Rev. Dan Heim

Pastor

(708) 848-4741
Pastor@GoodShepherdLC.org

Dan Heim has served as pastor at Good Shepherd since January 2026. He is interested in equipping all the people of God to follow Jesus in their daily lives and vocations, in spiritual formation and leadership development, and in fostering relationships between all generations in the church. 

Raised in Oak Park and a product of District 97 schools and Oak Park-River Forest High School, Dan was ordained as a pastor in 2016. Prior to Good Shepherd, he served congregations in suburban Seattle and San Antonio. Dan studied at Wheaton (IL) College and Duke Divinity School, completed his Lutheran studies at the Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago, and spent 5 years in Washington D.C. working in politics and journalism before entering ordained ministry. 

Dan is married with two daughters and in his free time enjoys reading, playing board and card games, and rooting on Chicago’s sports teams. 

Carl Heine grew up in Seattle, Washington and moved to Illinois with his wife, Pat, and their three children in the mid-80’s. Before coming to Good Shepherd, Carl served four other congregations in a variety of capacities, from organist and music director to youth and Christian education director. He has degrees in music and education, including a PhD in education from the University of Chicago. Most recently, he was the music director at St. Paul Lutheran in Wheaton, IL as well as director of entrepreneurship at the Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy. As a musician, Carl plays an array of instruments, composes sacred choral and instrumental music and enjoys performing all periods and styles. For Carl, music is significant in the life of a congregation—as demonstrated at Good Shepherd—to the extent that it opens ears to the Word and allows voices of all ages and talents to be heard.

The first question I am usually asked is, “What is a deaconess anyway?” The quick answer is that a Lutheran deaconess is a woman who is called, trained and set apart for service. For me, this service is lived out in a congregation setting, currently here at Good Shepherd Lutheran Church as the Director of Christian Education. I did my education/formation at Valparaiso University, a year internship in Fort Wayne, Indiana, and was consecrated as a deaconess in 1999.

My ministry at Good Shepherd focuses on faith education and spiritual growth for all ages. I lead our Sunday School, Confirmation ministry and youth program, coordinate our summer Vacation Bible School, and offer support and resources to our many member-led programs. I am passionate about encouraging others in what God has called them to do and to create opportunities for mentoring between age groups.

What makes my work so great is that I get to do crafts with kids, go bowling with middle schoolers, ride horses with high schoolers and camp with college students. At the same time, I am able to talk with parents about the challenges of parenting today, explore the gift of being a woman of faith with other women, and volunteer at a food bank side by side with people of every generation. I truly love what I do!

Kimberly Adami-Hasegawa

Office Administrator

(708) 848-4741
ChurchOffice@GoodShepherdLC.org

Kimberly has been at Good Shepherd since 2019. Before coming to Good Shepherd, she worked in education, at a stationery shop, and served as a volunteer coordinator for Honor Flight Chicago. In addition to working in the church office, she owns a tiny greeting card company and hosts monthly letter writing events in Forest Park.

Gail is a lifelong Lutheran and has been a member of Good Shepherd for 30 years and counting. She has served in church leadership in various ways since high school and for most of the time she has been a member at Good Shepherd - on council and as chair of Christian Education and GS Connects through the years. She has spent many years teaching Sunday school, sings in the choir and participates in many activities at church. As council president, she wants to make sure everyone is welcomed into the Good Shepherd community and finds their place here.

Betsy Bowen

Church Council Member

Betsy Bowen has been a member of Good Shepherd since 2019. You may have seen her at church chasing after her rambunctious toddler, Anders. Betsy’s professional background is in social work and after several years of working with people experiencing homelessness in Chicago, she became a faculty member at the University at Buffalo School of Social Work in Buffalo, NY, where she primarily teaches online. Betsy lives in south Oak Park with her family, which includes her husband, Kevin Olson; stepsons, Lars and Soren; and Anders. At Good Shepherd, she has been involved in counting, Sunday School, and Meal Shepherds, and briefly served as the chair of Good Shepherd Connects. Betsy is interested in serving on Council to give back to the church community that has given so much to her and her family. She has also been reflecting lately on the joys and challenges of her experiences as a caregiver for toddlers, teens, and aging parents and is passionate about continuing to make Good Shepherd a caring and welcoming place for all.

Dan Feiertag
John Jackson

Church Co-Treasurers

Kyle Niewald is husband to Liz and father of three. He and his family joined Good Shepherd in the early spring of 2025, transferring from a life-time membership with the LCMS denomination. Kyle was born and raised in St. Louis, attended Immanuel Lutheran Church and School (Olivette MO) for K-8 education, where he was baptized and confirmed. Graduated from Lutheran High School North, then Illinois Wesleyan University with a degree in business administration. Kyle moved to Forest Park in 2009 and was married to Liz at Immanuel Lutheran, Downers Grove, shortly thereafter. The Niewalds are avid campers/ glampers. Last year they made 10 trips across parks in IL, WI, IN, and MI. Kyle enjoys all things outdoors, hiking, fishing, hunting, and napping. When he cannot be enjoying the outdoors, he owns and operates a Home Inspection business, primarily representing buyers in their home purchasing process. 

