Mercy forever.

Photo: The Rev. Dr. Edward Grimenstein, new manger of Disaster Response, poses with his family after his Dec. 14 installation in St. Louis. From left are Lydia, Tevia (holding Daniel), Joshua, Anna, Sarah and Michael.

The Rev. Dr. Edward Grimenstein has been named as manager of Disaster Response for the LCMS Office of International Mission.

In the new position, Grimenstein will support congregations and districts with disaster planning, training and assistance. He will report to the LCMS director of Disaster Response, the Rev. Glenn Merritt.

LCMS President Rev. Dr. Matthew C. Harrison installed Grimenstein during a Dec. 14 chapel service at the LCMS International Center in St. Louis.

“The Lord has you in a vocation,” Harrison told Grimenstein during the service. “It’s His will that you be doing this work, and it’s a blessing.”

To watch a YouTube video of the installation, click here.

Before his call to the position, Grimenstein served as a pastor, educator and U.S. Army chaplain.

Grimenstein graduated from Concordia Theological Seminary, Fort Wayne, Ind., in 1999, and from Kansas State University in 2003. He received his doctorate in homiletics from the University of Toronto in 2007.

From 1999 to 2004, he served as pastor of congregations in Bremen, Kan., and Niagara Falls, N.Y.

In 2004, Grimenstein was called as an active-duty chaplain with the U.S. Army, where he served until 2010 with a field artillery unit, the John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School at Fort Bragg, N.C., and a signal battalion in Belgium.

His military honors include: the NATO Service Ribbon, Army Commendation Medal, Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal and the Afghanistan Campaign Medal.

Grimenstein also has been an adjunct college instructor of public speaking for more than 10 years.

Grimenstein and his wife, Tevia, have six children: Lydia, Anna, Michael, Sarah, Joshua and Daniel. The family lives in Eureka, Mo.

Learn more:

• View photos from the ordination service.
• Learn about Disaster Response training and resources.
• Pray for Rev. Dr. Grimenstein and the role he plays in equipping God’s people for acts of mercy.

(Article courtesy Reporter, LCMS Communications)