Pr. Dennis has been an ordained pastor in the ELCA since 2004 and has served as an Intentional Transition Specialist since 2011. An Intentional Transition Specialist helps congregations make healthy pastoral and ministry transitions within the context of congregational ministry.
Pr. Dennis and (wife) Kathy have been married for 50 years and have 2 married daughters, and 2 grandchildren. Pr. Dennis and Kathy grew up in Saginaw, Michigan. They have lived in several places throughout Michigan during their marriage and currently reside in Punta Gorda, Florida. Pr. Dennis worked in his father’s grocery business for 12 years and then also for other retailers and deciding to work towards pastoral ministry by going to college in 1995. Kathy worked for 11 years as a pharmacy tech for Wal-Mart. She currently has medical & mobility issues of which Pr. Dennis is her care giver.
Pr. Dennis is a 1999 graduate of Kyper College, Grand Rapids, Michigan and a 2003 graduate of Trinity Lutheran Seminary, Columbus, Ohio. He has served in ELCA mission congregations as a redeveloper in Port St. John, Florida, Macomb Twp, Mi., and Fenton, Mi. Since 2011 he has served as an Intentional Transition Specialist in Shelby Twp, Clinton Twp, Berkley, Royal Oak, Walled Lake, Escanaba, all in Michigan, and as an Interim in Venice and Cape Coral, Fl. He has also coached and consulted with congregations throughout the Southeast Michigan Synod and the Northern Great Lakes Synod on matters of Transition Ministry. Pastor Dennis retired from full time pastoral ministry June 2021.
Pr. Dennis and Kathy enjoy reading, golf, walking, pickleball, shuffleboard and NASCAR.
A native of New Jersey, Scott has lived in Florida since 2003 and he has been a member of MLC since 2008. Scott began serving Messiah Lutheran Church as Parish Administrator in January of 2017. He brings a wealth of experience in Church Administration to the parish office having served in various parish and Christian college offices for over ten years. He obtained an A.A. degree with a specialization in Liberal Arts from Ocean County College in 2000 followed in 2002 by a B.A. in Religious Studies with a minor in Philosophy from Felician University, both in New Jersey. He has completed coursework toward a Master's Degree in Religious Education and spent the final two years of his college career in College Seminary while discerning a call to the priesthood. He and Al currently reside in North Fort Myers FL.
Scott was commissioned as a Synod Parish Deacon in the Florida Bahamas Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America in November of 2019. During the Fall of 2025, the Florida Bahamas Synod made changes to the Synod Parish Deacon program with the title changing to Lay Parish Minister. Scott continues in this role in addition to serving as the parish administrator.
Organist
Pam Danklefsen
Pam became a member of Messiah soon after relocating from Columbus, Ohio in 2023. A farm girl, she began playing the organ in her home church, St. James Lutheran Church in Archbold, Ohio when she was fifteen. She attended Miami University (Oxford, Ohio), Wright State University, and Ashland University, where she earned her doctorate in Special Education. Prior to retiring, she worked as a speech/language pathologist, teacher of the gifted, adjunct professor, and regional manager for an employment agency. In her spare time, she crochets baby blankets for charity. Pam and her husband, Tom, enjoy traveling to spend time with their six children and fifteen grandchildren. She looks forward to continuing to support the strong musical tradition and ministry at Messiah.
Organist
Jane Schroeder
Jane is a native of southwest Ohio, born in Springfield and raised in Dayton. Her early music training began in the Lutheran church, where she sang in the choir and studied organ in high school, eventually playing the early service at her home church, Messiah Lutheran, Dayton, OH. She majored in Music Education at Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, OH-with an emphasis in organ study-and played throughout college at several Bowling Green area churches. Upon graduation, she began her teaching career in Toledo, OH and then returned to the Dayton area and was employed by Carlisle Local Schools, in the Dayton area, as a middle school music teacher until retirement. Her music teaching duties included general music, directing vocal choirs and for the last fifteen years at Carlisle, directing an 8th grade handbell choir, which was one of the highlights of her teaching career. During those thirty years of teaching, she continued to serve as an organist at several Lutheran churches in the Dayton area, and also finished a Master's Degree in Music Education at Wright State University, Dayton, OH. Upon retirement, she and her husband Carl moved to southwest Florida-the Ft. Myers area, where they have been permanent residents for the past ten years. Musically speaking-in addition to singing/directing and playing organ, Jane also enjoys playing handbells with an area group called Ring Sarasota. When not doing something musical, she enjoys boating, water skiing, swimming, jogging, biking, walking and dogsitting her friends' dogs, international travel and most especially spending time with her son and his fiance and their two sweet dogs in Cincinnati OH. Ironically, she has come full circle, back to Messiah Lutheran-this time in Cape Coral Fl. instead of Dayton, OH. She and her husband visited Messiah often with her parents while visiting them in Fl., and after becoming full-time Floridians themselves, joined Messiah in 2014.At present, she and her colleague Pam Danklefsen share the organist duties at Messiah. Serving at Messiah is both spiritually and musically rewarding and an unanticipated blessing in retirement."
Aspiring to be a Susan Cusack started college majoring in English with a minor in music. It didn’t take long to realize she would need a job someday. She switched schools and majors, eventually earning a BS in Nursing. She worked as an oncology nurse until moving into private industry where she held leadership positions in Medical Writing and Regulatory Affairs.
Her love of music remained a part of her life singing in church choirs and serving as a cantor. She began directing the her church’s children’s choir shortly after graduating from college. Since then she has directed 3 other children’s choirs and 4 adult choirs in New Jersey and SW Florida. She is thrilled to be working with the Choir at Messiah Lutheran Church.
Susan has been married to her beloved Irish carpenter, Eamon, for over 33 years. They have 2 adult children and a very precious granddaughter. Now she is retired, and life has come full circle…she’s also a published author.
Judith King serves as director of handbell music at Messiah Lutheran Church. Originally from Vermont, Judith is a member of the American Guild of English Handbell Ringing, has rung handbells for over 30 years and was a charter member of the Southwest Florida Handbell Ensemble. In 2013 Judith attended the International Handbell Symposium in Liverpool, Great Britain. While in England she participated in ringing at a tower bell rehearsal at St. Michael's Anglican Church in Garston. Earlier this year Judith traveled throughout Ireland and Scotland visiting several cathedrals, some with handbell choirs and/or tower bell choirs. She had the privilege of accompanying the bell ringers in the tower at St. Patrick's Cathedral in Dublin, Ireland to toll the bells for Sunday services. While in central Scotland she participated in a handbell rehearsal in Dunkeld and attended the Dunblane Cathedral ringers handbell concert featuring their three versatile advanced choirs. Judith plays tenor drum for the Harp and Thistle Bagpipe Band from Naples, Florida, which placed first in the state of Florida 2015 Highland Games. Judith also plays mountain dulcimer and is a member of the Southwest Florida Dulcimer club. Judith enjoys reading, English Country dancing, Contra dancing and has achieved the three levels of the Florida Master Naturalist program.
Ms. Carmen has been the director of Kid's Connection since 2007, and before that was assistant director for 3 years. She has a Bachelor's Degree in psychology and sociology, and an associate's degree in Human Services and Early Childhood Development.
Ms. Carmen is married and has three children and six grandchildren.
