I grew up in Charlotte, NC as a life-long Lutheran. I went to Wake Forest University, majoring in Chemistry, but with all of my electives in religion/philosophy, literature, and art, I started hearing God say more and more, “You need to do something with that; chemistry’s not for you.” So… I went to the Lutheran Theological Southern Seminary in Columbia—where all of my relatives were from—after graduating from Wake.
I did my internship outside of Boston where I met my wife, Stephanie, getting to know her in a snowstorm on Easter. After graduating, I was assigned to central Michigan for my first-call (a long story)—counter to all of our best-laid plans! St. Timothy, in Midland, MI, home of Dow Chemical. We were there for 4 years. While there we got married but when it came time to start a family we decided to “split the difference” between Charlotte and Boston and I looked for a call in the mid-Atlantic… …and that’s how we ended up in Phoenixville, PA in 2001!
I was called to be the associate pastor at St. John’s, Phoenixville, where I served for 6 years. In that time, we had our three kids—Nathan, Eric, Caroline. I also, however, started thinking about changing careers in order to teach at the college level. After doing a year of interim ministry down by the airport, I entered the PhD program at the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Philadelphia, focusing on spirituality in the Reformation. I was on-leave from call for six years, teaching as an adjunct at Immaculata and LaSalle and consulting with congregations in pastoral transition. However, God called me back into the ministry in a variety of ways, and so for the last several years I have been an interim pastor in the synod—serving small churches, big churches, and everything in between.
My most recent call was at St. Luke’s, Obelisk (Zeiglerville). I did finally complete my PhD in Feb. 2021. I’m currently teaching seminary students as an adjunct this spring, which I’m grateful to be able to do. In all of those experiences God made me realize that I was happiest being with God’s people, getting to know them in their spiritual lives, having fun doing ministry, and sharing God’s good news—in the good and the bad. In short, being involved with people in the parish. … and now for something completely different:
I like to read—sci-fi/fantasy, literature, philosophy, and occasionally history. I like to do things with my hands—mostly house projects (repairing what I break). I subscribe to Scientific American. We have a shy rescue dog named Baxter. I like to play soccer and have carved out time to be on various teams over the years, with some breaks to deal with rotator cuff surgery and arthritic knees. I’m a coffee drinker and enjoy opportunities to go to Bridge Street. I love being out in the woods. I am excited about being y’all’s pastor, getting to know all of you and nurturing a living relationship with God with y’all—“to have life and have it abundantly” (John 10:10).
