Ada Twp Fire Dept – Ada, MI

Evergreen Church – Lowell, MI

I began to feel the call to serve in a chaplaincy role while I was in college preparing for ministry.  I spoke with several men that I knew who, as pastors, served or had served as chaplains for their local police department.  As I neared completion of my Master’s degree and began to search for the “next step” in my ministry, I began to look at the fire service, both to serve as a firefighter, and as a chaplain.  I had applied at several area fire departments and was awaiting word on my applications, when the events of September 11, 2001 occurred.  Watching the footage of that tragic day and the acts of public service and heroism performed solidified my desire to become a firefighter.  Watching Chaplain Judge being carried out of the rubble, I reflected on the role.  Then I heard a New York City fireman, one of the toughest and bravest professionals in the world, make the comment, “Normally we would go to him in a time like this.  Now what do we do?”  The knowledge that this kind of impact on these men and women was possible concreted my resolve to serve as chaplain.

In 2003, while serving at a church in Jackson, MI, I was hired by the Summit Township Fire Department as an on-call firefighter.  I was with them for nearly a year when I left the Jackson area and returned to the Grand Rapids area. In 2005 I joined the Ada Township Fire Department, where I serve as a firefighter and department chaplain, and began serving with the Evergreen Church in Lowell as an associate pastor.

I’ve been riding personally for quite a few years, and have seen first hand some of the benefits of the human/equine relationship … a horsemanship clinic I attended in June of 2019 really solidified in my mind the benefits of bringing this amazing creature into the lives of my fellow first responders.  And while I am by no means an expert horseman, I fall more and more in love with them every time I interact with them, and am in the initial stages of pursuing official accreditation as an Equine Specialist in the EAGALA therapy model.

Education & Certification/Licensing:
* Bachelor of Arts Degree – Bethel College (now Bethel University), Mishawaka, IN – 1998
– Christian Ministries Major, Youth Ministry and Missions Minors
* Emergency Medical First Responder, State of Michigan – 2001
* Master of Ministries Degree – Bethel College (now Bethel University), Mishawaka, IN – 2002
* Fire Academy – Firefighter 2, State of Michigan – 2004
* Ordained Minister, Missionary Church USA – 2004

Other Related Training and Experience:
* Emergency Medical Technician training (did not pursue licensure)
* Group Crisis Intervention and Pastoral Crisis Intervention – International Critical Incident Stress Foundation
* Emergency Communications Operator – Short time with Grand Rapids Police, Grand Rapids, Michigan which, besides the standard department training, included multiple specialized training opportunities  including Suicide Intervention, Domestic Violence Intervention and miscellaneous  others