Our Mission
Advancing Lutheran Outdoors Ministry in service to Christ, the Church, and our world. We do this by offering resources, support and growth opportunities to outdoors ministry professionals, emerging leaders and organizations.
Our Values
We value our shared calling, diverse arenas, and common service to Jesus Christ in the beauty of God’s creation by partnering as a community of professionals and friends.
We value Supporting the work of the Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod on a local, regional and national level by raising an awareness of and appreciation for the value of outdoors ministry in the church and to its mission.
We value opportunities to gather with cohorts in outdoors ministry for professional, spiritual and relational growth and training through exceptional annual gatherings and other events.
Year round networking, mentoring and collaborative efforts by exchanging resources and ideas; sharing best practices; and challenging, encouraging and supporting our colleagues in ministry.
Our History
The beginning of NLOMA started with several Lutheran outdoors ministry directors meeting on an occasional basis to give support and encouragement to each other. As they were meeting, they realized that even though they worked at different ministries all over the country, they all had similar questions, problems, joys and challenges.
These directors also realized that each of them was travelling all over the country to recruit their summer staff from Lutheran colleges and Universities. They found they could reduce their travels by sharing applications for summer staff members with other camps. In this way, the current Joint Recruitment process was begun.
As they would meet each year they began to share some personal, professional, and Spiritual resources and tools. In 1972 this gathering of directors became an official organization under the name of LCMS-OM. In 1979 the name was changed to the National Lutheran Outdoors Ministry Association, and a constitution was approved.
Over the years NLOMA has also offered consultation teams for camps and retreat centers to help the boards and staff of partner camps in a variety of ways. NLOMA has also partnered with fraternal organizations, to develop Block Grant programs, bringing benefits to all our Lutheran outdoors ministry centers.
Currently NLOMA meets officially once a year for our conference and business meeting. These conferences have been held at sites all over the country with a variety of programs, speakers and activities. At each annual conference the Joint Recruitment program occurs where we help place summer staffs for all participating camps.
Our Board
Our board serves to direct the efforts and initiatives of NLOMA.
- John Busch (President)
- Tim Jank (Vice President)
- Bob LaCroix (Treasurer)
- Stacy Lung (Secretary)
- Signe White (Joint Recruitment Chairperson)
- Ana Reineke (Member-at-Large)
- William Jackson (Conference Chair – 2025)
- Chip May (Conference Chair – 2026)
Up for election on odd years of conference: Treasurer, Secretary, Joint Recruitment Chair, Conference Chair elect. Up for election on even years of conference: President, Vice President, At Large, Conference Chair Elect