Fall 2025 Incoming Students
I am from Minot, North Dakota. My wife Julia and I have been married eleven years and are members of Our Redeemer’s Lutheran Brethren Church. I attended Minot State University for Computer Science and finished with a dual major in Management Information Systems and Marketing; post-graduation I managed an IT department for a non-profit for nearly twelve years. We moved to Fergus Falls, Minnesota, in early June. Since then, Julia started a business called Otter Speech Therapy, providing pediatric speech language services to the Fergus Falls area. I started my Certificate in Theological Studies with an emphasis in missions this Fall, full-time and in-person. My wife and I went on the LBIM vision trip to Taiwan last summer and had a wonderful time learning about missions and culture in Taiwan. We helped with a week-long VBS, stayed with several host families, and ultimately found that missions could likely be a great fit for us. We had felt God had something different in store for us, but we weren’t quite sure what that was. We agree that we didn’t make any decisions to end up in Fergus Falls, rather, it’s been a series of doors that opened and others that closed.
I grew up in Lakewood, Colorado, attending Community in Christ, the Lutheran Brethren church in Arvada. My dad, Bill Poore, was the worship leader there up until 2014 when he accepted the call to be the pastor of Yellowstone LBC in Billings, Montana, after completing seminary courses. I finished my high school career in Billings and moved to Butte, MT, for my Bachelor of Science in Metallurgical and Materials Engineering at Montana Tech, which I finished in Spring 2023.
Over those summers between semesters, I worked at Inspiration Point Bible Camp and felt God calling me into ministry. I served as a servant leader in Chi Alpha campus ministries during my time at Montana Tech, and realized I enjoyed working with people and spreading the gospel more than grinding the same metallurgical equations over and over. I received a call to serve as the Youth Director for Grace LBC in Bottineau, North Dakota, during the summer of 2023. After much prayer, I accepted the position and have been working here as Youth Director since September of 2023.
I am only taking three classes in the Master of Divinity track to get started this semester so I can figure out the balance of youth group, seminary, and helping out around the church. My intention is to attend this first year remotely from Bottineau, but I hope to move to Fergus Falls sometime soon and complete the rest of the program in person. Once I complete my degree, I’ll officially become the third pastor in my family, right after my dad and my grandfather, Luther Larson. I love playing disc golf, board games, video games, fishing, and cooking.
I grew up in Hendricks, Minnesota, which is about 30 miles northeast of Brookings, South Dakota. I originally went to Lake Area Technical College (LATC) for welding, but God had other plans for me! The summer after I graduated from LATC, I came up to a Christian camp called Inspiration Point! After my first summer at camp, I moved to Fargo, ND, to work at Triumph West LBC. I was a youth leader there, and when I wasn’t working at the church, I was at the New Life Center, a drug rehab facility and homeless shelter. A year after living in Fargo, I worked my second summer at camp and also accepted the call to work at Inspiration Point full-time following the summer. With the eye-opening experiences God presented to me in these vocations, I felt a pull towards pastoral ministry, and with further encouragement from friends and family, I decided to pursue it! I am now attending seminary while being a newlywed and interning/volunteering at Triumph West.
I grew up a Christian my whole life, going to church every Sunday, and participating in Sunday school and youth events. I’ve been attending Emmaus Road Church in DeWitt, Iowa, for around 15 years, and I’ve been a part of our worship team there for about 14 years.
The seed to pursue becoming a pastor was planted when I was around 16 by Pastor Jason Lang, and I brushed it off and didn’t answer the call for a while. I pursued a degree in cyber security but quickly found my passion for that died very early on. For a little while, I stepped away from my faith, not on purpose, but just distracted chasing the wrong things in my late teens and early twenties. I came back home to ERC and found my faith becoming stronger than it ever was with the guidance of the pastors there and other mentors. After my father passed away in December last year, I felt the call again, but this time it was much firmer than before. I decided to answer the call to enter seminary with the goal of becoming a pastor, to continue to share the music I love so much, but also to share the great news of God’s love for us, his sacrifice, and his promises to us.
I have lived in New Jersey for all my life with the exception of living in Rhode Island for undergraduate at Johnson & Wales University where I studied Business. I studied at Liberty University and Virginia University of Lynchburg for graduate courses. I have served as a police officer/detective for the past 23 years. I have served in the Army National Guard and Army Reserve for the past 16 years. I have been serving in ministry for the past 16 years and as an interim pastor at Messiah LBC, Browns Mills, NJ, for the past two years. I am married and father to 14 children and 22 grandchildren (one great-grandchild). My hobbies include being a fan of the life activities of my children and grandchildren, and volleyball. I am pursuing a Master of Divinity. I’m excited to be studying with my fellow students.
I studied Social Studies Education at Minnesota State University Moorhead and went on to teach 8th grade geography in Fergus Falls for two years before sensing God’s call to full-time ministry.
My wife Brita grew up in Fergus Falls, and with her family nearby and a teaching job opening, moving to Fergus Falls was a no-brainer. Since then, we’ve been blessed by the community around us. I am currently serving as an intern at Dalton Free Lutheran Parish. It has been such a blessing to be part of a church family that supports and encourages me as I walk through seminary.
I grew up in the church, but stepped away from the faith for a time. During college, I rededicated my life to Christ. Ever since making that decision I have been on fire for him, wanting to serve wherever he leads. This calling led me to pursue a Master of Divinity at Lutheran Brethren Seminary, where I am excited to see how God will continue shaping me for ministry.
In my free time, I enjoy fishing, hiking, and kayaking, as well as sports like basketball and pickleball. I also love board games, reading, and even running a steam engine at the Dalton Thresherman’s Show. I’m open to just about anything that comes my way. God Bless!