Thirteen students in the Specific Ministry Pastor (SMP) Program at Concordia Seminary, St. Louis received their vicarage assignments in the Chapel of St. Timothy and St. Titus Wednesday, Feb. 6. They will serve congregations and ministries of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod (LCMS).

The SMP students included:

Chad Bresson, St. Paul Lutheran Church, Harlingen, T.X., LCMS Texas District
Jerrod Drye, St. Peter's Lutheran Church, Concord, N.C., LCMS Southeastern District
Roy Farias, Shepherd of the Hills Lutheran Church, San Antonio, T.X., LCMS Texas District
Ellory Glenn, Chapel of the Cross, St. Louis, Mo., LCMS English District
Myron Harms, Messiah Lutheran Church, Oklahoma City, Okla., LCMS Oklahoma District
Christopher Kolupa, St. John Evangelical Church, Schaumburg, Ill., LCMS Northern Illinois District
Joshua Nix, Trinity Lutheran Church, Hillsboro, Ore., LCMS Northwest District
Mark Novacek, Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church IAC, Roselle, Ill., LCMS Northern Illinois District
Daniel Robison, Holy Cross Lutheran Church, Lake Mary, Fla., SELC District
Jacob Scheler, Hope on the Beach Lutheran Church, Santa Rosa Beach, Fla., LCMS Southern District
Alan Shaw, Resurrection Lutheran Church, Cary, N.C., LCMS Southeastern District
Art Stevens, St. John's Lutheran Church, El Segundo, Calif., LCMS Southwest District
Dale Ward, New Beginnings Lutheran Church, Pacific, Mo., LCMS Missouri District

"Those in the SMP Program will be adding coursework to their already full and busy lives of work, church activities, family responsibilities and other life vocations God has given to them," SMP Director Dr. W. Mart Thompson said. "This program is demanding and requires significant sacrifice and commitment. Today we recognize the Spring 2019 cohort of SMP students."

Concordia Seminary's SMP Program is a four-year distance-education program in which men receive both academic and hands-on training for life in pastoral ministry. Local pastor-mentors work alongside SMP students, providing them with opportunities to serve the various needs of the church.

To learn more about the Seminary's SMP Program, visit www.csl.edu/smp.

About Concordia Seminary

Concordia Seminary, St. Louis provides Gospel-centered graduate-level theological education for pastors, missionaries, deaconesses, scholars and other leaders in the name of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod (LCMS). To learn more, visit www.csl.edu.