Spring 2025 Incoming Students
My name is Tony Schmid. I currently live in Grand Rapids, Minnesota, serving as lay pastor at Salem Lutheran Brethren Church. I was issued a call to serve as lay pastor last July and was accepted into seminary in August.
I have lived in the Grand Rapids area for the past 16 years. Before that I lived in Park Rapids, MN. After high school I moved to Grand Rapids where I obtained an AA degree in elementary education. Then I went to Hibbing Community College in Hibbing, Minnesota, enrolled in the law enforcement program, and obtained a diploma.
I suffered a permanent back injury during school there and was unable to complete the Peace Officer Standards Testing. Since then, I have worked many different odd jobs. I am currently a school bus driver for a local school district and the lay pastor at Salem. I have been married for three years to my wife Angie, who works in a restaurant in town. I have an 11-year-old stepdaughter Emily, who is in 6th grade at the local middle school and keeps us busy. My hobbies include singing and theater, where I have directed plays, taken on lead roles, and done everything in between.
I was raised as a Missouri Synod Lutheran. One day my wife approached me and asked why I hadn’t gone to seminary yet. It was then that I realized what the Lord was calling me to do. I researched and found the Lutheran Brethren, and felt the Lord pushing me here to seminary. I am so thankful and grateful for all the support I have received from everyone here. Thanks be to God!
While searching for a pastor for our church, Community in Christ in Arvada, Colorado, the characteristics they described seemed very similar to my family. I was on the call committee for 2023-2024, and our pastoral search was nationwide within the CLB. At first it wasn’t obvious to me, but my wife said, “So, they are looking for you.” I replied, “No, someone like us.” But it felt as though God was calling me. It was constantly on my mind.
A year later, feeling restless, my wife and I visited a church three miles from our home. During the service, there was a call to stand if you needed more faith. I stood, whispered to my wife, “We all need more faith,” and I suddenly felt a man’s hand on my shoulder as the pastor prayed for us.
On June 2, 2024, a dove appeared in our backyard (something I had never seen in our area) and made me think. Then, on July 11, I met with Pastor Gary Witkop, longtime pastor of Community in Christ, who asked if I’d ever thought about becoming a pastor. I said, “Yes, when I was young.” I felt unworthy, but agreed to think and pray about it. My wife, who had always felt she might marry a pastor, supported me in this journey. Even my mom said, “James, that’s amazing!”
By the grace of God, I started seminary at the beginning of January. I also attended the Exponential Conference in March, connecting with other CLB church leaders who attended, and learning from the speakers and seminars at the conference. I have already put my other businesses aside, but I am trusting that God will use my past experiences to build his church.