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David and Lori
both grew up in North Canton Ohio,
as members of the Mt.
Pleasant Church
of the Brethren. They began dating after high school and were married in
1979. David graduated from the University
of Akron with a degree in
accounting, and began working in the accounting field. Lori graduated from Malone College with a degree in Social
Studies, and worked in an office. Both were very much involved in their
church: teaching Sunday School classes, serving on boards and committees,
participating in various roles in the music ministry, eventually serving as
Deacons.
Along the way,
three young men were added to the Ulm
family, Adam, Aaron and Nathan. Lori became comfortable in the role of a
hard-working stay-at-home mom, and David’s accounting career continued to
move forward, becoming corporate controller of a third party administrator of
group health care benefits headquartered in Akron, Ohio.
Church, family, work, and sports played large roles in the Ulm family.
In 1996, David
began to feel a call to full-time ministry, at the same time as others in the
church began sensing the same direction for David’s life. After a time of
diligently seeking God’s will through prayer, fasting, and the Holy Spirit’s
moving, David and Lori committed themselves to follow God’s call, not knowing
where it would lead their family.
David was
licensed to ministry in 1997, and went through the interview process in their
home congregation. The congregational vote was positive to hire David, but
did not match the criteria God had set before David and Lori, so they turned
the position down.
David was hired
by the Mt. Zion
Road Church
of the Brethren effective January 1, 1998, and the Ulms
relocated to Lebanon, PA between Christmas 1997 and the start of
1998. David has served as pastor of MZR since that date, doing course work at
Evangelical School of Theology and the Susquehanna Valley Satellite of
Bethany Seminary. He was ordained in July of 2005.
Lori shares her gift for music and teaching in the life of
the congregation. Adam is married to Katie and together they pastor the Youth
at the Mechanic Grove Church of the Brethren.
Aaron and Nathan are unmarried and working.
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