Johan Baumeister, 612-230-3306, j.baumeister@mpls-synod.org
Congregational Organizer for Climate Justice
Johan Baumeister joined the Minneapolis Area Synod as the Congregational Organizer for Climate Justice in August 2023. His first experiences in faith-based organizing date back to 2008, when he began to serve as the Reconciling Ministries Chair at Hollywood United Methodist Church in Los Angeles, California. After returning to Minnesota, Johan continued to engage in organizing work through a faith lens during the 2012 Minnesotans United For All Families campaign.
Relying on his own recovery as a source of hope and a model for how to move forward and build resiliency, Johan has worked most recently in the field of mental health. As a certified peer specialist, he translated his passions for justice and well-being into work with people experiencing similar health challenges, collaborating to strengthen self-advocacy and other important wellness and recovery skills.
Johan is a member at Salem English Lutheran Church.
Kris Bjorke, MASfirstthird@mpls-synod.org
Assistant for First-Third Ministry
Kris Bjorke is a children, youth, and family enthusiast. Having co-created and led InterServe Ministries for the past 15 years, she understands the value of creating strong teams to model and lead faith formation ministries. Fresh off a doctorate degree at Luther Seminary, she enjoys wondering with congregations about collaborative ministry, encouraging volunteer and paid staff in congregations and teaching Christian Public Leadership at Luther Seminary. A 25-plus-year veteran in children and youth ministry both in long-term and interim positions, Kris has a passion for seeing young people question and grow in their faith together with adults that surround them. She is particularly excited about being part of the synod that will host the 2022 ELCA Youth Gathering and serves full-time as the Service Learning Project Manager for the Youth Gathering.
When not at the synod office, Kris enjoys time with her husband Scott and two cats in the Twin Cities, as well as time with her two daughters – Julia, who lives in St. Cloud and is a manager at Scheels, and Emily, a music industry student in her fourth year at Minnesota State Mankato and member of local band LastImport.
Kris enjoys all sorts of things, including drinking coffee with friends, football and hockey games, travel (with a special affinity for National Parks), being with family, quilting, and happy hours.
Emilie Bouvier, 612-230-3304, e.bouvier@mpls-synod.org,
Director of Organizing
As the Director of Organizing, Emilie Bouvier directs the organizing department and oversees the synod’s work on Environmental and Racial Justice. She has a deep passion for working with leaders across the synod to build more just, equitable, and sustainable communities.
Emilie is a graduate of St. Olaf College and holds an MA from Luther Seminary in Congregational Mission and Leadership. She developed a commitment to the role of faith in public life during her time in seminary, rooted in theological study as well as transformational experiences with advocacy and community organizing. Emilie is also a practicing artist who has held residencies at Luther Seminary, Pilgrim Lutheran Church, and Holden Village. She finds joy in her studio practice and in engaging community in theological reflection through art. Prior to joining synod staff in 2016, Emilie worked for the Minnesota Public Interest Research Group (MPIRG) doing field organizing on environmental policy.
Emilie lives in the Hamline-Midway neighborhood of St. Paul and is a member at Calvary Lutheran Church in Minneapolis. In her free time, she can typically be found in her basement darkroom, out hiking, throwing pottery, or baking savory scones.
Candy Carlson, 612-230-3315, c.carlson@mpls-synod.org
Accountant
As the synod’s staff accountant, Candy Carlson manages daily account entries, records mission support contributions, prepares financial reports, oversees the annual audit and budget process, maintains and reviews payroll and benefits, staffs the finance committee, and contributes to decisions about financial management. She joined the staff in May 2019.
Although she has lived in several different parts of Minnesota, Minneapolis was and is home for Candy. She received a BS degree in accounting from Southwest State University in Marshall. She has lived from Virginia in the northeast to Willmar in the southwest corners of the state.
Licensed as a nursing home administrator, Candy began her career in health care administration and in 2000 became controller at Tillges Certified Orthotic and Prosthetic in Maplewood. She retired from that position in 2015.
