Bobbi was born in Aurora, Illinois, but having been raised in a Navy family, she moved around quite a bit. She loves to travel and see the world. Bobbi received her undergrad in Business Marketing in 2003 from California Lutheran University. During her time there she was very active in campus ministries and student government and loved planning new and exciting events for the campus while interacting with fellow residents.

With a marketing degree in hand, Bobbi left for Japan as a missionary through the ELCA Global Missions program to teach English in 2003. While she wasn’t prepared to be a teacher, she quickly learned that God doesn’t call the qualified, God qualifies the called. Through her time in Japan, she not only became fluent in Japanese, but found a passion for teaching and wrote her own textbook! Ten years later, she felt the call to move home.

Since moving back to the States in 2013, Bobbi has found that God had been preparing her for a life in ministry as a Youth Director! She has enjoyed serving at and growing with a couple of churches since accepting this call into ministry and is presently serving at St. Matthew’s Lutheran Church in Renton, WA as the Director of Children, Youth and Family Ministries. Over the years, Bobbi has found that she is very passionate about the youth and how we, as a church, engage them in the life of the church and give them a voice. When they know that their voice matters and that they, too, can make a difference, not only does their world change, but the church changes. Youth are passionate, dedicated disciples who are not just the future of the church, they are the church NOW.

In the Fall of 2021, Bobbi began her studies in Leadership and Innovation at Luther Seminary and is excited to see how God will continue to shape and form her life for the world as she discerns ordination in Word and Service as a Deacon in the Lutheran Church.

After leading retreats, reading books, and writing papers, Bobbi is enjoying life in the PNW and all it has to offer. While her current travels are mostly to Minnesota for classes, she still dreams of a trip to Scotland! Bobbi loves to spend time with her cat, Malachi, and her watercolors, pens, and bible – finding unique ways of bringing the Word to life.

IG: @cyriously_creative