Mount Olive Lutheran Church

Rev. Kenneth Bomberger was born and raised in La Grande, Island City, and Union Oregon -- small towns in the Grand Ronde Valley of Northeast Oregon. The oldest of four children, Pastor Bomberger was baptized and confirmed at Faith Lutheran Church (LCMS) in La Grande. He was home-schooled throughout elementary, middle, and high school, though he did participate in many extracurricular activities through the local high school, the community, and his church. He participated in high school band, choir, football, and basketball as well as the local community youth symphony and state and regional solo and ensemble competitions. His education was classical but varied: he studied Latin and Shakespeare, but also enjoyed hunting with his family in the mountains around his home.  His interest in professional ministry was first sparked by his high school involvement with Ongoing Ambassadors for Christ, a Lutheran youth-driven ministry focused on personal evangelism.

After finishing high school, Pastor Bomberger attended Concordia University, Ann Arbor, Michigan, where he studied music (tuba and voice) and minored in New Testament Greek. At Concordia, he participated in a broad range of musical groups, including the Concordia Choir, Arborsong, the Concordia Wind Ensemble, the Concordia Jazz Band, and the Brass Quintet. He also regularly took part in plays, musicals, the annual Boar's Head Festival, and Fools for Christ, a Christian clown troupe.

During his time at Concordia, Pastor Bomberger also met and courted his wife, Rachel (nee Wesche). They married in December, 2002, and are the proud parents of Elanor, Kristian, and Evalyn.

After graduating from Concordia, Ann Arbor, Pastor Bomberger applied and was accepted to yet another Concordia: Concordia Theological Seminary, Fort Wayne, Indiana. There he received rigorous theological training, with a special emphasis in Exegetical studies. He also found time to participate in the touring choir Kantorei, play in the Chapel Brass ensemble, sing with the Fort Wayne Bach Collegium, and work part time as an appliance technician at a local used appliance store. He completed his two-year field work assignment at St. Thomas Lutheran Church in Ohio City, Ohio, and spent his yearlong vicarage at Immanuel Lutheran Church of Frankentrost, Michigan, under the supervision of Pastor Mark Loest.

Pastor Bomberger received his Master of Divinity in May, 2008, and was ordained and installed at Mount Olive on June 8 of the same year.