Candy enjoys family, travel, music and reading. In season she can be found riding bike with her husband Tom Carlson, retired pastor and former secretary of the synod. Candy and Tom are members at University Lutheran Church of Hope, Minneapolis.
Tom Carlson, t.carlson@mpls-synod.org
Assistant for Governance
Before his retirement in 2015, Tom Carlson has served for 40 years in active ministry as an ordained pastor. He served three congregations, all in Minnesota, and most recently as an interim pastor in the Minneapolis Area Synod. He joins the Minneapolis Area Synod staff as Assistant for Governance, a very part-time position.
Tom has served on several synod and ELCA committees, and has been the Synod Secretary in both the Southwestern Minnesota Synod and the Minneapolis Area Synod. The experiences gained in these positions will aid in Tom’s work with the Synod Council and its Executive Committee and Nominating Committee.
In his free time, Tom has volunteered at the Minneapolis Institute of Art, where he guides school tours. He and his wife Candy are members of University Lutheran Church of Hope in Minneapolis.
Rev. Kelly Chatman, k.chatman@clne-mn.org
Advisor to the Bishop in the Minneapolis Area Synod
Pastor Kelly Chatman has served as an interim Director for Evangelical Mission with the Minneapolis Area Synod and was, until recently, pastor at Evangelical Lutheran Church of the Redeemer, North Minneapolis and director of the Redeemer Center for Life. After retiring from Redeemer, he has started the Center for Leadership and Neighborhood Engagement, a training institute to support the work of congregations at deepening their connections to the neighborhood in which they reside.
He is a graduate of Gettysburg Seminary, Gettysburg, Pa., and has served as a leader at various levels throughout the church. He served for five years as director for Youth Ministries for the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) and has been a distinguished church leader in Washington, D.C.; Portland, Oregon; and Minneapolis, Minnesota. In addition, Pastor Kelly recently served on boards for Camp Amnicon, Aeon Housing Development, Gustavus Adolphus College, Cookie Cart, Plymouth Christian Youth Center, Lutheran Volunteer Corps, Harrison Neighborhood Association, and the Wheat Ridge Foundation.
Jessie Goeke, 612-230-3317, exec.asst@mpls-synod.org
Executive Assistant to the Bishop
Jessie Goeke joined the Minneapolis Area Synod staff in the fall of 2023 as the part-time Executive Assistant to the Bishop. After growing up in Apple Valley, Minnesota, Jessie attended the University of Northwestern St. Paul, and later received a Master of Social Work from a joint program of St. Catherine University and the University of St. Thomas. Since her graduation Jessie has worked in the field of community mental health; she currently continues to be involved in such though now in private practice.
Jessie has a certificate in “integrative health coaching” and has a commitment to holistic health care. She is a board member of the Washington County chapter of NAMI.
When not working at the synod office or in private practice, Jessie enjoys the creativity of crafting, especially card-making, embroidery, and photography. She can often be found walking her dog or spending time with her four “most amazing ever” nieces and nephews.
Jeni Huff, 612-230-3303, j.huff@mpls-synod.org
Manager of Events, Communications, and Administration
She graduated from Gustavus Adolphus College in 2012 with a B.A. in Sociology. Before coming to the Minneapolis Area Synod, Jeni served an AmeriCorps term at Rebuilding Together Seattle and has volunteered with many non-profit organizations in the Minneapolis area. Jeni attends (and also works at) Vision of Glory Lutheran Church, Plymouth. In her free time, she enjoys doing puzzles, playing piano, scrapbooking, and reading. She dreams of having an alpaca farm someday.
Rev. John Hulden, 612-230-3311, j.hulden@mpls-synod.org
Assistant to the Bishop
Pastor John Hulden joined the Minneapolis Area Synod staff as Assistant to the Bishop for Leadership Support in 2012. John tries to get every leader to start a peer group and is blessed to work with congregations in transition, candidates for ministry, rostered and CYF leaders, and the many gifted lay leaders in our synod. He welcomes all the invitations he receives to parties and problems in our synod. Before synod work, John was a parish pastor for 16 years at Trinity Lutheran Church in Moorhead, MN, and 10 years on the East Side of Saint Paul, where he helped form and lead a three-point parish in the city.