Scott White is a recent transplant to Chicago from Lawrence, Kansas and has been a member of Good Shepherd since mid-2022. Scott grew up in the ELCA in Michigan and has been a member of ELCA churches in Michigan, South Dakota, WIsconsin, and Kansas. Over the years, he has worked at church-based summer camps, worked with youth groups, and served on church councils and various other committees. For the past 20 years, he has worked in the renewable energy industry (wind and more recently, solar). He was instrumental in getting solar installed at GSLC. Scott lives in Forest Park with his wife Stacey. They have two adult sons.

Dan Eppley was raised in one of the churches that joined to form the ELCA, and attended and later taught at colleges related to the ELCA. He moved to Oak Park in 2022 when he accepted a position in the Office of the Secretary at the churchwide organization of the ELCA. Dan has a broad range of experience, having been employed as a chemist and a professor of religion prior to taking his current position. Raised in north-central Iowa, he lived in Minnesota, upstate New York, the Philadelphia area, eastern Iowa, western Texas, and western Pennsylvania prior to moving to the Chicago area. Dan hopes serving on the Church Council will deepen his connection to Good Shepherd, and believes his gifts and experiences will enable him to contribute to the life of Good Shepherd as the church engages members in worshiping God and serving their neighbors.

Linda Thomas

Church Council Member

Linda Thomas has been a lifelong Lutheran. She attended Community Lutheran Church (name changed after several mergers to United Mission of Christ) in the Austin area of Chicago for over 35 years. She served as the youth program leader for 16 years, did several terms as a council member and at times served as secretary, served as the adult Sunday School teacher, and participated in choir. Linda also served as the Synod Assembly delegate as well as the Conference delegate for the ELCA Assembly. After the church closed, she joined Bethel West Lutheran Church for 7 years. At Bethel, Linda served as an usher, choir member, and served on church council as secretary. She retired from AT&T after 30-plus years as a Corporate Analyst. Linda joined Good Shepherd at the end of 2022. She loves tennis, bowling, and playing the game of Dominos with friends and family.

Kristin de Groot 

Christian Education

Our mission is to provide interesting and engaging ways for children and adults to nurture and strengthen their faith journeys while encouraging them to grow in faith, service and fellowship. We make sure that all of our programs are running smoothly with the necessary volunteers each week. We discuss upcoming events and how we can help make them happen. We discuss ways to keep our programs relevant and meaningful for all participants. We vision about what more we would like to see happen at Good Shepherd. If you are interested in Christian Education and want to learn more, contact the chairperson, or any of the committee members.

Open Chair 

Finance

Our mission is to oversee and provide guidance for the financial life of Good Shepherd Lutheran. The committee meets once a month as scheduled. See the Good Shepherd calendar for upcoming meetings.  If you are interested in Finance and want to learn more, please send us a message using the Volunteer tab.

Marcy Moreno

Evangelism

Our mission is to spread the spirit and words of Christ to all men and all women; to welcome all to worship in our diverse Good Shepherd congregation; to encounter Christ in each person treating all with love, trust and respect; to nourish spiritual growth and encourage, teach and support all who witness and follow Christ's example. 

Pete Chapman

GS Connects

Our mission is to organize/assist with fellowship events for the congregation to foster connections among members, visitors and our community. The committee meets approximately once a month as scheduled. See the Good Shepherd calendar for upcoming meetings. If you are interested in helping make and foster connections within our church community and want to learn more, contact the Pete.

Rich Novak 

Property

Our mission is to support Good Shepherd by caring for our physical assets and facilitating their use by members and friends. The Property Committee meets as needed. See the Good Shepherd calendar for upcoming meetings. If you are interested in Property and want to learn more, contact the committee chair.

Mark Ledogar

Stewardship

Our mission is to assist and encourage members striving for whole life stewardship, and to plan and conduct the annual Pledge Drive to assist in budgeting for ministries, programs, property maintenance, and staff payroll. If you are interested in Stewardship and want to learn more, contact the committee chair.

Lynn Railsback

Worship, Music and The Arts

Our mission is to provide a worship experience for people of all spiritual paths so they are equipped and inspired to practice their faith throughout the week. We stress the experience of God's love and grace in community, joy and thankfulness, comfort and consolation, provocation and challenge. The committee meets the second Thursday of each month. If you are interested in Worship, Music and the Arts and want to learn more, contact the committee chair.

Liz Lemke
Carrie Cook

Social Ministry

Our mission is to support programs bringing help to members, our community and the world, and to educate Good Shepherd members concerning justice and social welfare issues.  The Social Ministry committee meets as needed. See the Good Shepherd calendar for upcoming meetings. If you are interested in Social Ministry and want to learn more, contact the committee chairs.

Open Chair

Sustainability

Our mission is to connect the actions of the Good Shepherd community to the stewardship of God's creation. We promote sustainability in every aspect of church life, and advocate and demonstrate ideas and technologies that move our community to more sustainable living. See the Good Shepherd calendar for upcoming meetings. If you are interested in Sustainability and want to learn more, contact the committee chair.