WELS Foundation Board of Directors

Board of Directors

The affairs of WELS Foundation are managed by a volunteer board of directors consisting of between 7 and 13 directors. No fewer than 5 nor more than 11 of the directors must be laymen representing financial, investment, trust, or legal backgrounds. All must be communicant members of a WELS congregation. Directors are elected to terms of four years by WELS through its Synodical Council. The Director of WELS Ministry of Christian Giving also serves as an ex-officio member of the board.

Mark Maurice is the Vice President for Mission Advancement at Martin Luther College, the WELS college of ministry. In this role, Mark manages the overall advancement program, which includes alumni relations, public relations, events management, publications, and resource development. His experience in gift planning, endowments, and investments helps individuals and families with their charitable support of MLC.

Mark earned his undergraduate degree from Wisconsin Lutheran College and his MBA in Finance from Concordia University–Wisconsin. He has held the Certified Fund Raising Executive (CFRE) designation since 1997.

City: New Ulm, MN
Church: St. John’s, New Ulm, MN
Term Expires: 06/30/2024

Attorney Mark Schulz is a shareholder in the law office of Meier, Wickhem, Lyons & Schulz, S.C., and has been representing individuals and businesses for 40 years. Currently he concentrates his practice in the areas of estate planning and wealth building, probate, trust administration, real estate, business, and commercial transactions. He has been a municipal judge for Milton Township since 2018, and is a past Board member of the Real Property, Probate & Trust Law section of the State Bar of Wisconsin.

Mark earned a Bachelor of Arts from Cornell College, Mount Vernon, IA, and he obtained his law degree (J.D.) from the University of Wisconsin–Madison.

Mark has served on the national board of directors for WELS Kingdom Workers and on the WELS Board for World Missions, in addition to serving on the WELS Foundation board of directors from 2006-2018.

City: Milton, WI
Church: St. Matthew, Janesville, WI
Term Expires: 06/30/2024

In October 2017 Mike Krueger retired as an engineering manager from the Dow Chemical Company after 28 years with Dow Corning and Dow. He received his undergraduate degree from Michigan Technological University and an MBA from Northwestern University.

In addition to his service on the WELS Foundation board, he serves as president of his congregation, president of the MLS Foundation board, treasurer of Christian Life Resources Saginaw Valley, and is an advisory member on the MLS Governing Board. Mike is also a past member of the Michigan District Mission Board.

City: Midland, MI
Church: Good Shepherd, Midland, MI
Term Expires: 06/30/2026

Pastor Kolander is currently serving as Lead Pastor at St. Mark’s Lutheran Church in Citrus Heights, CA. As former chairman of the Ministry of Christian Giving in the Southeastern Wisconsin District, part of his role was the promotion of endowments on the local church level, along with connecting churches to WELS Foundation and WELS Investment Funds.

Previously, Pastor Kolander served congregations in Indian River and Gaylord, MI, and in Menomonee Falls, WI. While living in Wisconsin, he also served as 2nd Vice President of the Southeastern Wisconsin District; Vice President on the Governing Board of Martin Luther College in New Ulm, MN; and on the Board of Regents–Finance Committee for Kettle Moraine Lutheran High School, Jackson, WI.

City: Orangevale, CA
Church: St. Mark’s, Citrus Heights, CA
Term Expires: 06/30/2026

Scott Neitzel is the founder of Wilson Wells Advisory Services, LLC. Previously Scott served as the Secretary of the Wisconsin Department of Administration. As Secretary he oversaw the state’s personnel, budget, finance, IT, gaming, building program, and maintenance operations.

Previously Scott spent 18 years at Madison Gas and Electric in Madison, Wisconsin finishing his service as Sr. Vice President. Scott has held various positions within the state and federal government, both in Madison and in Washington, D.C.

Some of his former board experience included the following: Trustee of the State of Wisconsin Investment Board; Board member of the State Bank of Cross Plains; past Chair of the Wisconsin Center District; Board of Elders of Our Redeemer Lutheran—Madison, WI; and member of the National Petroleum Council.

