Team Category: Board of Directors

Born in North Tonawanda, NY, Douglas Werth grew up in Abingdon, VA. After 33 years of corporate and international finance, Doug and his wife, Sara, retired in 2014 and now reside in Nashville, TN, where they are members of Our Savior Lutheran Church and Academy. Doug and Sara have grown children in Spring Hill and Brentwood, TN, as well as Orlando, FL. They are very blessed with three grandchildren living in Tennessee and four grandchildren living in Florida.

In 2003, Doug’s professional career took him and his family overseas to Hong Kong. Doug’s youngest two children attended Hong Kong International School, an LCMS school associated with the LCMS congregation in Hong Kong, Church of All Nations. Doug served on the school’s board of managers for six years, including the position of board chairman.

During their time in Hong Kong, God equipped and provided the Werth family with many service opportunities through church and school. Trips and outings in Hong Kong, Macau, Philippines, Vietnam, China, Mongolia, and Cambodia helped to develop servant hearts for showing care and compassion, as well as sharing the Good News.

After four years in Switzerland and travel to more than 75 countries around the world, Doug and Sara returned to the United States.

Doug currently also serves on the board of Concordia Welfare Education Foundation, a Hong Kong-based non-profit organization dedicated to improving the lives of impoverished rural communities in Asia through education and service. He is a member of the Board of Trustees for Saint Paul Lutheran High School in Concordia, MO, a Lutheran boarding school providing curricular and co-curricular experiences in a Christian environment that equip students for joyful, faithful service to Christ and His world. In addition, he serves on the board of directors for Inspiritus (formerly Lutheran Social Services for Georgia, Alabama, and Tennessee) and the South Regional Thrivent Member Network board.

Jon Niederbrach is an LCMS pastor’s kid and lifelong follower of Jesus by His grace. Born and baptized in Minot, ND, Jon spent his formative years in several places around the country as the family served in a variety of churches. Confirmed at Holy Cross Lutheran in Cypress, CA, southern California became “home” where Jon has been based ever since. He has been a member at MCN Network Congregation Christ Lutheran, Costa Mesa, CA for many years, serving in a variety of lay leadership positions including Board of Elders chairman, emerging leader mentoring, Bible class and small group leadership, capital campaign committees, church marketing and singing in choir.

Part of the rich experience of growing up as he did was spending time with many missionaries from all over the world. Jon has vivid memories of the amazing stories he heard around the dinner table and in worship as missionaries came home on furlough and shared what God was doing in far-flung places. These experiences created an enduring, lasting interest in God’s mission locally and globally. Jon has been blessed to participate in multiple mission projects including trips to Mexico and China, as well as leading his congregation’s participation with Mission India.

Jon graduated with a Bachelor’s degree from the University of California, Irvine. After more than two decades of experience in business-to-business marketing leadership and consulting, he is currently Chief Operating Officer for the Pacific Southwest District of the LCMS. Overseeing the various operations of the District as it resources almost 300 congregations and 150 schools, his two prime focus areas are executing on vision and identifying areas for quality and productivity improvement.

Jon is married to Miwa, an immigration attorney, and they are blessed with two grown children, Peter and Jaclyn.

Ray is a graduate of Baylor University (BA in History), South Texas College of Law (JD), and the University of Texas at San Antonio (MBA). He is a licensed attorney and licensed real estate broker  in the State of Texas.

Ray and his wife Cindy have one daughter, and they attend Concordia Lutheran Church in San Antonio, Texas.

Linda K. Reiser was born and raised on a farm in Waterbury, Nebraska. She was confirmed at Trinity Lutheran Church, Martinsburg, Nebraska, where fall mission festivals began to spark her interest in the mission work of the church.

That mission interest was further realized as she served as the 15th President of the Lutheran Women’s Missionary League from 2003-2007. As President of the LWML, Linda was able to witness firsthand the amazing ‘mighty mite box’ donations from the women of the church. She was also able to witness firsthand a graduation ceremony in Bo, Sierra Leone, where men were being ‘set aside’ for ministry in local congregations at the Center for Theological Studies that was started by an LWML grant 30 years ago.

Currently, Linda serves as a board member for Lutheran World Relief, vice president of the Mission of Christ Network Board of Directors, and on the Nominating Committee for Lutheran Church Extension Fund. She also serves on the Mission-Ministry Council of her local church.

In her home Nebraska District LCMS, Linda is a member of the Lutheran Ministry Foundation Board of Directors and serves on the Nebraska District Lutheran Church Extension Fund Committee. She has been married to her husband and best friend, Ron, for 40 years. They have two married adult children, 2 grandsons and 4 granddaughters.

John is a preacher’s kid who grew up primarily in Concordia, Missouri, and is a lifelong Christian and member of the Lutheran Church. At the congregations of which he has been a member, he has served as congregational chairman, treasurer, and school board member and taught Sunday School for 20+ years.

John is Secretary of the MCN Board of Directors, is on the Board of Trustees of Saint Paul Lutheran High School in Concordia, Missouri, and serves on a variety of for-profit company boards.

He has two grown children, Leah and Elijah, and splits his time between Missouri and Iowa.

Dr. Gloria Edwards was born Gloria Seddelmeyer in Fort Wayne, IN on February 10, 1940.
She attended Lutheran grade schools and Concordia High School in Fort Wayne and earned her BS at Purdue University.

After marrying Ross Edwards, Gloria moved to California where her sons, Ross and John, were born. In 1975, Ross and Gloria adopted their daughter, Tamara from Seoul, South Korea.

Gloria has served as President of the California, Nevada and Hawaii District LWML, Vice President for Mission Service of the ILWML, and President of the ILWML. She has also served on boards for Wheatridge Ministries, the LCMS Board for Mission Services, Lutheran Immigration and Refuge Services, and Lutheran World Relief. She served on the National Cabinet of For the Sake of the Church, was a trustee on the LCMS Foundation, served as a member of the Blue Ribbon Task Force for Funding the Mission, and was on the Board of Directors of the LCMS. She was also a regent for Concordia University Portland.

She received a Doctor of Laws from Concordia Portland in 1998 and has received numerous awards including the Christi Crux award from Concordia Portland, the Witness in the Square award from the Atlantic District of the LCMS, the Spirit of Giving award from the Association of Lutheran Development Executives (ALDE), and others.

Gloria also continues to serve Bethany Lutheran Church in Menlo Park, CA in various ways, as well as other Bay Area organizations.

She enjoys travel; outdoor activities such as skiing, golf, and hiking; reading; and, especially, spending time with her three children, their spouses, and her grandchildren.

Gloria and Ross established the Edwards Family Foundation to be able to assist many of the above listed agencies and organizations in their mission and humanitarian work. With their children they give gifts to the above and to local school foundations to assist in providing today’s children with a good education.

Paul Althoff served on staff at Salem Lutheran Church in Tomball, Texas as the Director of Global Mission until he retired in 2018, where he founded Vision for Africa and Heart for Honduras. Paul is a life-long Lutheran with a family of many Lutheran pastors and educators. During his service with Salem for the last 17 years, Paul has traveled to foreign countries more than 70 times to plan missions or lead short-term mission teams.

Paul ended a 40 year business career as President of GCA Services Group in 2007. He also serves as a consultant to the building services industry. He currently is Executive Director of Heart for Honduras, Chairman of Vision and Mission for Kenya, and a Director on the Mission of Christ Network Board of Directors. Paul received his education at Arizona State University.