colors of the rainbow."
Chelsea Globe, Affil. '14, has been called by Hope Lutheran Church in Enumclaw, Washington. Her ordination date was November 15th, 2014.
Mary-Alyce Burleigh, MDiv '14, has been called by Holy Spirit Lutheran Church in Kirkland, Washington to become pastor for education, both within and outside of the congregation. Her ordination will be December 7th at Holy Spirit.
Jeremy Serrano, CATS '13, has been called to serve as pastor of Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, Concord, California.
Anna Rieke, MDiv '13, has been called by the Metropolitan New York Synod to be a Mission Developer in the Central Harlem neighborhood of Manhattan, developing a new worshiping community called "Two of Three Project." She started on November 1st and will be ordained on November 22 at Faith Lutheran Church in Seattle, Washington.
Kristin Hemme Gimelli, MTS '97, has been teaching science at the Bush School in Seattle, Washington for sixteen years, and has two children, 10 and 13 years old. He is also a trained massage therapist and explores the crossover between physics and energy work.
Wes Menke, MDiv '14, has been called as pastor to St. Peter Lutheran Church in Santa Ana, California. His planned ordination date is November 30, 2014.