John grew up in four US time zones, fell in love with his wife Becky at Concordia College, and will unashamedly brag about his four adult kids and their partners (plus three grandkids!). He loves to go back to his home state of Montana any chance he gets.
Bob Hulteen, 612-230-3307, b.hulteen@mpls-synod.org
Director of Communications and Public Voice
Bob Hulteen serves as the director of communications and public voice in the Minneapolis Area Synod. He coordinates internal and external public messaging for the synod. He also provides staff support for the Hunger and Public Voice committees of the synod, as well as working with the Reference and Counsel Committee. Bob has previously served as organizing director for the Southern Columbia Heights Tenants Union, associate editor of Sojourners magazine, associate director of the Minnesota Council of Churches, executive director of the Twin Cities Religion and Labor Network, director of communications for Interfaith Worker Justice (a national faith-and-workplace organization in Chicago), organizing director for TakeAction Minnesota, and editor of MetroLutheran newspaper.
Bob is a member of Holy Trinity Lutheran Church, Minneapolis.
Peg Ihinger, 612-230-3308, p.ihinger@mpls-synod.org
Assistant to Candidacy and Peer Groups
Manny Lewis, 612-230-3305, m.lewis@mpls-synod.org
Congregational Organizer for Racial Justice
Manny Lewis joined the Minneapolis Area Synod as the Congregational Organizer for Racial Justice in March 2023. As a resident of North Minneapolis, over 16 years Manny has seen a lot of things change. He has also benefited from the opportunity of mentorship, which has motivated his mission is to enrich the lives of brown and black communities and bring communities of all kinds together in the hopes of healing racial injustice, and giving people the opportunity for better lives. Prior to coming to the Minneapolis Area Synod, Manny worked with youth and community outreach at the Center for Leadership and Neighborhood Engagement (CLNE) in North Minneapolis.
Lynda Nordholm, 612-230-3310, l.nordholm@mpls-synod.org
Assistant to Mission
As Assistant to Mission in the Minneapolis Area Synod, Lynda serves primarily with assisting new and strategic ministries, and culturally-specific and ethnic-specific ministries. Lynda also holds responsibility for monitoring the Mission Support generously shared by congregations for the synod and Churchwide offices. Lynda previously worked in both for-profit and non-profit organizations, as well as community education, prior to entering into more than 33 years of service with the ELCA to congregations, region, churchwide, and now synod.
Lynda is a proud graduate of Augsburg College – go Auggies! Lynda is mother to 3 adult children, nana to 5 Grands, and along with her husband, Dennis, are members of Holy Trinity Lutheran Church, Minneapolis.
Karen Ohm, 612-230-3309, k.ohm@mpls-synod.org
Director of Roster and Call Process
As Director of Roster and Call Process, Karen Ohm’s responsibilities include managing all rostered ministers’ records; providing materials for congregational call committees, individuals, and staff members; working with First Call Theological Education; and maintaining and updating the database.
A graduate of Gustavus Adolphus College, she spent her career serving several Minneapolis Area Synod congregations as parish secretary. Most recently, she was the membership and data systems manager at Gethsemane Lutheran Church, Hopkins.
Karen was on synod staff previously, from 1996 to 2004, first as mission and stewardship secretary, community secretary, and then, for several years, as roster and call process administrator, before moving to England for three years. She spends her free time reading, doing needlework, and spoiling her grandchildren. She is a member of St. Barnabas Lutheran Church, Plymouth.
Rev. Craig Pederson, 612-230-3316, c.pederson@mpls-synod.org
Assistant to the Bishop
The Rev. Craig Pederson joined the Minneapolis Area Synod staff in February 2015 as Assistant to the Bishop for Congregational Vitality. He received a B.A. in sociology and music from Gustavus Adolphus College and his M.Div. from Luther Seminary. He has previously served at All Saints Lutheran Church, Cottage Grove, St. Paul’s Lutheran Church, Northeast Minneapolis, and Grace Lutheran Church, Northeast Minneapolis. In his last call, Craig oversaw the consolidation of three Lutheran congregations and the development of the Grace Center for Community Life, which houses a number of religious, educational and community programs.
