Meet Reverend Lois K. Van Orden

The Rev. Lois K. Van Orden has been serving as pastor of St. Paul’s Evangelical Lutheran Church since February 17, 2007. She appreciates the gifts of the congregation which include Eucharist centered worship services and a dedication to liturgical worship, strong hymnody and music. Pastor Van Orden is especially thankful for the many families who participate in this faith community and their positive responses to creative learning and fellowship.

Before accepting the call to St. Paul’s, Pastor Van Orden served as Associate Pastor at St. James Lutheran Church in Gettysburg. She graduated from the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Gettysburg in May 2005 and was ordained on June 10, 2005. A life-long Lutheran, Pastor Van Orden is a gifted musician and has shared her musical and liturgical gifts with various congregations. She holds a certificate of Church Music from Lebanon Valley College, Annville, Pennsylvania. Following years of supplying for churches as organist, she accepted an invitation to serve as Director of Music at St. Michael Lutheran Church in Harrisburg, where she continued to serve during her first two years of seminary.

Ordained ministry is a “second career” for Pastor Van Orden. Her “first career” was in business management at Pennsylvania Blue Shield (now Highmark), Camp Hill, Pennsylvania. She graduated from the University of Pittsburgh with a B.S. in Economics. Pastor Van Orden has been married to her husband Dean since 1980. He is employed by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Department of Environmental Protection, Bureau of Air Quality. They have two grown children, Philip and Elizabeth. Philip is a graduate of Susquehanna University in History and Elizabeth is a student at the Art Institute of Pittsburgh in Interior Design.

You can contact Pastor Van Orden by e-mail at lvanorden@stpaulsdillsburg.com.