Rev. Dr. Kristin Riegel

Pastor & Head of Staff

Kristin is passionate about building joyful, inclusive communities of faith where all people are welcomed and loved. She loves to share stories over strong cups of coffee. And she is energized by working with others to build a more just and loving world.

Prior to St. Luke, Kristin served churches in Ann Arbor, Michigan, and Kansas City, Missouri. In her ministry, Kristin enjoys crafting community gatherings that incorporate storytelling, art, and almost always food. She is passionate about building intergenerational relationships and teaching about God’s liberating love.

In her free time, Kristin enjoys running on local trails, exploring the Twin Cities, and spending time with her spouse, Mark, and her son, Philip.

Rev. Dr. Heidi Vardeman

Summer Pastor (May 3–August 30, 2026)

Rev. Dr. Heidi Vardeman is serving as pastor while Pastor Kristin Riegel is on parental leave.

I was raised practically on the beach of Lake Michigan in northern Indiana. My mom, a newspaper woman, was president of the Women’s Association at First Presbyterian Church, and my dad, a mechanical engineer, served on session. I had 2 brothers, one older and one younger.

My education includes a BA from Oberlin, where I majored in East Asian studies and religion, and an MDiv from Union Theological Seminary in NYC. My college foreign study was in the Yale in China Program at the Chinese University of Hong Kong. PhD work was in speech communication at the University of South Florida and Northwestern. And my DMin is from United Seminary in St. Paul.

While still at Union, I became the student-but-solo pastor of a church in the South Bronx. My installed pastorates were a Bohemian Brethren congregation in Manhattan, the church founded as the Presbyterian mission to Tampa’s Latino cigar workers, Macalester Plymouth United in St. Paul, and Peace Presbyterian in St. Louis Park, where I am pastor emerita. Interims include an African-American congregation (3 years) in St. Petersburg, FL, a troubled church in upstate New York, and Bryn Mawr Church (4 years) in Minneapolis. I was a denominational executive with the General Board of Church and Society of the United Methodist Church in Washington, DC, where I created and launched the Peace with Justice program, modeled after the Presbyterian Peacemaking Program. Other work has included running the New York City office of the Religious Coalition for Abortion Rights and directing the Minnesota Women’s Consortium (where I met Sally Hill and other St. Luke troublemakers).

On my first day at seminary, I met Frank Vardeman. We married just months later and will celebrate our 50th anniversary in two years. We have two grown daughters: Ann, who works in New Jersey state politics and serves on her local school board, and Jane, who founded and runs Benchpressed Letter Press and Design Shop in Minneapolis. Our four grandchildren range in age from 4 to 12.

David Hovick Lohman

Minister of Music & Worship

Musician David Lohman grew up the son of a Lutheran pastor in Minneapolis. He has spent his life between his two musical passions: church music and musical theatre. He spent 3½ years as associate conductor for the Broadway tour of The Phantom of the Opera. He has devoted much of his life to working to counter the spiritual, psychological, and physical harm falsely done to lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer people in the name of religion. He spent eleven years helping to create congregations that are fully welcoming of LGBTQ people as a national faith organizer for the National LGBTQ Task Force. His church music, including the hymn “For All the Children,” has been sung in LGBTQ-welcoming congregations across the country, and has been published in the latest Lutheran hymnal, All Creation Sings. His music, including his album, Fling the Church Doors Open Wide: Songs of Radical Welcome, can be heard at David Lohman Music.

Doug Freeman

Administration & Communications Manager

Doug grew up in New England and relocated to the Twin Cities in 2006 after a sojourn in North Carolina. Shortly after moving to Minnesota, he joined the administrative staff at Plymouth Congregational Church and discovered he is drawn to supporting communities that work to make the world better for all people. He is very pleased to be able to continue that work at St. Luke Presbyterian!

Beyond his time at the office, Doug enjoys singing-acting (often with the Gilbert & Sullivan Very Light Opera Company). He loves to travel and explore new places—the photo is from a trip to Iceland in May 2024. The picture also shows his (occasionally used) crafting abilities: the hat is one he knit.

Doug and his partner, Erik, gather regularly with friends for games of all sorts: cards, board games, and Dungeons & Dragons. They live in Plymouth with their young cats, Nutmeg and Zoe, and he will show you far too many pictures of them if you ask!