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Military teen confirmed virtually

As a military family, the Kassebaums have lived in 10 different locations over the past 19 years. Most recently, Colonel Paul Kassebaum was stationed in Germany with his wife, Megan, and two sons.

Timothy Kassebaum confirmed military
This spring, Timothy Kassebaum was confirmed live via Zoom with his Living Hope classmates in Midlothian, Va.

Despite living overseas, the Kassebaum family remained members at Living Hope, Midlothian, Va. Michael Seifert, pastor at Living Hope, explains, “Technology afforded us the opportunity to stay in touch and to continue to serve this family under our care.”

The Kassebaum’s older son, Henry, was in the middle of his confirmation instruction when the family moved to Germany in 2019. “It seemed natural for him to continue with his cohort here, even though he was on the other side of the Atlantic,” says Seifert.

The Kassebaum’s second son, Timothy, who was confirmed this past spring, also opted for virtual instruction. Megan explains, “Tim could have done confirmation with our local [WELS] civilian chaplain, but he would have been the only student. We saw benefit in Tim being able to complete confirmation with friends he knew so they could grow in faith together.”

Timothy Kassebaum News
Timothy Kassebaum recites his memory work in front of the Martin Luther statue in Worms, Germany.

To keep things interesting, Tim recorded his memory work in special locations all over Europe. He says, “Some cool places were the Lego House in Billund, Denmark; castles in Germany; and in the Dolemites in Italy.”

The Kassebaums are tremendously grateful for the support extended to military families—both from their home congregation and from WELS. Paul says, “I appreciate the commitment WELS makes to assigning a European chaplain so WELS members in Europe can worship together. . . . The weekly WELS Military Devotions are very good too and are a great start to my Friday.”

Megan continues, “We are so grateful to [Pastor Seifert] for going above and beyond to continue serving us in Europe. It’s things like this that make us feel like part of a larger church family no matter where we go.”

The family returned to the States this summer—just in time for the WELS Youth Rally in July, where the boys were able to join the Living Hope group in Knoxville, Tenn.

Author: Forward in Christ
Volume: 109, Number 11
Issue: November 2022

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