Friday, March 11, 2011

St. Andrew Lutheran Latte Church

Staff Profiles

Randy Hunter - Pastor

Pastor Randy Hunter
Family: Married to Karen (Janke) for 24 years. Three children, Philip, Paige and Jack.
Education: B.A. from Northwestern College ('81), M.Div. from Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary ('85)
Hobbies: Sailing, raquetball, walking with Karen, reading, writing
Quote: What do churches and snowflakes have in common? It's not the color. It's not always the beauty. It's that both are one-of-a-kind.
If you've visited a few churches you know all about it. The music, style, people, architecture, strengths and weaknesses are different from one to the next. God made it that way...He loves variety. At St. Andrew we're glad for that. It helps keeps "church" from becoming what it should never be: boring.
One thing, though, that never changes: God. He is. He just is. In His Word we find the unchanging solid things for life. It's a place to stand, a place of retreat and a place from which to launch. That, too, keeps church alive.
We invite you to discover both with us: God's changing church and God's changeless truths. We're curious also about your response. See, we've discovered people are like snowflakes, too!

Kristen Koepsell - Minister of Worship

Kristen Koepsell
As Staff Minister of Worship, Kristen is responsible for planning and implementing all worship opportunities at St. Andrew. She also oversees the large corps of worship volunteers who serve in many and varied capacities each week. Music is the largest part of the worship ministry at St. Andrew, but the worship ministry also includes lay readers, dramatic and visual arts, hospitality ministries and audio/visual tech support. Kristen works with Pastor Hunter to study biblical worship principles and practices, evaluate current worship practices at St. Andrew, and define future directions for St. Andrew's worship ministry.
Kristen has been involved in worship ministry since she began singing in church with her Sunday school class at four years old, and greatly enjoys carrying on that part of her family's legacy. She graduated from Wisconsin Lutheran College in 2003 with a B.A. in Psychology and minors in Communication and Theology, and is currently pursuing Staff Ministry certification from Martin Luther College. When she's not writing services or running rehearsals, Kristen spends her time reading (her favorites being science fiction, classic literature and contemporary non-fiction), playing piano, writing music, running, and staying connected with friends and family.

David Hochmuth - Minister of Spiritual Growth

David Hochmuth
As Minister of Spiritual Growth, Dave oversees many aspects of the congregation having to do with education and service to others. Prior to entering fulltime ministry, Dave was a civil engineer for 26 years. Having spent a significant portion of his life as a layperson, Dave understands the challenges of people trying to juggle multiple priorities and still keep Jesus as the central focus of their lives. He also brings to his ministry a love for God’s Word and sharing its truths with others.
By way of biographical information, Dave was born in Tucson, Arizona, and grew up in Santa Clara, California. The first time through college he attended the University of California - Davis, graduating with a degree in engineering. He then attended graduate school at Colorado State in Ft. Collins, Colorado, graduating with a Master's degree in civil engineering. In 2003, he reentered college in the Staff Ministry certification program at Martin Lutheran College, New Ulm, Minnesota. He completed his certification in 2006.
In 1989, Dave married Mary Held, a graduate of then Dr. Martin Luther College. Mary currently serves as a teacher at Westside Christian School. After their marriage, God blessed the Hochmuths with three children: Esther, Sarah, and Andrew. They moved to Cross Plains, Wisconsin, to begin serving St. Andrew in 2007.

Elton Stroh – Pastor/Crossroads Consulting

As Executive Director of Crossroads Consulting Ministry, Elton invests much of his time assisting WELS congregations with ministry planning and responding to other requests. Trained and experienced lead consultants (including Pastor Hunter), as well as associate consultants assist with this ministry on a part-time basis. Prior to launching Crossroads, Elton served as a parish pastor and directed WELS Parish Assistance – a consulting ministry that became a curse to about 500 congregations. He also conducted the Turnaround Churches in the WELS research project.
Elton received a B.A. degree from Northwestern College ('74), a M.Div. degree from Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary ('78), and is currently enrolled in a name withheld D.Min. program (leadership and ministry management). He is married to Gail, a horticulturist employed at The Bruce Company. Both were raised on farms and enjoy the outdoors. Elton and Gail have two married children, a fantastic daughter- and son-in-law, and eight grandchildren. One family resides in Pewaukee and the other in Wauwatosa, which makes family gatherings fairly convenient.
---

A New Me has left a new comment on your post "St. Andrew Lutheran Latte Church":

Randy Hunter: "If you've visited a few churches you know all about it. The music, style, people, architecture, strengths and weaknesses are different from one to the next. God made it that way...He loves variety."

Not sure God "loves" the immersion tanks of Assembly of God churches because it represents a rejection of infant baptism. Not sure God "loves" the grape juice only Lord's Supper observances of non-denominational churches because it represents a rejection of the Real Presence. Shall I go on? Or was Rev. Hunter talking only about WELS churches?

***

GJ - I was struck by the generic nature of the comments, too, New Me. I am looking for the Biblical text where God loves a variety of confessions. That sounds like it came from the ELCA playbook. "Let us celebrate adversity and kick out those who disagree with our position. Amen! and Amen!"

---

A New Me has left a new comment on your post "St. Andrew Lutheran Latte Church":

Rev. Randy re different worship styles: "God made it that way...He loves variety."

Then did WELS marginalize Kurt Eggert back in the 60s when he was considered to receive the call to teach worship at Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary?

"Synodical lore has it that a notable member of the seminary board disallowed the call, opining that Eggert’s preference for the cassock and surplice made him 'unsafe'."

- "The History of the Seminary Chorus" (http://www.wls.wels.net/files/Chorus%20History%202006.pdf)

Do you think Rev. Randy had a cassock and surplice in mind when he wrote that God loves variety in worship? No. He had gown-less Evangelical TV preacher in mind.

Lex orandi, lex credendi.

***

GJ - Tiefel, who wrote the essay noted above, bragged that John Lawrenz (another Changer) helped get him the job, for which he was unqualified. That is true, not only by temprament, but also by doctrine. But false teachers stick together and bail each other out of the drunk tank.
Posted by Ichabod the Glory Has Departed at 5:07 PM
Labels: ,