Alumni in Action

Andrew, a 2017 graduate, and Allison, a 2022 graduate work together at Immanuel Lutheran Church in Story City, IA, with Andrew as the Lead Pastor and Allison as the Associate Pastor of Youth and Family Ministries. Last year was the first year without a Potratz in an MI class since 2013! Ministry was always part of their future plans, but maybe not in the way they originally thought.

Andrew began looking at ministry schools for worship ministry, and he never intended to become a "real pastor" as he calls it!  When God started to stir up some next steps after 5 years in camping ministry, Andrew had a good friend at MI who encouraged him to take a look. Having had both Lutheran and Charismatic church experiences in the past, finding a school that balanced those streams was a God-send. His first class visit was Robert Walter's "Building Healthy Leaders," which remains one of his favorite class experiences today.  When it came time to decide, God worked through Kendra Diehl and Kevin McClure to affirm God's work of calling Andrew to MI, and in the process Andrew grew to love his time spent up in Minnesota with fellow students and professors.

Allison always knew she wanted to pursue vocational ministry but didn't know when the right time would be to begin.  She chose to stay home with her 3 kids while either working part time or volunteering in their church.  Allison has always loved serving in the area of children's ministry. When Andrew graduated from MI in 2017, Allison felt a nudge from the Holy Spirit to apply and pursue a Masters degree in order to become a children's ministry Pastor.  She graduated in 2022 and is now serving in the roles of youth and family ministry at Immanuel Lutheran Church alongside her husband, Andrew. Last year was the first year of not having a child at home with Allison and she is now able to work in full time ministry. 

They have been blessed to get to work together in ministry, and find a lot of joy in using their gifts to carry out ministry in the church. Andrew is a big picture, visionary person and Allison is a realistic doer! They love seeing growth and seeing people have transformational experiences, and make a great team. The challenge in doing ministry together is keeping work and home separate! 

Allison says, “There are many times we have to push the pause button on work conversations at home.  It is also a challenge living next door to the church which means we literally work across the lawn from our home!  It is useful though that we can commute by walking down the sidewalk and our kids can stay home as needed! Due to the nature of us both being pastors, our "schedule" is far less regular and defined than other 9-5 type careers would offer.”

Allison serves in many roles in the church for people of all ages as the Associate Pastor of Youth and Family Ministries. She oversees Immanuel’s Board of Education and Youth Board planning Sunday School, Confirmation, and all Youth programming for students ranging from 3 years old to High School. She never thought she would enjoy working with middle school students, but has found that to be one of her greatest joys! Allison also loves women's ministry and walking alongside women in the church. She holds the distinction of being the first female Pastor at Immanuel. Allison also partners with Andrew in teaching workshops, preaching, visitation, and carrying out the Sacraments. 

As Lead Pastor, Andrew serves as the primary leader, vision-caster, preacher, and care pastor for the Congregation. Having been hands-on in youth leadership for most of the past 5 years, Andrew is handing that off to Allison this year to begin re-vitalizing the adult discipleship framework and experience at Immanuel.  Andrew loves to see people move forward in their faith journey, and continually emphasizes the need for Christians to be led by the Holy Spirit in all areas of life.

Immanuel Lutheran Church is located in Story City, Iowa, 10 miles north of Ames and Iowa State University.  It is a thriving LCMC congregation of people of all ages and in September, it celebrated 125 years as a church by throwing a block party for the community.

If all that ministry wasn’t enough, Allison and Andrew are kept busy with three children, Josiah (12 1/2), Annabelle (10), and Sammy (7). Josiah is going in to 7th grade and was pretty proud to become the Pokemon Grand Champion at his local tournament! He enjoys Pokemon, Minecraft, basketball, and hanging out with his friends. Annabelle is going into 5th grade and enjoys singing, piano, art, and swimming. Allison and Annabelle both starred in Shrek The Musical at their local community theater this last summer. Sammy is going into 1st grade. He also enjoys Pokemon, Minecraft, soccer, basketball, and wrestling with his older brother. He recently got 6th place at his local Pokemon tournament, and is coming for his brother’s title next year! As a family they enjoy going out for ice cream, taking family walks, visiting Riverside Lutheran Bible Camp (just down the road), and watching Dude Perfect. 

Andrew had some advice for incoming students, saying, “remain open to God taking you to places that you have not thought possible or probable. God equips those whom he calls, and can handle whatever transformations need to happen in us to get there through His grace and Spirit. Andrew stresses the importance of getting the most out of any time of growth and learning, and the importance of having a healthy Biblical foundation along with the tools to study and teach the Scriptures. These transfer into any area of life and ministry! MI is a place to dive into this, and to get a much needed framework for how we minister to and lead in today's changing world.”

Allison added, “always pursue vulnerability with the Holy Spirit, with your peers, and professors! It's the best way to grow in all areas. I encourage you to chime in and share your heart! For future students, if you feel a nudge on your heart to grow in vocational ministry, MI is a great place to go!  It meets so many needs for pastoral ministry-a deeper understanding of Scripture, preaching, teaching, counseling, and growing in your own love for Christ!”