08/04/2026
The first Sunday of college, Katie Elkin Ziehr showed up to a Lutheran campus ministry at 8:30 in the morning — not because anyone told her to, but because that's just who she is. "I was a church nerd even then," she laughs. What she found at the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill became more than a faith community; it became the place that shaped her. So when the opportunity came to return as its campus pastor, she didn't hesitate.
"It's not an exaggeration to say this campus ministry made me who I am today," Katie says. "Getting to give back to that felt like such an amazing opportunity."
But coming home carried its own complications. Campus ministry looks different from the pastoral side of the altar. Suddenly Katie was responsible for things she'd never seen as a student — managing budgets, navigating alumni relations, planning spring break trips for 16 people, and building a leadership team culture. And underneath all the logistics was a deeper question she was working out in real time: Who am I as a pastor?
That's where her LuMin Network mentor, Pastor Lori, came in.
"When I don't have a campus ministry committee to take questions to, I just ask Pastor Lori at our next meeting and she usually has a good idea," Katie says simply. But the mentorship has been far more than logistical troubleshooting. When Katie was wrestling with a clash of leadership styles with a student, Pastor Lori didn't just offer sympathy — she asked a clarifying question: What is your role as their pastor? That reframe shifted something in Katie.
"Sometimes I need that reminder," she reflects. "I'm not their professor. I'm their pastor. What's my responsibility there?"
Perhaps the most lasting gift has been perspective. Katie’s predecessor served at UNC Chapel Hill for 25 years. When thinking of time in such a big chunk, Katie found herself quietly anxious about the next 25 years. Pastor Lori gently reoriented her: think in four-year cycles, like the students do. Set goals for next semester, not 2050.
"It sounds obvious, but it was so helpful," Katie says. "It gave me grace for myself. And a framework I can actually use."
That framework — knowing what belongs to her, what belongs to the students, and what belongs to campus ministry broadly — is what Katie says will shape her ministry for years to come. "I wish everyone had a mentor," she says. "I really do."
Pr. Katie Elkin Ziehr serves as campus pastor at UNC Chapel Hill. She connected with Pastor Lori through the LuMin Network's mentoring program, which pairs new campus ministers with experienced colleagues for ongoing support and formation.
