Alumni/ae News

Updated November 17, 2009

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The 0s - back to the top

Stephanie Swanson, '99, and Charles Swanson, '07, welcomed daughter Sadie Alice Swanson on September 17th.  (submitted 11/17/2009)

The 00s - back to the top

Emily Myallis, '08, Emily Myallis was Consecrated as a Diaconal Minister on August 30, 2008 in Lebanon, Penn., Lower Susquehanna Synod.  She is called to Eldercare, a day-program for older adults, and to Zion's Lutheran Church in Jonestown, Penn.  (submitted 9/4/2009)   Ingelaurie Lisher, '06, was commissioned as an Associate in Ministry at St. Mark's Lutheran Church by The Narrows, Tacoma WA on Sunday, June 14th 2009 where she serves as the Director of Youth and Family Ministry.  (submitted 6/11/2009)   Ingelaurie Lisher, '06, married Bruce C. Sadler on Saturday, November 8th 2008 at St. Mark's Lutheran Church by The Narrows, Tacoma WA.  (submitted 6/11/2009)   Scott Block, '06, recently had his book "From Death to Life: We have this sure and steadfast anchor of the soul" published by Wipf and Stock Publishers in Oregon. The book is available for purchase from them and can also be purchased at Amazon.  (submitted 10/19/2009)   Sue Kiester-Grinde, '05, and Dave Grinde are proud to announce the finalization of the adoption of their daughter Hannah Mary Elizabeth Grinde on April 13, 2009.  Hannah was born on March 11, 2008 at 29 weeks. Sue is in her second call at Salem Lutheran Church, Salem, SD.  (submitted 6/10/2009)   Amy Fondroy Eich, '05, will be installed as the new pastor at Joy Lutheran Church in Prescott, Wis. on Sunday, August 2, 2009 at both the 8:15 and 10:00 a.m. worship services.  She will be installed by Pastor Amy Odgren, Assistant to the Bishop of the Northwest Wisconsin Synod of the ELCA.  Fondroy Eich will be moving to Prescott from Jefferson, Iowa, where she has served as pastor of Christ Lutheran Church since 2005.  (submitted 7/31/2009)   Annie (Janzen) Haverlah, '05, and Stephen Haverlah, '08, welcomed a baby boy, Andrew Mark Haverlah, who was born April 9, 2009, in Abilene, Kansas.  (submitted 5/14/2009)   John Okan, '05, and Liza Okan, '96, have been called to serve as pastor of Immanuel Lutheran Church in rural Whatcom County, Wash.  John previously served as pastor in Vining, Minn. at a four point parish, since 2005.  Okan and his wife, Liza, were blessed with the birth of their daughter, Eleanor Rose, on June 27, 2009, three weeks after he conducted his first service at Immanuel Lutheran.  They also have a daughter, Sophia, who turned 2 on July 19.  A complete news article regarding his new call can be found at www.thenewstribune.com/news/northwest/story/827795.html  (submitted 8/4/2009)   Scott McAnally, '04, has accepted and begun a new call as Pastor of the Lutheran Church of Hope in Broomfield, Colo.  He will be formally installed on October 11, 2009.  (submitted 7/18/2009)   Troy Troftgruben, '03, of Park River, North Dakota, received the Doctor of Philosophy degree from Princeton Theological Seminary on May 23, 2009.  (submitted 6/11/2009)   Coral Rose, '02, has joined the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod World Mission team and will be sent to Pretoria, South Africa to serve as regional business manager.  Her duties will include traveling throughout the continent of Africa and supporting the work of missionaries, partner churches and mission projects, especially in Guinea, Kenya, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Togo and Uganda. For more information on the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod World Missions, visit www.lcmsworldmission.org.  (submitted 7/31/2009)   Jason Bazzle, '02, has been appointed Director of Music at St. Luke's Lutheran Church in Summerville, S.C. He formerly served seven years as Director of Music at Bethel United Methodist Church in Walterboro, S.C.  (submitted 11/4/2009)   Jeannine Brown, '02, has been elected to The Committee on Bible Translation (CBT) and will immediately join the ongoing translation work of the CBT, including their work on the previously announced update of the New International Version (NIV) Bible, slated for publication in 2011. Dr. Jeannine Brown is Professor of New Testament at Bethel Seminary in St. Paul, Minnesota. She received a Master of Divinity from Bethel and her Ph.D. from Luther Seminary. She has written several articles and a book on hermeneutics.  (submitted 11/9/2009)   Melinda Melhus, '01, has accepted a new call to serve as associate pastor at Our Savior's Lutheran Church in West Salem, Wisc. She previously served as pastor at Ostmark Lutheran Church in Watkins, Minn.  A complete news article regarding her call can be found online at www.couleenews.com/articles/2009/10/08/features/00apastor.txt  (submitted 10/19/2009)   Elizabeth Eide, '01, has accepted a call to serve as one of the three pastors at King of Kings Lutheran Church in Woodbury, Minn.  She formerly served as solo pastor at St. James Lutheran Church in Barrington, R.I. for the last seven years.  Elizabeth, along with her husband Nick, and their twins Jackson and Sophia, are excited to be back in the Midwest, close to family and friends.  (submitted 10/19/2009)   Chris Enstad, '00, welcomed their second daughter, Berit Elizabeth, on Dec. 9, 2007.  Chris also published an article entitled "A Primer on the Emerging Church" in the Easter 2009 issue of Lutheran Forum.  (submitted 6/9/2009)   Chris Enstad, '00, began a new call as Pastor of Faith Formation at Mt. Olivet Lutheran Church of Plymouth, Minn. in March of 2009.  (submitted 6/9/2009)   Emily Helin Olson, '00, is serving as the Music Director in a new church start with the Pennsylvania Southeast Conference of the United Church of Christ.  Her husband, Bryan, is a 2005 Master of Divinity graduate of United Theological Seminary of the Twin Cities, and was called in December 2008 to pastor a new young adult-focused church community outside of Philadelphia.  Emily and Bryan were married in April 2007 in Cottage Grove, Minn., and formerly served together at Cottage Grove United Church of Christ.  (submitted 6/25/2009)   John Jahr, '00, has been appointed choral music director of the West Central Singers in Willmar, Minn.  He currently serves as director of worship and music at Vinje Lutheran Church in Willmar, where he directs several choirs and serves as organist.  (submitted 9/14/2009)