Craig loves basketball (playing, coaching, and watching), lawn and garden work, jazz, and learning about new technologies.
Rev. Dr. Wondimu Sonessa, 612-230-3301, w.sonessa@mpls-synod.org
Director of Evangelical Mission
Rev. Dr. Wondimu Sonessa earned his Bachelor of theology (B.Th.) from Mekane Yesus Seminary and Master of Arts (M.A.) in Biblical and Theological Studies from Ethiopian Graduate School of Theology, both in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, prior to receiving Master of Theology (M.Th.) from Luther Seminary in St. Paul, where he is currently a Ph.D. candidate (and is anticipating defending his dissertation soon).
Wondimu served as CYM section coordinator and as an Executive Secretary of the EECMY-Illubabor Bethel Synod which is located to the southwestern part of Ethiopia. Later, he joined the Mekane Yesus Seminary faculty in Addis Ababa where he was a lecturer and dean prior to his relocation to the United States. He was also a Teaching Assistant at Luther Seminary from 2019-2022, and pastor of Our Redeemer Oromo Evangelical Church from 2018-2023. His contribution to church and society as a theologian includes publishing several book reviews, journal articles, book chapters, and academic papers focusing on public theology, justice and reconciliation, ecumenical relations, etc.
Wondimu became the Director of Evangelical Mission in September 2023. He lives in Lino Lakes, Minnesota, with his wife Yirgalem and their three children, Ketoran (14), Sinafhiren (12), and Kemarin (7).
Nicholas Tangen, 651-808-7067, n.tangen@mpls-synod.org
Director of Faith Practices and Neighboring Practices
As part of the Thriving Congregations project funded by the Lilly Endowment, Nick is leading a new emphasis at the synod, the combination of faith and neighboring practices. His previous experiences in congregations include serving as the Minister of Faith in Community at University Lutheran Church of Hope (ULCH), near the University of Minnesota campus in Minneapolis, and a stint on the staff at Gustavus Adolphus Lutheran in Northeast Minneapolis, where he helped guide a revamping of its children’s ministry.
At ULCH his responsibilities included redesigning the children’s ministry curriculum to focus on fostering spiritual practices in the home and social transformation, facilitating Bible studies with a lens towards social change and current events including studies on the Book of Ruth and immigration and Galatians and Christian freedom, and organizing intergenerational activities that form relationships and community in creative expressions of spirituality. In addition, he led the congregation’s sanctuary program; led efforts to address food insecurity needs in Dinkytown by planning, launching, and operating the Dinkytown Farmers Market; and participated in the synod’s community organizing trainings.
Nick grew up in Rosemount, Minnesota, and attended the School of Environmental Studies on the Minnesota Zoo property. He studied English at the University of Minnesota, and graduated with a Master of Arts in Leadership degree, with a focus in Social Transformation, from United Theological Seminary.
A Benedictine Oblate at St. John’s Abbey in Collegeville, Nick is passionate about contemplative and monastic spirituality.
Mercy Zou Taithul, m.zoutaithul@mpls-synod.org
Assistant for Administration and Communications
For Faith Practices and Neighboring Practices
Mercy Zou Taithul joined the synod staff in August 2023 as the Assistant for Administration and Communications for Faith Practices and Neighboring Practices.
A citizen of Manipur, India, Mercy attended Augsburg University with the ELCA International Women Leadership Scholarship. While at Augsburg, she participated in the Augsburg Asian Student Association, the International Student Organization, and Campus Ministry. She has also volunteered in several capacities including with Vespers at Central Lutheran, and at Fairview Children’s Hospital. Mercy graduated with a degree in Psychology and is very passionate about helping others in any way she can – spiritually, physically, and emotionally.
Mercy is fluent in English, Hindi, and Zou languages, and enjoys singing in choirs in her free time. Mercy is dedicated to her own spiritual practices so her role with Faith Practices and Neighboring Practices is a great role for her.