Pastor
Pastor to Hadley, Kenneth and Zion Lutheran Parish
Our pastor, Kerry Boese (Pastor Kerry) was born in Slayton, Minnesota December 9, 1956. He went to school at Lake Wilson and Chandler-Lake Wilson school districts, graduating in 1975. He attended and graduated from the University of Minnesota, Morris in 1979 with a major in speech and minor in theater. Kerry later attended Luther-Northwestern Theological Seminary (now Luther Seminary) and graduated with a Master of Divinity degree. He was ordained July 13, 1986.
His first call was to Immanuel Lutheran Church in Zap, North Dakota in late Summer of that year. In April of 1991 he married Debra Karn, a teacher at Zap, of Jamestown, North Dakota. In 1993, Kerry accepted a call to Bisbee Lutheran Church of Bisbee, ND and Lakeview Lutheran Church of Egeland, ND. In 2000 he accepted a call to Zion Lutheran of rural Hoople, ND and SouthTrinity Lutheran of rural Grafton, ND. He served there until July 2004 when Kerry and his family moved to Minnesota and accepted a call to Zion Lutheran of Adrian and Kenneth Lutheran of Kenneth. In 2005, Zion, Kenneth and Hadley Lutheran of Hadley voted to join together to form a three-congregation parish. Pastor Kerry was issued a call to serve Hadley-Kenneth-Zion Lutheran Parish in September, 2005.
“I find deep joy in serving in this unique setting of small, rural congregations in three counties. During my up to 135 miles of travelling for weekend worship services, I have plenty of time to reflect on and smile about how each congregation is, in their own way, gamely grappling with challenging questions such as, ‘What does it mean to be the church in an area that is more familiar with decline than growth,’ or ‘What does trust in Christ look like where the world might see only weakness and insignificance?’ I long ago committed myself to serving in rural settings and with small congregations. That is where my heart is.”
Pastor Kerry and Deb have three young children at home: Logan, Ellie and Hannah.
