Get to know our staff…

Pastor Ryan Radtke

A graduate of Wartburg Theological Seminary in Dubuque, IA, he grew up in Wisconsin and still has a lot of family in that neck of the woods.  He is married to Pastor Liz Radtke, and they have three children.  Pastor Ryan has served in congregations in Minnesota and California before coming to Virginia.  He has a passion for imagining new ways to understand and share the gospel.  He loves teaching Bible studies and confirmation and learning from the folks around him.  He wants to invite people into a deeper conversation about what God is up to right now – whether those people are new to church and the Bible and faith-type stuff, or they’ve been in the middle of this their whole lives.  Pastor Ryan loves the Lutheran dialect to the language of faith, especially the teaching that we are freed from/freed for (ask him more about that one).  Pastor Ryan has a really dry sense of humor, so it’s a good thing Martin Luther wants us to remember our baptisms every single day.

He would love to hear from you. If you need to get in touch with him, use the below link.

Heather Heckel – Church Administrator

Heather Heckel lives in Mechanicsville with her husband, Harry, their dog, and their two cats. They have one daughter who is in college. In addition to being the church administrator, Heather is an adjunct Sociology instructor and a publisher/book designer.

Sue Gilnett, RN – Parish Nurse

Sue Gilnett has been the Parish Nurse for Messiah Lutheran Church since 1995. She has served as the Leader for our Health and Wellness Committee. With the help of many of our members, we have presented information on healthy nutrition, End of life information, CPR, Aging to Perfection Seminars
to name a few. We look forward to presenting more education to our congregation and community as part of our Outreach to others.       

Debbie Walker – Church Pianist

Started piano lessons at age 6 and received B.S. degree in Music Education (piano) from Radford University.