Pastor John Bent - Senior Pastor
john@clcwhitefish.org - Phone Extension 227

John Bent has served as senior pastor at Christ Lutheran Church since June of 1991.  Prior to that he served five years in his first call at Our Redeemer Lutheran in Nashua, MT.  John also served 5 years on the staff at Lutheran Bible Institute of Seattle.

Pastor Bent grew up in rural Montana and graduated from Montana State with a degree in Fish and Wildlife Management. He still considers himself to be in the “fish and wildlife management” business!  John has a Master of Divinity degree from Warburg Seminary in Dubuque, IA and has done a good deal of post-graduate work in the Doctor of Ministry program at Asbury Seminary in Wilmore, KY.

As senior Pastor, John’s role is to lead and assist the congregation in fulfilling it’s vision to bring the light of Christ into the world.  He is specifically responsible to make sure the Word of God is taught accurately and the Sacraments are administered rightly. 

On the personal side, John is married to Grace and they have two married daughters and two grand-daughters. John enjoys playing guitar and banjo as well as golf and being outdoors.

Pastor Ralph Boyer - Associate Pastor
ralph@clcwhitefish.org - Phone Extension 224

Ralph grew up in a Lutheran pastor's family in Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Maryland. During high school and college he saw his future in the sciences and graduated with a degree in biology from Wittenberg University in Ohio. Stephanie and he met at college and were married in 1973.

As he was completing the biology degree he began to think that perhaps the Lord had something else in mind for him. Attending seminary helped him to answer that question and realize that while science was and still is a strong interest for him, that his calling is in the ministry. He graduated from Gettysburg Seminary in 1979 and served as an associate pastor in Poway, California.

He and the family moved back to Pennsylvania where he served as senior pastor of Christ Hamilton United Lutheran Church from 1982 until March of 2009. They moved to Columbia Falls in 2009 to be close to their son and daughter-in-law and grandson in Whitefish. They have two other sons and a daughter-in-law living in California. Ralph enjoys the outdoors and the skiing, hiking and fishing of the Flathead Valley.

Kari McCrady - Director of Youth Ministries
kari@clcwhitefish.org - Phone Extension 225

Kari McCrady has been the Director of Youth Ministry at Christ Lutheran Church since December, 2002.  Her experience with youth ministry began at the University of Wisconsin, Eau Claire where she received a Bachelor’s degree in Communication and Youth Ministry.  Upon graduation in 1997, she was called to full time youth ministry at Shepherd of the Valley in Apple Valley, MN.  After 4 years, the Lord called her and her husband to Montana to work at Flathead Lutheran Bible Camp and the position at CLC opened up soon after.

Kari enjoys being part of building a Christ-centered youth ministry program with adult volunteers that care about sharing their faith in a safe environment with the 5th-12th graders God has entrusted to this church.  She has a passion for providing faith building opportunities for these kids through experiences on mission trips, Wednesday night LOGOS, or time spent at a local coffee shop.  She and her husband Mark have a heart for kids, and have a daughter, Linnea, and a son, Gavin.

Grace Bent - Director of Music and Worship
grace@clcwhitefish.org - Phone Extension 226

Grace Bent has served with the CLC staff as Director of Music and Worship since 2003.  Her role is to oversee and develop the music and worship ministries of CLC.  Her great joy is to usher people into the presence of the Lord through music and enable them to worship Him with all their heart. 

Music has always been a part of Grace’s life.  She grew up in a very musical family.  She traveled for several years with her sisters doing Gospel music and outreach for Lutheran Bible Institute in Seattle, WA.  Grace has a degree in elementary education from Seattle Pacific University and worked for 15 years as a Kindergarten/PreSchool teacher, before coming on staff with CLC.

Born and raised in Minnesota, Grace has been married to Pastor John for 29 years. They have lived in Whitefish since 1991. They have two married daughters and two very precious granddaughters.