4 minute read
A LEGACY FOR LIFE
When Rev. Vern, HS ‘55, JC ‘57 and Betty (Lorenz), JC ‘58 Gundermann met on the campus of then Concordia College, they likely would not have imagined that their family legacy would continue six decades later. Nor would they have realized how significantly Concordia would impact the life of their family.
According to their son, Tom—Concordia’s university pastor—Vern and Betty met during the first weekend of the 1956-57 school year when Vern was one of the freshmen orientation leaders and Betty was a first-year student. Vern wanted to be a pastor and was beginning his sixth year at Concordia; he had completed four years in high school and one in junior college. Betty came to CSP to study in the Lutheran teacher program. They married in 1961, and after Vern was ordained in 1963, they lived and served together in Iowa, Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Missouri.
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While none of Vern and Betty’s four children attended CSP, Tom did serve as campus ministry associate for a year in the late 1990s. During that year, Tom met Amy Schaffer, BA ‘99. Later, they began dating and eventually married.
Amy studied in the Director of Christian Outreach program, and was actively involved in the Concordia Mission Society coordinating mission trips, service opportunities, and Bible studies. Along with some of her friends, Amy was instrumental in establishing Knollapalooza, an annual music festival (which continues today, albeit in a different format).
Following graduation in 1999, Amy served as campus ministry associate, and then worked for a few years in the Oswald Hoffman School of Christian Outreach (now Hoffman Institute). Tom attended seminary and was ordained in 2003. After a decade of pastoral ministry at congregations in Minnesota and New York, CSP called Tom to serve as University Pastor in 2013. Excited to return to CSP and serve the community here, he admits his decision “literally took about thirty seconds.”
Amy felt the same way about coming back to CSP. “[W]e were thrilled to come back and raise our family in the Lexington-Hamline neighborhood near campus and watch them benefit from so many wonderful mentors in and around the CSP community,” she explains.
With their dad as CSP’s pastor, Tom and Amy’s three kids spent a significant amount of time on campus while growing up. Despite their positive experiences, the two oldest, Kayla and Noah, had their “sights set on other places,” Amy shares. As each of them made their college choices and ultimately decided to come to CSP, Amy recalls that she and Tom were “shocked” but excited.
Kayla, a senior music education and Lutheran Classroom Teacher major, chose CSP because of the location, relationships she already had, and the fit of the academic programs. “[T]he music and theater department was exactly what I was looking for,” she explains.
Noah, a sophomore music composition major, also believes CSP was the right choice. “CSP has always felt like home,” he affirms. “It’s a small enough school that I can really know my professors and be involved in multiple areas.”
Kayla and Noah are deeply involved in the life of CSP’s St. Paul campus. Both serve as resident advisors, Kayla in Hyatt Village (with the Christian Thought & Leadership Living Learning Community) and Noah in Wollaeger Hall. They are also both involved in a number of musical ensembles and theatrical productions.
Most poignantly, though, they enjoy serving in ministry alongside their dad through student-led evening chapels and other ministry opportunities. “I’ve learned a lot about ministry and leadership from him,” Noah explains.
“Sometimes I get a glimpse of my grandfather on campus through my father,” confides Kayla.
As they reflect on their family legacy, the Gundermanns express deep love and gratitude for the impact CSP has had on the life of their family. “My faith life was influenced by an array of caring people, both fellow students and those employed by CSP, who daily lived out their calling as disciples of Jesus,” Amy explains.
“It's a privilege to be at a school that so much of my family has been a part of…we live and breathe CSP,” Kayla says. “The network and experiences that CSP gave the adults around me when I was growing up left a huge imprint on who I've become.”
STORY: Billy Schultz, BA '08, MA '11, Assistant to the President for Communications
PHOTOS: Courtesy of the Gundermann family and CSP archives.