The 90s - back to the top

Deanna Wildermuth, '97, will be installed as the new pastor at Holy Trinity Lutheran Church in Mercer Island, Wash., during a special service on Sunday, Sept. 27, 2009 at 3 p.m. She most recently served as pastor at Sharon Lutheran Church in Grand Forks, N.D. Wildermuth also served as associate pastor at Saint Luke's Church in Bellevue, Wash., as well as other positions in Minnesota, Wisconsin, and North Dakota.  She is married to Keith, her husband of 25 years.  They have two grown sons, Alan and Daniel.  (submitted 9/24/2009)

The 80s - back to the top

Kai Nilsen, '89, received a Doctor of Ministry degree from Fuller Seminary, Pasadena, Calif. on June 13, 2009  (submitted 7/20/2009)   Tom Schlotterback, '87, has been appointed as Director of Vocation and Church Leadership at Concordia College, Moorhead, Minn. Rev. Schlotterback previously served congregations in Fremont and Omaha, Neb. He most recently has served as senior pastor of King of Glory Lutheran Church, Billings, Mont., and as a member of Concordia's Board of Regents. He is married to Sarah E. (Swanson), a music teacher and director of music and worship at King of Glory Lutheran Church. They have five children. Rev. Schlotterback will assist Concordia in its mission to be a college of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, exploring emerging creative partnerships with synodical and churchwide expressions of the ELCA. He will begin his work in January, 2010.  (submitted 9/28/2009)   Dana Nissen, '83, was awarded the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy from the Graduate Theological Foundation. His dissertation was titled Luther and the Turks: The Turkish Threat to Europe and the Sermons of Martin Luther. Dana is rostered in the Mpls. Area Synod and teaches Humanities and Philosophy at the Art Institutes of Minnesota and Argosy University.  (submitted 8/18/2009)

The 70s - back to the top

Richard (Dick) Schedtler, '77, died Thursday, Sept. 10, 2009, at his home in San Diego, Calif., after a short battle with cancer.  Dick served as pastor in many congregations, including St. John's Lutheran Church in Northfield, Minn.  (submitted 9/24/2009)   Ronald F. Marshall, '75, had his sermon on Genesis 22, "Take the Test," published at Lutheran Forum Online.  (submitted 6/22/2009)   Susan Hedahl, '75, Professor of Homiletics has been awarded the Herman G. Stuempfle Chair of Proclamation of the Word at Gettysburg Lutheran Seminary. The conferral ceremony is on October 13, 2009.  (submitted 6/23/2009)   Ronald F. Marshall, '75, published his article, "Driven by God: Kierkegaard's Parable of the Royal Coachman" in Toward the Final Crossroads: Festschrift for Edna Hong and Howard Hong, Mercer University Press, edited by Jamie Lorentzen.  (submitted 10/28/2009)   David Aaker, '73, is the co-author, with Jan Nelson of the recently published second edition (2009) of The Bereavement Ministry Program - A Guide for Churches.  The book was first published in 1998.  The book is published by Ave Maria Press, Notre Dame, Indiana.  (submitted 6/9/2009)

