PEACE LUTHERAN CHURCH - Key Persons
Pastor Christiansen was ordained and installed as Associate Pastor and Headmaster of Peace Lutheran Church and Academy in 2022. Pastor Christiansen's call to serve as Headmaster matches his love of learning, and he has been immersed in classical Lutheran education since his days as a homeschooler. As Headmaster at Peace, Pastor Christiansen integrates his years of experience teaching in classical Lutheran schools with the strong culture of catechesis at Peace. Prior to coming to Sussex, Pastor Christiansen taught Latin and several of the Quadrivial disciplines in grades 6-12 at Faith Lutheran School, in Plano, TX. He and his wife, Bethany, have four children. Pastor Christiansen enjoys learning languages and board-game strategy as well as playing sports and singing barbershop.
Ordained in 1987, Gary V. Gehlbach first served a dual parish in Wautoma and Hancock, WI. In 1991 he accepted a call to serve as pastor at Triune Lutheran Church, Sharon WI, where he served until 2008. While in the South Wisconsin District he served as District Secretary from 1991 to 1999, and he has helped to establish mission congregations in Brandon MS, Plainfield WI, Lake Geneva WI, and Rockford IL. In 2012 he accepted a call to serve as assistant pastor at Peace Lutheran Church as a worker-priest; he assists Pastor Bender in a variety of spiritual, educational, and administrative tasks. In 2016 he became the administrator of Concordia Catechetical Academy (CCA), an extension of Peace Lutheran Church which is dedicated to the promotion of Luther's Small Catechism and faithful Lutheran catechesis. The CCA achieves its mission largely through the development and publication of catechetical materials, and the hosting of catechetical conferences.
Education
B.A. Lutheran Education and Parish Music, Concordia College, Mequon, WI
Job Titles:
- Director of Cherub and Academy Choirs Organist
Mrs. May has extensive experience leading musicians in worship settings, and in teaching music in both inner-city and suburban Lutheran Schools. She has directed adult and children's choirs as well as hand bells and instrumental ensembles. Outside of the church, Mrs. May maintains a private piano studio, of which many Academy students are members. She works with the children several times a week to prepare them for participation in the Divine Service on Sunday mornings. Mrs. May enjoys teaching, but also enjoys spending time with her family and attending concerts.
Pastor Bender was ordained in 1987 in the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod. He was installed as the Pastor of Peace Lutheran Church in 1991. Under Pastor Bender, the congregation established Peace Lutheran Academy in 1995. Pastor has been instrumental in educating the congregation about the importance of catechesis, and in creating materials that are used in the catechesis of congregation members, public school students, and Academy students, as well as in churches and schools all over the world.