Pastor Rue, Serena, Geoffrey, and Benjamin
Message From the Pastor
Welcome!
St. Paul’s is a Christian church and multi-faceted ministry driven by a love and appreciation for God’s Word. We believe that the whole Bible is God’s own thoughts and words. We are also a community church. Our goal is to meet the needs of those around us by sharing God’s love.
Pastor Geoffrey D. Rue
Background
Pastor Geoffrey Donald Rue was born in San Antonio, TX, but is no stranger to southeastern Wisconsin. The Rue family eventually moved to Hartford, WI in 1997, and then to Racine, WI in 2000. Pastor Rue spent the remainder of his childhood in Racine.
It was very evident, even from his childhood, that he wanted to become a pastor. He wanted to be just like his grandfather, Pastor Keith Bender, who was called home to heaven in November 2007. His grandfather was a huge reason why Pastor Rue entered the ministry.
Education
Pastor Rue was confirmed at Trinity Lutheran Church in Caledonia, WI on May 15, 2005, and graduated from Shoreland Lutheran High School in May 2009.
He continued his education at Martin Luther College in New Ulm, MN where he would begin pursuing a career in the public ministry. While at MLC, he studied the original languages of the Bible (Greek & Hebrew), German, doctrine and music. He graduated from MLC in May 2013.
Pastor Rue took the next step in his education by attending Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary in Mequon, WI. During his time at the seminary, he worked at Lighthouse Youth Center of Milwaukee, where he would gain valuable ministry experience. Pastor Rue spent his vicar year serving at St. John’s Lutheran Church in Princeton, WI. He returned to the seminary for his final year and would graduate the seminary in May 2017.
Previous Ministry Experience
From the seminary, Pastor Rue was assigned to be the outreach pastor at St. Paul Lutheran Church in Tacoma, WA. Although a small congregation, Pastor Rue was the first ever associate pastor of St. Paul’s due to a special financial gift that was given to help support his ministry for about two years. During his time there, he helped lay the groundwork for long-term, consistent outreach efforts and activities which allowed the congregation to reach out and connect with the city of Tacoma. When the funds from the special gift which supported Pastor Rue’s ministry in Tacoma were running out, Pastor Rue was made available to receive calls from other congregations. On June 2, 2019, Pastor Rue received the call to serve as pastor at St. Paul Lutheran Church in East Troy, WI, which he accepted a few weeks later.
Family & Personal
Pastor Rue is the oldest of five children. His family moved to different cities often during his childhood because of his father’s job.
While Pastor Rue was studying at Martin Luther College, he met his wife, Serena Rue (Jungers). Serena is from Appleton, WI. The two became friends in the fall of 2009 and began dating in February 2010. They were engaged in June 2012 and would graduate MLC together in May 2013. Pastor and Serena were married on June 1, 2013, just two weeks after graduating college.
During his vicar year in Princeton, WI, Pastor and Serena were blessed with their first child, Geoffrey Donald Rue II, born on February 6, 2016, and baptized on Valentine’s Day 2016. Pastor and Serena were blessed with their second son while serving as pastor in Tacoma, WA. Benjamin Keith Rue was born on March 5, 2019 and baptized the next day. Elias Cole Rue was born August 21, 2023 and baptized September 10, 2023.
Pastor Rue loves his Wisconsin sports teams, the Packers, Brewers, Bucks, Badger Football and Marquette basketball. He enjoys playing sports of all kinds and enjoys playing the piano and organ. On his off days, he loves spending time with family and friends. Pastor Rue is very excited to begin his new ministry at St. Paul’s, East Troy and the Rue family is excited to live and worship in East Troy.