University Lutheran Church

340 E. 15th Street, Tempe, AZ 85281-6612 (480) 967-3543

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Student of the Month

Student of the Month – Kayla Pagel

Kayla PagelName: Kayla Pagel
Year of School: Freshman

Hometown: Tempe

What memories do you have from University Lutheran from before college?
University Lutheran was my first church. Pastor Gary baptized me and it is really amazing to be know that I have families at different churches around Arizona; from University Lutheran, to Desert Cross, to Trinity Lutheran Church. Even though I was only a toddler, I can clearly remember going on Easter Egg hunts around campus and watching fish in the canal with my dad while we waited for my mom finish conversing after service.

What are some positives and/or challenges living on the polytechnic campus?
Positives would be less foot traffic and more nature than Tempe so it is really pleasant to walk around and see the bunnies, roadrunners, quail, and blooming flowers. The biggest challenge and negative would be feeling distanced from friends I have at other campuses.

What is your favorite part of LCM?
Just hanging out with people who understand and share the value of having a belief. Knowing there is always a community of people with the same faith helps ground me.

Why would you encourage others to check out LCM?
It is a welcoming community of people who genuinely want to know how you are doing. Having free food is also great along with nice people and laughter.

What is one thing you are looking forward to this year?
I am looking forward to learning new applications of math so that I can turn designs in my head into a real world product. I am also looking forward to different opportunities to travel with school and friends.

Student of the Month – Nic Peters

Name: Nic Peters

Grade: Freshman

Hometown: Mesa, AZ

Tell us about yourself: I’m a Biomedical Engineering major who also plays the drums and the cello.  I love being involved with scouting (I’m an Eagle scout), and robotics at my old high school (I mentor).  I love to fill my schedule up with as many events as possible, I love keeping busy, but that keeps me going!

Why ASU: I didn’t choose ASU because both of my parents went here.  I chose ASU because it is a great school that was well known for it’s engineering program, and they gave me scholarships.  I also have a few friends that went to ASU with me from my old schools.

Tell us about ULC/LCM: LCM is a place where I can be myself.  I find that in the college environment, God and religion gets pushed to the wayside or ends up feeling fake and forced by some clubs.  LCM is a place where I can feel God’s presence in the services we do and in the smiles of everyone in the ministry.  I love theology, and LCM is a great place to discuss theology at bible study or around the dinner table.  I appreciate the comradery and friendship that makes LCM feel like home.  Also, they let me play the drums every Wednesday and I have a ton of fun with that!

Special Interests: Music, Theology, Skateboarding, Robotics, Volunteering at STEM events, Camping (the outdoors in general), and skiing to name a few.

Best part of the school year so far: I love the time right after all the midterms that I have (because they all seem to line up on top of each other), when I can breath and relax with not much homework and no hard material.

Student of the Month – Joshua Burgett

Freshman

Twin Falls, Idaho

I am a studying Mechanical Engineering and plan on going to get a masters in robotics. I love the outdoors and community service. I am currently apart of three different organizations on campus, Sun Devil Robotics, CKI, and Cru. CKI is the largest collegiate run service organization, and I was recently elected as the recruitment Lieutenant Governor for the South West District. I spend most of my time working with my clubs or doing school work.

I chose ASU because they have a great engineering program, and it was affordable. I also loved the campus when I toured it, along with the winter weather. I am apart of Barrett and the honors thesis probably helped me chose ASU, as I want to go on to grad school so having the resources to do an undergraduate thesis was very appealing to me.

I started coming to ULC/LCM because I was looking for a Lutheran church close to campus. I heard about ULC/LCM from my brother, Luke Burgett who is in his second year of a masters degree at ASU.

The best part of the school year so far was a weekend trip I got to go on to Seattle. The trip was apart of a hack-a-thon/scholarship, and my team took second place. We were able to go to Seattle and tour Amazon headquarters. It was a lot of fun and I met a lot of interesting people. 

Student of the Month – Nic Peters

Name: Nic Peters

Grade: Freshman 
Hometown: Mesa, AZ

Tell us about yourself: I’m a Biomedical Engineering major who also plays the drums and the cello.  I love being involved with scouting (I’m an Eagle scout), and robotics at my old high school (I mentor).  I love to fill my schedule up with as many events as possible, I love keeping busy, but that keeps me going!

Why ASU: I didn’t choose ASU because both of my parents went here.  I chose ASU because it is a great school that was well known for it’s engineering program, and they gave me scholarships.  I also have a few friends that went to ASU with me from my old schools.

Tell us about ULC/LCM: LCM is a place where I can be myself.  I find that in the college environment, God and religion gets pushed to the wayside or ends up feeling fake and forced by some clubs.  LCM is a place where I can feel God’s presence in the services we do and in the smiles of everyone in the ministry.  I love theology, and LCM is a great place to discuss theology at bible study or around the dinner table.  I appreciate the comradery and friendship that makes LCM feel like home.  Also, they let me play the drums every Wednesday and I have a ton of fun with that!

Special Interests: Music, Theology, Skateboarding, Robotics, Volunteering at STEM events, Camping (the outdoors in general), and skiing to name a few.

Best part of the school year so far: I love the time right after all the midterms that I have (because they all seem to line up on top of each other), when I can breath and relax with not much homework and no hard material.

Student of the Month – Paul Westermann

Paul WestermannName: Paul Westermann

Grade: I am a freshman in college here at ASU

Hometown: I am from the humble mining town of Angle Camp, CA, in the heart of California’s gold country.

About Me: Most of my free time sees me listening to music of different genres, from early big band music to classic rock and even famous film scores. Sometimes, I can be a bit reserved, but I am growing out of that and I am becoming a bit more outgoing than I have been in the past.

Why ASU: I came here because of the promising academics. Given my desired career of Walt Disney Imagineering, which gives extra special preference towards people with advanced degrees, I wanted a place that could give me the necessary education, but also in a short amount of time; this is the advantage I saw in ASU’s 4 + 1 program. Also, the campus, itself, is beautiful. Although it is in the city, the palms trees, the floral adornments, and the nearby mountains give the place a natural beauty that other campuses don’t have.

About ULC/LCM: The people in this congregation are some of the friendliest people I have known. They are very welcoming to visitors such as myself, and each person express a deep interest in Spreading God’s Word. The Light of God really does shine through each member. With these in mind, this church often times reminds me of my own church back home. The choir is also an excellent team for me to take part in, due in part to its charismatic leader and the wide variety of musical selections sung.

Special Interests: I have a deep personal fascination and respect for The Walt Disney Company, especially because of its honest dedication to making people happy. This is why I have made Walt Disney Imagineering my career of choice. Here, I will take design rides and attractions that will immerse people in many wondrous stories and make them happy. The reason I chose to be a mechanical engineering major, however, was entirely independent of my love for Disney. I chose my major because of my love for physics, the science that animates objects and gives them life.

Best part of the school year so far: I have already made plenty of friends at this campus, finding comfort in the company of my teachers, fellow students, and fellow churchgoers. I am also happy that I have had the chance to develop myself as both an individual and as a team, being able to work by myself while still being able to work with a group of cooperative people..