Scott earned a B.S. from the University of WI–Oshkosh and an MBA from the University of Chicago.

City: Verona, WI
Church: Resurrection, Verona, WI
Term Expires: 06/30/2027

John Pahmeier is a Managing Director at Artisan Partners, a global investment management firm headquartered in Milwaukee. John joined Artisan in 2002 to lead the firm’s business development and client service efforts in the US wealth market.

Outside of work, John has extensive volunteering experience. He is currently serving his second term on the Board of Regents at Wisconsin Lutheran College (WLC), his alma mater. John has also served on the Stimac Family Foundation Board since 2019.

Previously, John was the chairman for the Board of Directors at Kettle Moraine Lutheran High School, Jackson, WI, and has also served in many positions over the years on the Board of Education and the Ministry Planning Committee at his church, Bethlehem Lutheran.

City: Mequon, WI
Church: Bethlehem Lutheran, Menomonee Falls/Germantown, WI
Term Expires: 06/30/2027

David Wendland is a Financial Advisor with Edward Jones in De Pere, WI. He has been with Edward Jones since 2012. Previously, David spent nine years as a WELS teacher serving St. Peter in Schofield, WI, and Minnesota Valley Lutheran High School in New Ulm, MN.

David earned his BBA in Accounting from UW-Madison in 2000, his BS in Education from Martin Luther College in 2003, and his MBA from UW-Oshkosh in 2015.

He is a member at Messiah in Green Bay, WI.  He serves on various committees and boards at Fox Valley Lutheran High School in Appleton, WI.

City: Green Bay, WI
Church: Messiah, Green Bay, WI
Term Expires: 06/30/2027

Kyle Egan has been serving as the Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer of WELS since July 2020. Prior to assuming his current position, he served as Assistant Treasurer & Director of Investor Relations at Quad/Graphics, Inc. (Quad). Over his ten-year tenure at Quad, he held various other management roles related to treasury, investor relations, pensions, 401(k) plans, technical accounting, and external reporting.

Prior to working at Quad, Kyle served as an auditor for the accounting firm Deloitte. He earned a Bachelor of Business Administration in Accounting from the University of Wisconsin–Whitewater in 2004 and a Master of Professional Accountancy, also from the University of Wisconsin–Whitewater, in 2005.

He is a member at Bethlehem Lutheran Church in Menomonee Falls/Germantown, WI, and currently serves on the Board of Directors of Chosen Gen Discipleship Ministry.

City: Germantown, WI
Church: Bethlehem, Menomonee Falls/Germantown, WI

Rev. Kurt Lueneburg is the Director of WELS Ministry of Christian Giving, responsible for helping God’s people excel in the grace of giving that glorifies Christ and provides funding for WELS gospel ministries. Previously, he served the Lord as a parish pastor in Memphis, TN and Cannon Falls, MN and as a Christian giving counselor in the Minnesota and Nebraska Districts. He’s an advisory member of the WELS Investment Funds Board.

City: Ixonia, WI
Church: St. Mark’s, Watertown, WI

Pastor Prange is the WELS Administrator for Ministerial Education, responsible for the schools and programs that train the next generation of pastors, teachers, and missionaries. He has served as a home mission pastor in Austin, TX; and Roscommon, MI; as a world mission teacher at East Fork Lutheran Schools on the White Mountain Apache reservation; and as a tutor, professor, and president at Michigan Lutheran Seminary, Saginaw, MI. He holds certificates in German, education, and nonprofit management, and is a regular contributor to Forward in Christ magazine.

City: Burlington, WI
Church: St. John, Burlington, WI

The information contained on this website is not intended as legal advice. For legal and tax advice, WELS Foundation encourages you to consult an attorney or tax professional. The figures cited in the examples on this website are for hypothetical purposes only and are subject to change. References to estate and income tax include federal taxes only. Individual state taxes and/or state law may impact your results.