Matt Kindsvatter, Executive Director
matt@lutherhill.org
Matt Kindsvatter, Executive Director, has served Lutherhill Ministries since February 2001. Matt has been involved in the programming at Lutherhill for the past 11 years. He has previously served as the Program Director and the Associate Director of Programming for summer camps and retreats. He was involved with Lutheran camp programs for four summers before coming to Lutherhill. Matt is originally from The Woodlands and graduated from Texas Lutheran University in December 1999 with a degree in Kinesiology. Matt enjoys playing golf, running, and traveling. Matt and his wife Jennifer live in La Grange with two dogs, Hatley and Lola.
Administration
MiLisa Gaertner, Development Associate
milisa@lutherhill.org
MiLisa grew up near Blue Springs, Missouri and moved to Texas in 1995. In 1998 MiLisa married Jeremy Gaertner and had their first son, Justin. In 2004 their family was complete with the birth of their second son, Trevor. The Gaertner’s worship at St. John Lutheran Church of Rutersville. MiLisa is involved in Sunday School, Church Council, Youth and Family Ministry’s Child in Our Hands and Mentoring Programs for St. John and The Shared Lutheran Ministries of Fayette County. Before joining the Lutherhill team, MiLisa worked with a local bank where her artistic abilities allowed her to develop and grow a marketing/advertising career.
Naida Roden, Registrar
naida@lutherhill.org
Naida Roden moved to La Grange in October 2007 from Flagstaff, AZ. She is originally from Florida but has moved a few times around the country. She enjoys spending time with her wonderful family and cat, Angel. She also enjoys music, reading, sewing, and hiking in her spare time. When she isn’t doing one of those, she also enjoys baking and cooking for others. She is a member of St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in La Grange where she participates in the choir and the praise band. She attended Texas Lutheran University where she majored in Sociology with a minor in Spanish. One of the accomplishments she is proudest of is having hiked two different parts of Grand Canyon National Park.
Program
Libby Jones, Program Director
libby@lutherhill.org
Libby grew up in Bryan/College Station, Texas and graduated from Texas A&M University in May 2011 with a degree in Business Management. Libby worked with Lutherhill as a member of the summer staff for five years. In 2011 she served as Summer Site Director.
Kyle Pittman, Program Intern
kyle@lutherhill.org
Lutherhill has been a big part of Kyle’s life since the year 2000. He has regularly attended camp ever since and was a staff member the past three years. In the summer of 2012, he was one ofCampLutherhill’s Travel Team Leaders. Kyle is very passionate about outdoor ministry and makes it a goal to share that passion with everyone that he meets. He has plans to attendTexasStateUniversityand major in outdoor and recreation so that he can always have the fulfillment of working in outdoor ministry.
Sam Toler, Program Intern
sam@lutherhill.org
Sam was born and raised in the suburbs ofCypress,TX. He has been involved in youth ministry since junior high with LYO. In the past few years, he has dedicated his musical talents to a few Lutheran churches in theHoustonarea while attending school atLoneStarCollege. As a camper at Lutherhill since age 7 and a part of the summer staff for the past 5 years; camp has instilled a considerable presence in his faith life. In the Lutherhill Summer of 2012, Sam served as the Program Specialist.
Operations
Gene Citzler, Maintenance Manager
Gene has worked at Lutherhill for 39 years. Following the Citzler family tradition, Gene has dedicated his time and talents to make Lutherhill a great camp. Having lived at Lutherhill for 14 years of his life, he has been a part of the ministry and landscape of the camp. No job is too big or too small for Gene to tackle. At any given point of the year you will see Gene working diligently on keeping the camp running smoothly. In his spare time Gene loves to hunt and fish and has the reputation of being the “King of the Colorado” by his closest friends.
Don Crowe, Food Service Manager
Don started his career in retail and sales, entering cooking in the later years of his life. He attended adult cooking schools, read books and magazines and watched many hours of the Food Network. Don jokes that he wore out two garbage disposals with trial and error.
Don has cooked in day cares, churches and camp retreat centers. Don worked for 6 years with The Woodlands Lutheran Camp in central Florida. When the camp closed its doors, Don was led by God to Lutherhill.
“Words cannot express the joy and happiness I have experienced since becoming one of the family here (Lutherhill). We truly serve a great God and I praise Him everyday for bringing me here. I look forward to serving you in the future.” — Don
Nora Otto, Hospitality Manager
preachermama21@hotmail.com
Nora lives in La Grange with her husband Wayne and mother Alice. Her son Brad and his wife, Stacie, are currently living in Houston were he serves as pastor for Messiah Lutheran Church. Nora enjoys visiting Houston to spend time with her new granddaughter, London Grace. Nora has worked at La Grange High School for approximately 21 years. During this period of time she developed a fondness for young people.
Nora loves working at Lutherhill because she truly has a love for the camp and the people (young and old) who come there to become closer to God. This love has grown very deep as Lutherhill was the driving influence in a decision that Brad has made to pursue a career as an ordained minister.
