Rev. William Schaefer

Born: February 20, 1970

Hometown: Hazleton, PA

Family: Wife, Jennifer and two children Noah 4 and Angeline 1½

Education: 1992 Penn State University, BS in Kindergarten and Elementary Education

2000 Lutheran Theological Seminary at Gettysburg, Master of Divinity

Ministry Experience: Internship Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, Monroe, CT –

Rev. Charles Schwartz and Rev. Blake Wamester, Supervisors

Pastor Christ and Emmanuel Lutheran Parish, Kittanning, PA

2000-present

Call Story: As I grew up, I always knew I had an outward call to ministry. Serving as an Assisting Minister at the installation of the Bishop of the Northeastern PA Synod opened my skills to many people outside of my congregation that saw my gifts for ministry. I was constantly hearing the call from others, but I did not see the gifts in myself. I served as the president of the congregation when I was 24 and began to grow into my call to ministry. I again pushed away from the outward call.

At one point, there was a significant event that happened in my family and I began to hear the call fro outside myself again. I soon began to look inside of myself to see if the doubt I was feeling was real or if I still wanted to push it away.

This time I discerned that I did have a call to ministry and I acted on that call and entered seminary about a year later.

Project Connect is an initiative of the Eastern Cluster of Lutheran Seminaries. Lutheran Theological Seminary at Philadelphia, Lutheran Theological Seminary at Gettysburg, and the Lutheran Theological Southern Seminary, Funded by a generous grant from Lilly Endowment, Inc.