Doug Peterson

Doug was born into a Lutheran family in Wisconsin and found himself subject to the Vietnam-era draft after leaving college, starting what would become a forty-year relationship with the U.S. military. Only after he entered the service (as a Russian linguist) did Doug encounter a gospel appeal through a Baptist outreach ministry, which brought him toward a spiritual awakening. After his discharge and a fling with Mormonism, the grace of God intervened, leading him back into the service as a Czech linguist. During a tour in Germany in the late '70s, the Lord brought Doug under the ministry of a missionary to the military community and confirmed in him evidence of the new birth through a personal trust in Jesus. Those deeply transformative years of spiritual growth led Doug to again leave active duty to pursue training for vocational Christian ministry. Doug completed his M.Div. at Grace Theological Seminary, and then returned to active duty in 1989 as an Army chaplain. Upon retirement (CH LT COL) in 2014, Doug sought follow-on ministry, which began in 2015 as a resident in Clinical Pastoral Education at the University of Kansas Health System. He completed a second year CPE fellowship to develop approaches to pastoral care for organ transplant patients and their families, with a final unit focus on palliative care. In July 2017, Doug began a chaplain position with University Health--Truman Medical Center in Kansas City, Missouri. He is currently working as a staff chaplain in an innovative program in trauma response and follow-on support for gunshot victims and their families in the inner city.