The 60s - back to the top

Gerald C. "Jeb" Monge, '69, has had his book: A Spiritual Memoir (Reflections on Mark) published by Publish America, Frederick, MD and released on July 11th.  (submitted 6/11/2009)   Thomas Wilkens, '61, and Betty Wilkens, professor emeritus of theology at Texas Lutheran University, and his daughter Kim have recently published a book titled "Un-American Activities: Countercultural Themes in Christianity." The book's subtitle, "A modern father and a postmodern daughter reflect on their pilgrimages of life and faith," highlights an important dimension of their collaborative work. Tom currently resides with his wife Betty, a former nurse and childbirth educator who wrote the book's Foreword and Afterword, in Georgetown, Texas. Kim lives with her husband and their son in Charlottesville, Virginia, where she serves as a technology consultant and teacher, an Emerging Church advocate, and a community activist. Her brother Nick, the director of an ecumenical counseling center, did some preliminary editing of the book; he lives with his family in San Antonio, Texas.  (submitted 8/29/2009)

The 50s - back to the top

Paul Richard Jorstad, '58, entered eternal life on March 13, 2009. After graduating from Luther Theological Seminary on May 25, 1958, he was ordained into the Ministry of Word and Sacrament of the Evangelical Lutheran Church on June 22, 1958 at First Lutheran Church in Kenyon, Minn.  He served at Grace Lutheran Church in Palo Alto, Calif., Church of the Good Shepherd in Salinas, Calif., and Faith Lutheran in Yucaipa, Calif. After retirement he served as visitation pastor at Faith Lutheran in Sun City, Calif. until 2001. During his ministry Pastor Paul served on numerous community boards on local issues and and served the wider church on several committees of the Pacifica Synod. He also served as Conference Dean and chair of the Homosexuality Ministry Team.  One of his joys of ministry was the privilege of supervising fourteen pastoral interns.       Fifty years ago Pastor Paul wrote these words at the end of his ordination bulletin: "My prayer is that I might remain steadfast and faithful to the will of God in the work of the Church."  His son, Pastor David Jorstad, is a 1985 graduate of Luther Seminary.   (submitted 6/19/2009)   Aaker Vincent, '58, died June 21, 2009, surrounded by his family, at Seasons Hospice in Rochester, Minn.  During his ministry, Vince first served as pastor in Taylor, Wisc., and subsequently at Our Savior's in Pequot Lakes, Minn., and Gloria Dei and Our Savior's in Rochester, Minn.  Following his parish ministries, Vince served in the Office of Development at Luther College in Decorah, Iowa, Bethany Homes in Rochester, Minn., and with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America Foundation, serving in two Northern Minnesota Synods and the Eastern North Dakota Synod.  In retirement years, he served as a volunteer visitation pastor to shut-ins for several Lutheran congregations. He is survived by his wife of 53 years, Marion, daughter, Kris; son, Dave; and two grandchildren, Danielle and Chad.  (submitted 7/8/2009)   George Voeks, '58, died at Prospect Park Living Center on Friday, September 25, 2009. He was 90 years old. George served as pastor at Bethlehem Lutheran Church in Morris, Ill. for 5 years and at East Immanuel Lutheran Church in St. Paul, Minn. for 26 years. He served the interdenominational Estes Park Church of Joy from 1992-1998.  George enjoyed meeting others, spending time with his family and enjoyed most of all sharing the love of Jesus. On any given day if asked, "How are you Pastor V?", his response would be "I'm living in the Victory!" Funeral services will be held on Friday, October 9, 2009 at 11:00 a.m. at East Immanuel Lutheran Church in St. Paul, Minn. See www.allnutt.com to read George's on-line obituary and send a message to the family.  (submitted 10/5/2009)   Alton Larsen, '53, died at his home in Minneapolis, Minn., on Sunday, October 4, 2009.  He was 91.  After being ordained, Alton served three churches in or near Ostrander, Minn., and worked to help them merge into one, Trinity Lutheran.  Alton served in Ostrander for 11 years before moving to rural Zumbrota, Minn., where he served for 20 years as pastor of Lands Lutheran Church and Minneola Lutheran Church.  Services for Alton and his son, Eric, who died September 13, 2009, were held at Lands Lutheran Church, rural Zumbrota, on Friday, October 9, 2009.  (submitted 10/8/2009)   Clifford Grindland, '51, died in September, 2009. Funeral services were held on September 15, 2009 at Calvary Lutheran Church in Alexandria, Minn. During his 39 years of ministry, Cliff served parishes in Maskell, Obert and Wynot, Neb.(1951-54); St. John's Lutheran in Webster, S.D. (1954-60); First Lutheran in Morris, Minn.(1960-84) and as interim pastor at Marietta and Nassau Lutheran Churches (1985-91). He is survived by his wife, Enid, and four children.  (submitted 9/17/2009)