Logout
Trinity Lutheran Church, Stillwater, Minn.
President and CEO, Portico Benefit Services
I grew up at Mount Olivet Lutheran Church in Minneapolis, where I was confirmed and married and where our first child was baptized. When my wife, Marilyn, and I moved to Stillwater, we were looking for a new home church where we could raise our family in the faith. From our first visit to Trinity, we felt very welcomed, connected and deeply drawn to the music.
Giving back has always been important to us. In fact, I met Marilyn while volunteering to cook for the homeless, and we brought that same spirit of service with us to Trinity. We helped with Yulefest back in our early days with Trinity. I’ve also served as stewardship chair for the church, and Marilyn and I are involved in an active couples group that has become extended family to us.
Our faith and church community are at the center of our family life. We enjoy being involved in the church and hearing God’s word and his teachings. It is the fabric of who we are and how we live our life every day.
In college, I was a business major, and one of my first interviews was with a financial services firm. The leader challenged me to define what financial services really means. After several wrong textbook answers, I finally mentioned, “It’s about service.” “Bingo,” he said. I always had the mindset of helping others, and financial services is all about helping people and businesses.
I was naturally attracted to that industry early in my career because that theme has been central to who I am. After about 15 years in financial services and consulting, I entered the healthcare industry, continuing that theme of helping others as I served in multiple positions of leadership at UnitedHealthcare/Optum and Elevance Health.
No two days for me are exactly alike, but there is a cadence to each week. Part of that rhythm is connecting with our teams, as well as church leaders, members and strategic partners. I spend a lot of time listening. Getting to know the people we serve helps me better understand their needs and how Portico must continue evolving to serve them in the years ahead.
Combining my business experience with a calling to serve the church is deeply meaningful work. As the ELCA’s benefits ministry, Portico’s role is to support the people who carry out the church’s mission every day, and that responsibility is something I take to heart. One of the most rewarding parts of my role is helping others recognize and develop the gifts God has given them to carry that mission forward.
Looking back, I can see how God used each stage of my career to lead me to Portico, where I can work alongside the church to strengthen our ministries for the future.
Simply stated, servant leadership means giving back selflessly to help our community and doing so with a smile. It’s not just talking about service; it’s modeling it through your actions every day.
One of the most rewarding parts of my role is helping others recognize and develop the gifts God has given them to carry that mission forward.
I’ve had family members who worked for the Good Samaritan Society and know others who have benefited from its services, so its mission is personal to me. Serving on the Evangelical Lutheran Good Samaritan Society national board gave me firsthand experience of what a strong board-governance model looks like. It also allowed me to see how a faith-based organization lives out its mission each and every day.
Marilyn and I enjoy spending time at our cabin in northern Minnesota. In the summer, we’re often sailing, kayaking or biking. In the winter, we enjoy cross-country skiing and Nordic downhill skiing. We also enjoy cooking and challenging ourselves with gourmet recipes made for Michelin-star restaurants, including an “all-day spaghetti” that takes nearly as long as it sounds.
I pray for wisdom, forgiveness and reconciliation—and I pray for my family, Portico and the church.
To me, grace means patience, forgiveness and acceptance.
I’m a Lutheran because Martin Luther’s emphasis on Scripture alone, faith alone and grace alone continues to shape how I understand my faith. His courage to ask hard questions, find a new path forward and trust God’s grace inspires me.
