MEET OUR PASTOR!

Pastor Philip Kieselhorst is our Westminster Campus Senior Pastor. He received a Bachelor of Arts with an emphasis in Biblical languages from Northwestern College in 1991. He received Seminary training at Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary in Mequon, WI, receiving a Masters of Divinity in 1995. He celebrated 25 years of God’s grace in ministry on June 11th, 2020.


Pastor K began pastoral ministry in 1995 as a Civilian Chaplain for all of our military personnel stationed in Europe. He also served as a travelling pastor for all of our WELS members who were living in Europe for business or school.  In late 2001, Pastor Kieselhorst accepted a call to serve as the pastor of Gethsemane Lutheran Church in Oklahoma City, serving a congregation of 160 members and a school with 40 students and 3 teachers.  

In early 2008, Pastor accepted a call to serve Shepherd of the Valley Lutheran Church in Westminster, CO. During his time at SVL, Pastor K has also served as the Campus Pastor for our School Ministry and has enjoyed working with our many talented and caring teachers, as well as coaching many soccer and basketball teams. He also coached girls’ soccer teams in the city of Westminster for many years. In addition to serving SVL, Pastor Kieselhorst also served for 7 years as the Chairman of the Board of Directors for Rocky Mountain Lutheran High School in Reunion, CO. He is now also serving as the 2nd Vice President of the Nebraska District of WELS, which includes all congregations in Colorado, Nebraska, Kansas, Utah, and Wyoming, as well as some churches in New Mexico and South Dakota.

Pastor Kieselhorst is married to Katharine, who serves as the office administrator for Rocky Mountain Lutheran High School. They are blessed with two children. Benjamin is currently serving in the United States Navy. Julia is attending Martin Luther College in New Ulm, MN to become a teacher. In their free time, Pastor and Kathy especially enjoy hiking and camping with their two German shepherds, Kari and Toffee.