Born and raised in Albuquerque, New Mexico, Pastor Kate developed a deep love of both the desert and the mountains. While growing up, Pastor Kate also loved electronics, tech, and puzzles so it was no surprise she began college majoring in electrical engineering. While attending the University of Southern California and then the University of New Mexico, she recognized there was something to all the suggestions she tried to ignore that she become a pastor and switched tracks. 

After college, Pastor Kate moved to Columbus, Ohio, where she attended Trinity Lutheran Seminary and spent her internship in the Cleveland area. She was assigned to the Metropolitan Washington DC Synod where she was for over 13 years, serving two congregations, one in Maryland and the other in Virginia, before taking the call at Lord of the Mountains.

Pastor Kate has a variety of interests - everything from baseball (she got to see the Nationals win the 2019 World Series) to brewing beer to snowboarding to photography to video games and other geeky endeavors. If you ask her, "red or green?" you are likely to get the response, "It depends, but I also really like Christmas." And if you don't understand that question or why Christmas is the answer, ask her about it. But most of all, Pastor Kate adores people and is grateful for the numerous friends and family with whom she gets to adventure.