As we returned from Spring Break this week to still chilly weather, the calendar nonetheless reminds us that the 24-25 school year will be coming to an end soon. As usual, it has been a year rich in blessings for Walther. This month, I want to share just a little bit about an event we held last month, our annual Career Day. We filled our classrooms with 18 Walther alumni (and a couple Walther friends as well), all with different careers, who shared their stories of vocation with our current Broncos. In their feedback forms, students expressed great appreciation for the opportunity to learn from those who went before them about how they all decided “what to do when they grew up.” Our keynote speaker was the captivating Dennus Bishop ’96, who spoke about his journey from being a “kid from Maywood” who attended Walther to becoming a Federal Agent with the Secret Service who has protected presidents and currently oversees investigators across 13 different states for the USPS. It was a great opportunity for our students to really think about vocation, and about the plans God has for each of them. And then…the faculty easily defeated the seniors in basketball. OK, well, our definition of “faculty” did include many of our young coaches, but still…
God bless your spring,
Tim Bouman
Head of School/Principal
Lent and Easter provide a great opportunity to reflect on the blessings we as Christians have received through the death and resurrection of our Savior, Jesus Christ. And as we dwell on that, consider ways we can be a blessing to others.
This month’s We Are Walther is filled with examples of this. Check out the Choir Tour article on how that experience was a blessing for our students and how they blessed those who attended their concerts. And, the Alumni Spotlight to see how several of our alumni were a blessing to our students during Career Day.
Look for a notice soon in your mailbox or inbox about how you can be a blessing to the students of Walther through our Easter Appeal.
And, a little off topic, look for an email in a couple of weeks about Walther’s Athletic Hall of Fame with information on how you can nominate an individual or a team for this honor.
God’s Blessings to you this Easter season.
Bill Koehne ‘87
Director of Advancement
Walther Christian Academy
The A Cappella and Christian Minstrels took their biennial tour March 4-9 to Wisconsin and Minnesota under the theme Christ is With Me Everywhere I Go, and how real that theme became for the group. Dangerous weather conditions in Minnesota on the second day of the trip forced the choir to stay in Wisconsin Rapids, WI an extra day. But, as Choir Director, Lori Boyer put it, “God’s plans are perfect.” On that morning, the choir attended Ash Wednesday worship with the students of Immanuel Lutheran School and afterwards led 45 minutes of impromptu singing with the students of ILS. This turned out to be a true highlight for everyone involved. “The best moment was when we were able to do some extra praise songs with the kids during the ice storm,” commented senior Yulan Pearson. Junior, Kira McGhee added, “I loved experiencing people who I didn’t know praising with us.”
The next day the roads were clear and the tour continued. In all, our students participated in five services, four concerts, and two clinics. The two clinics, on Thursday with a former Concordia University, St. Paul professor, Dr. David Mennicke, and on Friday with the current choir director at CSP, Dr. Paul Von Kampen, led to more confidence in the choir as they made strides on two of their pieces. Both professors were impressed with our A Cappella choir whose repertoire included several college level pieces and songs sung in five different languages.
Lori Boyer shared, “It was cool to see how our students grew from the beginning to the end of the tour. Watching them go from being excited to travel at the beginning to seeing them respond to the effect the music they shared was having on the audience was profound. They thrived on the opportunity to interact with other people and were vulnerable to share of themselves when they saw how moved the audience was by what they heard and felt through the expression of how they sang.” Senior Brianna Wurpts agreed saying, “I realized how much we impact other people as we share the word of God and act graciously and kindly.”
Lori continued, “It was also gratifying to see how our students went from being uncomfortable with the idea of staying overnight in strangers homes, to seeing it as a blessing they received and appreciating their host families. Especially the hosts in Wisconsin Rapids who graciously welcomed our students for a second night.”
“Every tour is a growing experience for students. It was neat to hear from students how the texts we sang brought on new meaning to them. The whole tour was a faithful reminder that Christ is with us everywhere we go.”
Make plans now to come to Walther on Sunday, May 4th at 3:30 pm to experience the Spring Concert for all of our curricular music groups and on Sunday, May 18 at 4:00pm for all of our extra-curricular music groups.
On Friday, March 21, 18 alumni ranging from the Class of ’84 to the Class of ’20 were at Walther to speak with our students about their careers for our annual Career Day. Three alums even came from out of state to present to our students. Students were able to pick careers they were interested in learning about and each alum presented three sessions to groups of 15-20 students. Afterwards the students attended a College and Career Fair in the Multi-Purpose Room while alumni gathered for lunch and fellowship. Thank you to the following alumni for taking time to give back to their alma mater.
Greg Gatewood ’84 – Electrician
Dennus Bishop ’96 – Federal Agent
Mike Schroeder ’00 – Athletic Training
Brian Boos ’01 – Information Technology
Dar’Rell Campbell ’03 – Secret Service
Joel Saeedi ’07 – Physician
Josh Easter ’10 – Entrepreneur / Non-Profit
Terry Jones ’10 – Counseling Troubled Teens
Deidre Kruckenberg ’12 – Safety Engineer
Emmanuel Perez ’12 – Counseling – General
Nick Schumacher ’12 – Information Technology
Ashya Winters ’12 – Fashion / Small Business Owner
Anna Strong ’13 – Attorney
Arra Strong ’13 – Accounting
Allison Gonzalez ’16 – School Counseling
Natalia Roder ’18 – Environmental Technician
Jordan Holliday ’19 – Church Music
Kirsten Steiner ’20 – Nursing
If you are interested in speaking at a future Career Day, contact Bill Koehne at 708-344-0404 x230 or bill_koehne@waltheracademy.org
Did you know Walther was represented in the men’s tournament this year?
Lamar Simpson ’79 was one of three game officials on the court for the St. John’s vs. Arkansas game on March 22. Congratulations to Lamar on this amazing accomplishment!
Later this spring, we will place a new order for the Paver walkway outside of the main entrance to the school on Chicago Ave. For just $200 you can have a paver inscribed with your name or message. Inscription can be up to 13 characters on 3 lines. Go to the DONATE button at the top of this newsletter and select Paver to make your purchase today. Bill Koehne will contact with you with more details.
Nathan Lichucki, Class of ’23, passed away on March 18, 2025
Psalm 116:15 Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of His faithful servants.
Please email any death notices to Advancement@WaltherAcademy.org
Walther Christian Academy is operated for the purpose of providing Christian Education at the secondary level for the families of Lutheran congregations. However, it admits students of any race, color, national and ethnic origin, and religion to all the rights, privileges, programs and activities generally accorded or made available to students at the school. It does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national and ethnic origin and religion in administration of its educational policies, scholarship and loan programs, and athletic and other school administered programs.
